Defining a “great” poet/lyricist, as compared to just “good”, requires one to not just examine their work, but to feel it as well. Words put together that move someone in an emotional way are far more elegant, and signaling of “greatness” than those selected to appear pretty. A lyricist, as well as musician, that comes to mind would be John Denver; whose work is exactly the type to make emotions sway. It’s easy to distinguish how Denver’s folk songs were written from his very heart to describe sights, places, or people near and dear to him. The effect being, the reader, or listener, is immersed as if they are witnessing what is happening in the work from a first person view. His lyrics, despite not being complex in nature, achieve this feat
