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Zero Point Zero: Independence Day and All That
It’s really too nice out to be thinking too hard about poetry…I just got back from lunch before a three day weekend; I’m tired and full, and while not entirely happy, I am relatively satisfied for a change.
I also have very few illusions about how many people are going to be reading this column this week. A lot of you are likely to be away; if you’re home, you’re probably not going to be spending time in front of a computer.
So I’m not going to lose my mind doing this either. I mean, we all need a break from depth on occasion. And while it may seem to some that all of my columns are a break from depth most of the time, this time I’m consciously reaching for the lowest rung. Who’s got the attention span for this stuff right now?
Therefore, I offer some semi-random observations on things I’ve noticed of late:
Back when I was a kid, everybody had passionate arguments about music all the time. If you ran into someone who didn’t have a passionate stance on a major musical issue, you were shocked. We used to use it as an acid test for whether or not someone belonged “in the game” with us; could you adequately defend your opinion on which was the best Pink Floyd album? Could you, with lightning fast recall, tell us the names and correct order of drummers in the Clash?
It seemed that people looked to their favorite artists for the philosophical underpinning of their lives. I don’t hear that as much as I once did; it still happens, but I don’t see it happening as universally as it once did. It used to be EVERYBODY who did this.
I think at least part of this was that more radio stations differentiated their formats more dramatically from one another. People defended their allegiance to one station or another as fiercely as anything else in their lives. (Yes, I mean that.)
With the rise of corporate consolidation of media and automated playlists, giants like ClearChannel and Infinity Broadcasting have done a good job of diluting the diversity of the markets so dramatically that it’s hard to see folks getting this worked up anymore. It’s all a big blah soundtrack. It’s all product.
File sharing has provided a recent alternative…which is why we’re seeing so much of the “star making machinery” (thanks, Joni) going apeshit over it. Gotta save the industry they love to milk, right? Hell, they’re so desperate about it they’re putting the actual machinery on TV now in the hope we’ll be excited about it…right, Ruben? Clay? Kelly?
What with Def Poetry Jam, etc…something to consider when you’re thinking about the future of performance poetry, eh?
I’ve got a feature coming up this Sunday at my home venue in Worcester…and I have to say that no gig scares me more than this one, ever. I read there as a feature about once every 12-18 months or so; but since the crowd knows all my work really well, the pressure to not fuck up and to make sure that I go over the top with the quality of the performance is HUGE inside me.
And now, after saying that, I’m going to be paranoid about farting on stage. Shit.
“Beginner’s mind” is a concept from Zen Buddhism that refers to the state of never having done something; of having no preconceptions, and thus having total freedom in your efforts.
I have of late brought a guitar with me and done a song when I perform a feature. While I think I’m a passable singer and player, and I try to make the song an appropriate choice to fit the night’s theme and atmosphere, I’m far less confident about my public performance skills on guitar than I am about them in regard to my poetry.
The guitar is really an attempt on my part to do something really risky for myself when I perform, to take myself back to beginner’s mind on stage.
The amazing free jazz sax player Ornette Coleman used to perform live on trumpet from time to time, when he really never learned to play the trumpet conventionally. This was his experiment in beginner’s mind work; good for him, but it used to drive real trumpet players crazy.
I’m thinking, now, that the guitar has become a crutch – my way of not taking the risks in the poetry itself; of not reaching for the odd and obscure poems, the ones that are more difficult to read and to hear, the ones that require more of me and the audience.
So, no guitar this week. (Stop cheering. Yes, you.)
In a couple of weeks, I’ll be reading as part of a big folk/poetry festival in NY.
Among the people performing at the festival is Suzanne Vega. Folks, I am amazed at how quickly I can be reduced to a state of complete, abject FANDOM. The opportunity to read at a show with who knows how many people there is far less intimidating than the thought of meeting her, or of –gulp—having her hear me read.
When did I get so pathetically uncool? Oh, that’s right…I never was cool. That’s why I’m a poet.
Then again, poetry is cool again. Poets are cool again; amazing, when you consider how many of us are dorks.
God, I hope I don’t fart on stage in front of Suzanne Vega.
A serious note: It’s Independence Day…the day when we celebrate our freedom.
May it not be our last chance to do so. There are forces out there that want to save the idea of the United States by destroying the spirit of it; many of them are located right here, and the long term damage caused by their efforts could poison this country far more effectively than any terrorist armed with chemicals or germs ever could.
As a poet, you stand on the front lines of the effort to resist the reduction of our civil liberties. If that seems remote or preposterous to you, consider this quote from former National Slam Indy Champ Da Boogie Man:
"think about this. the federal government had 8,000 pages of material on Martin Luther King. 9,000 pages on Malcolm X. but guess how many they had on James Baldwin? like 80,000 pages. so what does that tell you about the power of the artist? we're a threat."
Go now, and eat your cooked and grilled foods. And if you’re vegan, have a tofu dog for me.
Submitted by tony on Monday, July 07, 2003 (00:00:00) (589 reads)
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Re: Zero Point Zero: Independence Day and All That
(Score: 1 )
by Tony on Monday, July 07, 2003 (07:39:47) |
After all that, I did both at my feature: a set of really obscure poems I don't read all that often, and a single song on the guitar.
And felt good about it, too.
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