The Life and Times of John Gower, Poet Lyrics

After his death in the year 1408

The poet John Gower was buried and interred

In a green and red tomb in the Priory Church

Which is now recognized as the Southwark Cathedral

Gower was a man dealing primarily in allegories

Writing in French, English and Latin

But never quite achieving the literary fame

Of his peer, that inescapable Chaucer

Hey, hey, Geoffrey Chaucer

Hey, hey, Geoffrey Chaucer

His most famous work, the Confession Amantis

Is devised in octosyllabic couplets

And despite his reputation for overt moralism

Describes many sexual encounters in lurid detail

But this was the 1300s after all

And it's important we not forget

Things sure were different back then

I first encountered Gower in Shakespeare's adaptation

Of his tale of Pericles, Prince of Tyre

I've thought about him three times a week since that day

And my goal by the end of this song

Is for you to do the same

You'll think

Hey, hey, John Gower

Hey, hey, John Gower

Hey, hey, John Gower