Can song lyrics be considered literature?

March 4, 2012 4:00 PM

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Chuck Berry — Honoree Chuck Berry performs during the 2012 Awards for Lyrics of Literary Excellence at The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library And Museum on February 26, 2012 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Getty Images/Marc Andrew Deley

Can song lyrics be considered literature? The people at PEN New England certainly think so. They awarded their first-ever Song Lyrics of Literary Excellence award to Chuck Berry and Leonard Cohen on Feb. 26.

Bob Dylan called Berry "the Shakespeare of rock 'n' roll" and Cohen "the Kafka of the blues." Are we ascribing too great a significance to songs?

Kerri Miller will be talking with Grammy winner Dan Wilson, local musician DeVon Gray and MPR News reporter Chris Roberts.

Video: Dan Wilson performs "Someone Like You"

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