You may be wondering what a book of Cole Porter lyrics is doing on a bookshelf devoted to poetry. Lyrics, after all, are often seen as the redheaded stepchild of legitimate poets – which is a darned shame. The best of song lyrics often outshine lyric poetry in their timeliness, artistry and piquancy – and Cole Porter was a consummate lyricist with a sharp, quick wit and a mind that twisted words into pretzels and left you wondering at the deftness of his handling. Which is why I was thoroughly delighted to run across this review of Cole Porter Selected Lyrics. The collection of Porter”s lyrics is selected from over 800 songs by Robert Kimball, an historian of the American theater, and is part of the American Poetry Project – which should say something about whether or not the lyrics can be considered poetry. Other poets in the series include John Berryman, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Gwendolyn Brooks, Samuel Menashe, Theodore Roethke and William Carlos Williams – rarefied poetic company for one whose poetic form begs the question of whether or not it is actually poetry.

In truth, though, Porter”s lyrics are the epitome of light, satirical verse. He was the master of invoking depth through frivolity, and his verse compares favorably with that of such satiricists as Dorothy Parker and Lewis Carroll. Says reviewer David Barber,

What”s striking, though, is how many numbers in the Porter songbook still have a way of getting under the skin, imparting an emotional depth and psychological complexity seldom heard before or since on the bandstand or the jukebox. Even at this late date when God knows, anything goes, Porter”s needling commentary on social proprieties and irreverent treatment of sexual politics has lost practically none of its post-Freudian edge and antipuritanical bite. No lyricist with so light a touch ever packed so powerful a punch.

Porter”s lyrics hold their own on page, though as Barber pointed out, they”re even better when they have the music. Still, just in case you start thinking that poetry is serious, dire stuff, a little Cole Porter on the bookshelf is a good thing to have. It”s de-lightful, it”s de-lovely, it”s de-licious and it”s totally poetry.