No More Letter Songs

I heard an old classic late 50's song by the Marvelettes (and made even more famous by the Beatles in the early 60's) this morning, Mister Postman. Here are some of the lines from it.

'Please Mister Postman, look and see(Oh yeah)
If there's a letter for me(Please, Please Mister Postman)
Why's it takin' such a long time(Oh yeah)
For me to hear from that boy of mine''
There must be some word today
From my boyfriend so far away
Pleas Mister Postman, look and see
If there's a letter, a letter for me'

The point is that it got me to thinking that since personal letters are now about extinct what will take their place in song lyrics of the future E mail songs? Haha I doubt it. Perhaps it's because letters are the unknown and are dramatic. There is no telling when, or even if, they will reach their destination and we imagine so many things about their content as we waited day after day fro snail mail to arrive. But E mails are blandly immediate, unless you have server problems.

Nobody wants to sing about server problems. It's not romantic. Most letter songs feature absent lovers, loneliness and none high anxiety of separation from the loved one. In the pre personal computer era letter songs illustrated everything from the breathless excitement of receiving a long awaited letter better than the 70 pop group, 'The Box Tops' classic "The Letter"

'Well, she wrote me a letter
Said she couldn't live without me no more
Listen mister, can't you see
I got to get back To my baby once-a more'

Sarah Vaughan the late great jazz singer as long ago as pre World War II sang the classic letter song, 'I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter' In it Sarah is reduced to penning her own love letters, complete with kisses at the bottom.

'I'm gonna sit right down and write myself a letter
And make believe it came from you.
I'm gonna write word, oh, so sweet
They're gonna knock me off my feet
A lot of kisses at the bottom, I'll be glad I got em'

Kind of sad, but not as bad as the thought of someone trying to write an emotional song about e mail or about internet chat. I could find many more examples of letter songs, but none in recent years. I guess it illustrates that our improved communication and transportation may be faster and more reliable, but it surely lacks any sense of romance.

Someone should write a song about that concept.