Roundelay: Poetic Form

Here's one final poetic form before the end of the year: the roundelay poem.

Technically, the roundelay is any simple lyric poem that uses a refrain, but I found a very interesting version of a John Dryden roundelay in Lewis Turco's The New Book of Forms. Basically, the roundelay is comprised of just an a rhyme and a b rhyme--with most of the lines acting as refrains.

Here is how the rhymes and refrains (capitalized with a number look):

Line 1: a
Line 2: b
Line 3: A1
Line 4: B1
Line 5: A2
Line 6: B2

Line 7: A1
Line 8: B1
Line 9: A3
Line 10: B3
Line 11: A2
Line 12: B2

Line 13: A3
Line 14: B3
Line 15: A4
Line 16: B4
Line 17: A2
Line 18: B2

Line 19: A4
Line 20: B4
Line 21: a
Line 22: b
Line 23: A2
Line 24: B2

As you can see, the A2-B2 lines complete each stanza--so these might be the most important lines of the entire poem as every other line bounces off this refrain.

Roundelay, by Robert Lee Brewer

this world is crammed full of liars
lying for love or drugs or gold
& i'm preaching to the choir
so maybe this statement's not bold:
if liar-liars catch on fire,
why is it i always feel cold?

& i'm preaching to the choir
so maybe this statement's not bold
where there was love there's no desire
possibly since i'm getting old
if liar-liars catch on fire,
why is it i always feel cold?

where there was love there's no desire
possibly since i'm getting old
now it's like i'm set to retire
& watch every sunset unfold
if liar-liars catch on fire,
why is it i always feel cold?

now it's like i'm set to retire
& watch every sunset unfold
or perhaps i'm caught on a wire
trying to buy all that i've sold
if liar-liars catch on fire,
why is it i always feel cold?

*****