Reading reports & photos

Man, yesterday's Frequency was just kick ass. Daniel read from God Save My Queen II as well as some other new poems--as usual the Fish series from the "Mr Bad Guy" album (Freddie's solo work) was a hit. The top 10 reasons why Queen shifted to their late "fat synth sound" and into declining popularity--"10. Because they can. They're Queen, the greatest f*cking rock band there ever was or ever will be. They can do whatever the hell they want."







Laurel Snyder read from her Daphne & Jim series--which you may have sampled on her blog (see blogroll). The "choose your own adventure" endings were cool. Audience members chose the route at the end of each poem tracing the history of Daphne & Jim's courtship, marriage, and the narrator's birth--a birth that almost didn't happen. The poems were ASTOUNDING.







Then Ethan Paquin read from his new book Accumulus--beautiful, lyrical work--some movingly personal poems about his wife Kelly. The poems from Makeshift were familiar, but the work from Dead July was new to me. The impression I got was of layering and hypnotic attention to sound. Can't wait to absorb them more fully from the page.







Pretty much immediately after the readings I had to take off for the Bowery Poetry Club. Luckily I got to chat with Laurel for a while before her reading. Shawn, Charlie & I walked over to the Club with a bagful of Hal's books. As always, a good crowd gathered to see Hal--who puts on a terrific show every time--resembling the act of a stand-up comic as much as a poet. Hal was my first "poet friend" in New York. He introduced me to Steve Cannon & the Gathering of the Tribes folks, and to the late (and much missed) poet Lester Affleck, among others. That was almost 10 years ago now--right after we first moved here in 1995. Anyway, Hal read from Father Said to raucous laughter, and also did some poems from Before, During & After. Afterwards, he always gives folks a chance to ask questions, and they do. Hal's mother never knew her son was a poet--she died before he'd ever published a book--but his father read some of his work before he passed and liked it. Hal says he figures his mother would like being famous--maybe just not for what he's made her famous for. Finally someone requested "Chopped-Off Arm" from Hal's first book Mother Said. I got a pic of him doing the legendary pantomime.







After the reading I met supercharming and handsome Michael Turner, author of The Pornographer's Poem, one of my favorite Soft Skull novels. Richard was showing him around--he read with Todd Colby last night at the Club. Richard and I split duties so I covered Sunday, and he covered Saturday. If only we could both be everywhere at once!



Then Charlie, Shawn & I headed back to the Four-Faced Liar (sounding like a poetry bar crawl yet?). Dan & Maisie & Dan's college-friend Eric & Ada & Shafer were still around, but Laurel & Ethan and most of the other kids had scooted off. We ate shepherd's pies (gorgeous little pastries, made by a miraculous gentleman who delivers them hot to the Liar each evening--there's also a steak & onions version) and somehow a Joe's pizza (Dan: the best in New York!) appeared. More plans were laid for Bowlmore Writemore (coming in August).



Ah, Sunday. Tonight Matt Cook's reading at Pete's Big Salmon and I've been told I'd be crazy to miss that.