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The Jazz Clock Lyrics by J.D. Smith

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The Jazz Clock

The jazz clock ticks
sometimes, when it wants to,
and sometimes it tocks.
Now and then,
for the sheer sake of variety,
it both ticks and tocks
like its wall and mantle brethren
in the customary alliteration.
Just not for long.

Instead, the jazz clock measures one moment,
then the next, like
the long tidal pull of a sleeper’s breath,
the lightning in a sneeze,
the last eternal seconds before a night of love begins
and the instant that it lasts.

This timepiece, too, starts and stops
with morning traffic
that snakes from block to block,
gridlocks, then syncopates and pulls over
for several measures’ rest, making way
for the siren solo of an ambulance
whose passenger’s heart has dropped
its immaterial drumsticks;

But just as fast as that traffic jammed
the jam dissolves—
first with a spurt of pent-up momentum,
then with an artery’s steady flow.
The jazz clock slows with the thought
of an expanding universe,
the earth’s lengthening lap around the sun
and its gears slip, like a deep-space probe,
toward meeting with an infinite still
until, on an African savannah,
a most immediate
cheetah accelerates
from zero to sixty
in pursuit of an appetizing gazelle
and closes the distance,
pouncing
as a prophet in another hemisphere
is suddenly encompassed
by a light he knows,
this time, is not a seizure.

The hour hand leaps ahead,
the minute hand pulls back as if to clap,
and the stunned second hand oscillates
while existence tucks in its shirt, then moves on
to the crowing of a rooster,
the trilling of a robin or
some other kind of pizzicato bird.

The jazz clock, consequently, has no alarm.
It is always time to wake up.
It is always time to dream.
Credits
J.D. Smith

J.D. Smith

About “The Jazz Clock” by J.D. Smith

Read the complete lyrics to "The Jazz Clock" by J.D. Smith. On Lyrks you can follow along with the full text, explore the artist's discography, and discover related songs. The track is often categorized under Non-Music, Literature.

"The Jazz Clock" is performed by J.D. Smith. This page provides the full lyric text for fans who want to sing along, study the songwriting, or compare versions across releases. Lyrks organizes lyrics by artist and song slug so you can bookmark and share a stable URL. Music lyrics help listeners connect with emotion, narrative, and rhythm in a track. Whether you are learning English, researching a favorite chorus, or preparing for karaoke, having accurate line breaks and section labels (verse, chorus, bridge) makes the experience easier. We link to the official artist profile on Lyrks where available, including biography snippets, top songs, and chart placements when we have that data. If you enjoy "The Jazz Clock", explore more songs by J.D. Smith using the links below. Chart and trending pages on Lyrks highlight what listeners are searching for this week. For copyright or correction requests, see our DMCA and contact pages.

View all songs and biography for J.D. Smith · Trending lyrics · Billboard Hot 100

Frequently asked questions

"The Jazz Clock" is credited to J.D. Smith. Songwriting credits may include additional writers listed on the release; check the credits section on this page for linked collaborators.

Album information for "The Jazz Clock" is not available in our database yet. You can still read the full lyrics on this page.

Visit the J.D. Smith artist page at /artist/jd-smith for biography, popular tracks, and links to more lyric pages.

Flashback
Coyotes
Beginning with a Line Overheard in Chicago
Carpe, Carpe
Drunkard Watched from an Upper Floor
Agenda
“Borough Sidewalks in Disarray”
Eulogy, First Draft
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