as Celebration Circle visits Austin!
They who have welcomed poets for years
now to our Bahai Center pilgrimage
Rudolph Harst (fine singer-songwriter)
supplemented by Jai Medina
From Jazz Poets of San Antonio-
Eduardo Garza whom we know
as poet,musician,improvisor
and Jim Stewart of creative fire
From Austin,Michael Aaron Casares
and Robin Cravey of our Green Belt sagas
Bring a dish for the POT LUCK @interval
Cans for the POETS PANTRY fill
2215 East E.M Franklin site
Map on (www.austinbahai.org)website
Phone 9268880 if lost
Watch out for UT traffic (LOTS!
Doors open @6pm-all ages too
All we really need-is YOU!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
i shall sit by this womb river and wait
i shall sit by this womb river and wait
for the new child to come forth/sparkle and shine
old man counting gold,young man counting dimes
it is not just faith in a future(in an expanding uni-verse
that trusts enough to not close down-more to reach out/up/across
Doomsayers and Naysayers crowd marketplaces of meaning
seeking to augment their Empires via rhetorical deceiving
Science can ask and Myth can explain
how Chenobyl still glows forever in the acid rain
What stays with us is memory/the rest repeats until we see
how cycles,sagas,epic domestic struggles define our destinies
She sits in sunshine in the autumn coffee/he reads
how technology has replaced books-but poetry is proud
(it has always been a gypsy-deported from France
there are no borders that cannot be owned by someone else
All languages are foreign /all influences fear
unless and until we embrace change-allow the stranger near
Open up Doors Of Perception,so we can plainly see
that what we are most afraid of-is the you inside of me
UNITED STATES ART AUTHORITY (5 THINGS series)
for the new child to come forth/sparkle and shine
old man counting gold,young man counting dimes
it is not just faith in a future(in an expanding uni-verse
that trusts enough to not close down-more to reach out/up/across
Doomsayers and Naysayers crowd marketplaces of meaning
seeking to augment their Empires via rhetorical deceiving
Science can ask and Myth can explain
how Chenobyl still glows forever in the acid rain
What stays with us is memory/the rest repeats until we see
how cycles,sagas,epic domestic struggles define our destinies
She sits in sunshine in the autumn coffee/he reads
how technology has replaced books-but poetry is proud
(it has always been a gypsy-deported from France
there are no borders that cannot be owned by someone else
All languages are foreign /all influences fear
unless and until we embrace change-allow the stranger near
Open up Doors Of Perception,so we can plainly see
that what we are most afraid of-is the you inside of me
UNITED STATES ART AUTHORITY (5 THINGS series)
after the wars(when you come home
and find that folk have moved beyond conflict
and wish to heal/and you are still @war (within-
the Great War(or some not-so-great)has defined your memories
so what returns are dreams of horror deep
that you must live with/while those who urged you on
have moved on.Warriors stand with begging hands at intersections
Limbless stump their days in medicated nightmares.
You thought you were doing the right thing-
earning an income via fighting.The world has moved on
and here you are,with only other veterans to share.
Without work-to fill your time,you could re-enlist
suicide,get violent,drink,drug,or just try to understand the WHY
by making films or books or speeches for your peace
depends upon moving on-via non-violent means
to live within all citizens who need to see
that peace was the reason you resisted terrorism-and still is...
UNDER THE HOOD BENEFIT SUNDAY NOVEMBER 14 from 6-11pm JOVITAS (come!
and wish to heal/and you are still @war (within-
the Great War(or some not-so-great)has defined your memories
so what returns are dreams of horror deep
that you must live with/while those who urged you on
have moved on.Warriors stand with begging hands at intersections
Limbless stump their days in medicated nightmares.
You thought you were doing the right thing-
earning an income via fighting.The world has moved on
and here you are,with only other veterans to share.
Without work-to fill your time,you could re-enlist
suicide,get violent,drink,drug,or just try to understand the WHY
by making films or books or speeches for your peace
depends upon moving on-via non-violent means
to live within all citizens who need to see
that peace was the reason you resisted terrorism-and still is...
UNDER THE HOOD BENEFIT SUNDAY NOVEMBER 14 from 6-11pm JOVITAS (come!
just because the angel lands
does not mean this is paradise.Eden is a jail
with razor wire and watch towers.Nirvana is a drug
sold to the hungry to assuage.Pain is a doctor
who treats all wounds with contempt.Dark angels tempt
They bribe,cajole,urge.We succumb to comfortable temptations
pretending no one is psychic,and all is not visible to all
Waking from a dream takes desire.Sleep is easy to deny
Sweetness seduces with a promise of continuance
Sanctuary in her eyes.Siren,Harpie,Calypso,Maenad song.
Your path is dewdrops @dawn.Temporary as time
Forgetfulness Estuary (tidal,Tsunami)
Wake Quickly Now!Waters are rising around and within
Surf these moments while they sing.
Each angel lives on the head of a pin
Sharp as a needle's eye of a camel
The point is -every angel is different.Sleep through this
and pretend this was never said.When you wake,forget...
TEMPLE POETS MEET THURSDAY 30 @7pm at Temple CAC off IH35-come and see!
with razor wire and watch towers.Nirvana is a drug
sold to the hungry to assuage.Pain is a doctor
who treats all wounds with contempt.Dark angels tempt
They bribe,cajole,urge.We succumb to comfortable temptations
pretending no one is psychic,and all is not visible to all
Waking from a dream takes desire.Sleep is easy to deny
Sweetness seduces with a promise of continuance
Sanctuary in her eyes.Siren,Harpie,Calypso,Maenad song.
Your path is dewdrops @dawn.Temporary as time
Forgetfulness Estuary (tidal,Tsunami)
Wake Quickly Now!Waters are rising around and within
Surf these moments while they sing.
Each angel lives on the head of a pin
Sharp as a needle's eye of a camel
The point is -every angel is different.Sleep through this
and pretend this was never said.When you wake,forget...
TEMPLE POETS MEET THURSDAY 30 @7pm at Temple CAC off IH35-come and see!
YOUR VOICE
it is a raw wound/a challenge
a call to the drunken art/a split lightning sky
a guidebook for the kind/a reprieve of laughter
a slap in the face of giants/a link to Heavens Anonymous
a warning to the scarred/a yellow CAUTION sign
a track off the main into the jugular/footprints upon waves
a handshake/a hug/a happy ripple below the surface
a termite in wood Paradise/ant determination
a list of grievances swinging like a bell
a village of intimacies/a film of sounds
an accusation to the Fates and Destiny
it is what we would like to release
if our box of butterflies would allow us this
unlicensed liberty-to be free to employ
vibrations of joy and sorrow simultaneously
to unseal all contracts and make all provisional
to let freedom become a verb and sweet a noun
Break All The Rules Of Grammar!When you sing,
we are stilled to silence.Violence slinks out of the room,ashamed
You allow us to be at ease with our personal being
you release us from the need for crying
You sing for us.You sing for all of us
We who are taught only to be silent
watch your wings and envy the skies.
FOR MICHELE SOLBERG@cafe caffeine wednesdays 7-9pm
909 west mary-open to all-waiting for your call!
a call to the drunken art/a split lightning sky
a guidebook for the kind/a reprieve of laughter
a slap in the face of giants/a link to Heavens Anonymous
a warning to the scarred/a yellow CAUTION sign
a track off the main into the jugular/footprints upon waves
a handshake/a hug/a happy ripple below the surface
a termite in wood Paradise/ant determination
a list of grievances swinging like a bell
a village of intimacies/a film of sounds
an accusation to the Fates and Destiny
it is what we would like to release
if our box of butterflies would allow us this
unlicensed liberty-to be free to employ
vibrations of joy and sorrow simultaneously
to unseal all contracts and make all provisional
to let freedom become a verb and sweet a noun
Break All The Rules Of Grammar!When you sing,
we are stilled to silence.Violence slinks out of the room,ashamed
You allow us to be at ease with our personal being
you release us from the need for crying
You sing for us.You sing for all of us
We who are taught only to be silent
watch your wings and envy the skies.
FOR MICHELE SOLBERG@cafe caffeine wednesdays 7-9pm
909 west mary-open to all-waiting for your call!
AFTER THE ILIAD
"Men are made for war"so said Homer
about whom we know less than blindness
So we gather in the sunshine post-suicide UT
(he came to stain the peaceful Library with his immolation-
no hero he,no Hector,nor Achilles-more a sullen,silent one
of high intelligence but not high degree.At 19
no youth should end so brief.We heard Homer on the need
for "a long and comfortable life rather than a glorious brief"
Whether the gods are with us -or the Fates
We voted for peace and poetry with our presence
and all the wars outside and within must wait.
ARE THE GODS OF WAR ANNOYED WITH US?
Hermes took Priam to the tent of Achilles
when Priam killed the hands that killed his sons
(19 from one mother,the rest from women in his household)
Achilles,enraged that Hector should kill his Patroclus
swore that"dogs and birds would eat every last scrap"
Yet when Priam beseeched him with a Prayer of Entreaty
reminding him of his own father ,who had mated with a Goddess
yet had but one son to carry his Light onwards
Achilles agreed-"let pain lie at rest awhile
nothing to be gained from cold grief
the gods give two jars to each of us
one is joy,the other pain-and they commingle..
They are the ones who added pain to mortal life
while they watch from a comfortable distance"
Achilles and Priam united in grief and mourning for the loss
of those they held most dear /while we could not forget
that solitary one(less than Charles Whitman)who imported self-death
into a most precious peaceful sanctuary-our Library
MEDEA(via Euripides)upbraided Jason
when he went off with another woman-
"i would rather throw spears in many battles
than suffer the pain of one birthing"
Men may be made for war-body bags await
Women cry and wail ,for it it is their sons and husbands
with spears and swords being buried
The birth of sorrow as continuous
and endless wars that have no living heroes
POETRY ON THE PLAZA WED OCT 6 @high noon on the plaza outside Harry Ransom
about whom we know less than blindness
So we gather in the sunshine post-suicide UT
(he came to stain the peaceful Library with his immolation-
no hero he,no Hector,nor Achilles-more a sullen,silent one
of high intelligence but not high degree.At 19
no youth should end so brief.We heard Homer on the need
for "a long and comfortable life rather than a glorious brief"
Whether the gods are with us -or the Fates
We voted for peace and poetry with our presence
and all the wars outside and within must wait.
ARE THE GODS OF WAR ANNOYED WITH US?
Hermes took Priam to the tent of Achilles
when Priam killed the hands that killed his sons
(19 from one mother,the rest from women in his household)
Achilles,enraged that Hector should kill his Patroclus
swore that"dogs and birds would eat every last scrap"
Yet when Priam beseeched him with a Prayer of Entreaty
reminding him of his own father ,who had mated with a Goddess
yet had but one son to carry his Light onwards
Achilles agreed-"let pain lie at rest awhile
nothing to be gained from cold grief
the gods give two jars to each of us
one is joy,the other pain-and they commingle..
They are the ones who added pain to mortal life
while they watch from a comfortable distance"
Achilles and Priam united in grief and mourning for the loss
of those they held most dear /while we could not forget
that solitary one(less than Charles Whitman)who imported self-death
into a most precious peaceful sanctuary-our Library
MEDEA(via Euripides)upbraided Jason
when he went off with another woman-
"i would rather throw spears in many battles
than suffer the pain of one birthing"
Men may be made for war-body bags await
Women cry and wail ,for it it is their sons and husbands
with spears and swords being buried
The birth of sorrow as continuous
and endless wars that have no living heroes
POETRY ON THE PLAZA WED OCT 6 @high noon on the plaza outside Harry Ransom
@the Cafe Caffeine this evening
you will meet the man who wants a New Renaissance
as he details Raphael's paintings of Parnassus and the Muses
You may enjoy a Powerpoint presentation on LOST AUSTIN
from closed coffee shops to continuing Eeyore's
Gordon the White Rapper will entertain and elucidate
with jammin on words and sounds Channeling the English
and maybe two touring poets from New York will arrive
to share what they create via Cd book and jewelery
All this between 7 and 9pm this evening
All this @909 west mary
Did i mention they have fine snacks and drinks?
Did i say it is an open stage?
Much fun awaits when you do not hesitate
just come on in to cafe caffeine this evening'
wednesday 29 september between 7 and 9pm
and just see what can happen!
as he details Raphael's paintings of Parnassus and the Muses
You may enjoy a Powerpoint presentation on LOST AUSTIN
from closed coffee shops to continuing Eeyore's
Gordon the White Rapper will entertain and elucidate
with jammin on words and sounds Channeling the English
and maybe two touring poets from New York will arrive
to share what they create via Cd book and jewelery
All this between 7 and 9pm this evening
All this @909 west mary
Did i mention they have fine snacks and drinks?
Did i say it is an open stage?
Much fun awaits when you do not hesitate
just come on in to cafe caffeine this evening'
wednesday 29 september between 7 and 9pm
and just see what can happen!
JOVITAS FRONTIER LAND
Mixing woman was for us-servers were for us
The poets pranced.The band was grand
a vibe of energetics lifted us And from these heights
we listened wide and deep/each of us made more by explorations
imagery and visual vocabulary extended our repertoire
Chips and salsa a margarita,laughter and goodwill
This is the alchemy of Evermore-compounding sharpness and clarity
by hearing each other's stylings.The model is respect-
for every adventurer who dares extend beyond comfort zone
took us with her as she rode the waves like mermaids
Each given chance for redemption-each honoring both stage and time
Chapters of a book that will never be written
films that exist but will rarely be screened
Words uttered once and Zen forgotten
which means we need to gather together once again...
Why not October 26?That fits!2 Fish &the Evolution Jovitas 7-10pm $5
for La Love Robinson and Stacey Shea
The poets pranced.The band was grand
a vibe of energetics lifted us And from these heights
we listened wide and deep/each of us made more by explorations
imagery and visual vocabulary extended our repertoire
Chips and salsa a margarita,laughter and goodwill
This is the alchemy of Evermore-compounding sharpness and clarity
by hearing each other's stylings.The model is respect-
for every adventurer who dares extend beyond comfort zone
took us with her as she rode the waves like mermaids
Each given chance for redemption-each honoring both stage and time
Chapters of a book that will never be written
films that exist but will rarely be screened
Words uttered once and Zen forgotten
which means we need to gather together once again...
Why not October 26?That fits!2 Fish &the Evolution Jovitas 7-10pm $5
for La Love Robinson and Stacey Shea
shadow before the axe/fear before the blow
you fall before the punch/Rome fell from Rome
within white-ant towers,rats desert the stinking
David did not fear Goliath,why pale@Palin?
Check Beck's checkered past,and dodgy donations
designed to subvote democracy.Browbeat via Faux news
anger in the unemployed.Do they know the hand that hits
is funded via Corporate?Tax dodge dollars designed for self-interest?
Mock populists pretend crocodile tears,then SNAP!
as soon as your attention lapse,allows frauds in public offices
Elites have one vote too-they buy you when you refuse to trust
that democracy works for all of us.Not just those who purchase office
then bend the rules for low tax dollars.Corporate welfare ,Halliburton,
bank foreclosures,welfare shredding-voting against the people
by withholding support.Who put these foxes in our hen house?
Who watches as they tear us apart?Doves over hawks-
yet endless wars profit the corrupt.When will we ask for what we want?
Peace and prosperity,truth and integrity,populist democracy
a Bill of Rights that means more than Amendments
We are only at the beginning of this story-
vote with your ears and eyes opened.Watch the vultures and the warhawks
Your very life depends upon peace.Speak now and avoid the Patriot Act 6.
within white-ant towers,rats desert the stinking
David did not fear Goliath,why pale@Palin?
Check Beck's checkered past,and dodgy donations
designed to subvote democracy.Browbeat via Faux news
anger in the unemployed.Do they know the hand that hits
is funded via Corporate?Tax dodge dollars designed for self-interest?
Mock populists pretend crocodile tears,then SNAP!
as soon as your attention lapse,allows frauds in public offices
Elites have one vote too-they buy you when you refuse to trust
that democracy works for all of us.Not just those who purchase office
then bend the rules for low tax dollars.Corporate welfare ,Halliburton,
bank foreclosures,welfare shredding-voting against the people
by withholding support.Who put these foxes in our hen house?
Who watches as they tear us apart?Doves over hawks-
yet endless wars profit the corrupt.When will we ask for what we want?
Peace and prosperity,truth and integrity,populist democracy
a Bill of Rights that means more than Amendments
We are only at the beginning of this story-
vote with your ears and eyes opened.Watch the vultures and the warhawks
Your very life depends upon peace.Speak now and avoid the Patriot Act 6.
i smell like cat
Town Lake Animal Shelter-we support the "no-kill"policy
and have longed for Cat Spirit to return
so seek out the scrangiest,most unloved scrappy rescued cat
pay for its ransom from wire cage
bring her home still scarred from necessary shots
(it is not only children subject to abandonment)
Gentle her with welcomes-for my 3 previous
are Ghost Cats-Dog,Ginger,Love Cat
and she is young as year,soft as claw,fearful and sharp eyes
that question our intentions with necessary Diogenes
She has been abused and left in a bin
brought to the shelter like battered children
right near the end she was still unredeemed
now she can practice being Queen
Ginger was rescued(gift from a friend
Love Cat had jumped the fence to be with humans
Dog died when he knew we were watching
and TOOTS is now learning to trust humans
We are always provisional-she has smeared us with licks
and fur kisses.Rooms smell of cat again,and we are learning
how love redeems,when all of us need rescuing...
tues 28-MELANIE ROSE invites you to Ruta Maya open mike 6-9pm(3601 south congress)
JOVITAS on south first from 7pm has open mike with music $5(free for poets!)
wed 29-CAFE CAFFEINE POETS PARTY 7-9pm 909 west mary-art,voice,song,poems
with MOLLY,JUSTIN,CHRIS,JULIAN,GORDON -poetry,music and YOU!(open to all!
fri oct 1-FAIR BEAN 2210 S 1st from 5-7pm
sat oct 2-EXPRESSIONS welcomes CELEBRATION CIRCLE!2215 E.M Franklin ave 9268880
Bring a dish for the pot luck/cans for poets pantry.RUDI HARST&JAI MEDINA
&EDUARDO GARZA&JIM STEWART&MICHAEL AARON CASARES&ROBIN CRAVEY&MOLLY&JUSTIN!
Doors open 6pm.ALL AGES READING!SATURDAY OCTOBER 2 @Austin Bahai Center!
and have longed for Cat Spirit to return
so seek out the scrangiest,most unloved scrappy rescued cat
pay for its ransom from wire cage
bring her home still scarred from necessary shots
(it is not only children subject to abandonment)
Gentle her with welcomes-for my 3 previous
are Ghost Cats-Dog,Ginger,Love Cat
and she is young as year,soft as claw,fearful and sharp eyes
that question our intentions with necessary Diogenes
She has been abused and left in a bin
brought to the shelter like battered children
right near the end she was still unredeemed
now she can practice being Queen
Ginger was rescued(gift from a friend
Love Cat had jumped the fence to be with humans
Dog died when he knew we were watching
and TOOTS is now learning to trust humans
We are always provisional-she has smeared us with licks
and fur kisses.Rooms smell of cat again,and we are learning
how love redeems,when all of us need rescuing...
tues 28-MELANIE ROSE invites you to Ruta Maya open mike 6-9pm(3601 south congress)
JOVITAS on south first from 7pm has open mike with music $5(free for poets!)
wed 29-CAFE CAFFEINE POETS PARTY 7-9pm 909 west mary-art,voice,song,poems
with MOLLY,JUSTIN,CHRIS,JULIAN,GORDON -poetry,music and YOU!(open to all!
fri oct 1-FAIR BEAN 2210 S 1st from 5-7pm
sat oct 2-EXPRESSIONS welcomes CELEBRATION CIRCLE!2215 E.M Franklin ave 9268880
Bring a dish for the pot luck/cans for poets pantry.RUDI HARST&JAI MEDINA
&EDUARDO GARZA&JIM STEWART&MICHAEL AARON CASARES&ROBIN CRAVEY&MOLLY&JUSTIN!
Doors open 6pm.ALL AGES READING!SATURDAY OCTOBER 2 @Austin Bahai Center!
before your heart glows out on tour
make sure that your words are packed tight
your emotions stored for perfect pitch and passion
is directed intensely towards logistics-where and when and who
is all a matter of trust in human nature.We are fallible as friendship
People blow out like tires.Roads break down as we do.Weathered emotions .
The alchemy of intentional change requires energies applied and resistances overcome
You have a frame for your art of motion.String beads of trust and truth between
There is only ever new and now,old,trusted,tried and true(as every cliche sings to you
Learn by doing.Bold,brave,resolute.The road demands attention.
Your boat becomes the river when every moment illumines
Outside your borrowed home,you sip transience
drink ambience,absorb experiences in an egg of time.
Do not plan too much.Change owns us.Once you drop habits
the Unknown resurrects.your voyage starts before you do.
Footprints before and after you.Watch as the New comes through
It has a different name to you.ON THE ROAD.
for Molly Kat and Justin Vinokur on tour
@Ruta maya tuesday 28 september 6-9pm
Cafe Caffeine 909 west mary 7-9pm
COME OUT AND SEE WHY!
your emotions stored for perfect pitch and passion
is directed intensely towards logistics-where and when and who
is all a matter of trust in human nature.We are fallible as friendship
People blow out like tires.Roads break down as we do.Weathered emotions .
The alchemy of intentional change requires energies applied and resistances overcome
You have a frame for your art of motion.String beads of trust and truth between
There is only ever new and now,old,trusted,tried and true(as every cliche sings to you
Learn by doing.Bold,brave,resolute.The road demands attention.
Your boat becomes the river when every moment illumines
Outside your borrowed home,you sip transience
drink ambience,absorb experiences in an egg of time.
Do not plan too much.Change owns us.Once you drop habits
the Unknown resurrects.your voyage starts before you do.
Footprints before and after you.Watch as the New comes through
It has a different name to you.ON THE ROAD.
for Molly Kat and Justin Vinokur on tour
@Ruta maya tuesday 28 september 6-9pm
Cafe Caffeine 909 west mary 7-9pm
COME OUT AND SEE WHY!
6 4 JIMMIE
WHY WE LOVE JIMMIE RODGERS
One man with a guitar changed our listening-
with his blue yodel he could engage every ear
With his original songs ,he shared traditions-
slave songs,train songs,blues ,hobo and cowboy-
from which "country"music sprang fresh and clear
as a voice of the people who sang to their hearts
of trains and love and bar rooms and jailhouses
he became our"singing brakeman" right to the TB end
He built a home in Kerrville and was a Blue Bonnet Mason
He was the first inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame
His records sold millions.He toured with Will Rogers
His signature tune"T for Texas!"still resonates
He has influenced a pantheon of poets and singer-songwriters
His songs are covered every day.127 recorded in his brief 35 years
He came from a time of trains and left us with carriages of memories
That is why we still love Jimmie-one voice lifts all others to sing-
T for Texas,T for Tennessee!"I'm in the jailhouse now..."
JIMMIE RODGERS IN BLACK&WHITE
One man with a guitar and one voice
that could yodel its way into your art.
He could play banjo and ukelele
but his songs were for voice and guitar
See him for nine minutes and three songs
His blues chords and vocalizing hold you
even though that was 80 years ago-and in black and white
His image-thin,pale,wan .As if his life was struggle
knowing his end was certain.Radio and recordings
remind us of his originality.He loved Texas
had a home in our Hill Country/a radio show in San Antone
Such love animates more than image
His songs still move hearts.Even over 80 years
Even in black and white
JIMMIE RODGERS 1933-2010
Now that he has gone,we value his songs
Voice and guitar,haunting and strong
words from the first Great Depression in our time
singing of hobos and homeless,bar rooms and jail times
He was the first to popularize yodeling
in records that sold in the millions
He made the first music film clip(3 songs,9 minutes)
He merged slave songs,blues,cowboy into country
before there was such a category!
He put all his passion into song and entertaining
filled his brief life with us now-his heritage lives on
from Doc Watson to Bob Dylan-simple and strong
He was the first to love America into song.
BLUES FOR JIMMIE
You went out in a rainstorm
Your tent got blown away
You caught TB/consumption came to stay
Nothing on this earth
could make you cease to play
You sang of TB(and the TB blues
You sang of TB with those TB blues
when your woman poured likker on your back
you licked it through and through
You would not let TB slow you down
You would not let TB knock you down
You sang even when you couldn't hold that guitar hand
You wanted to die singing-that was all you planned
Well,you sang and rambled,told your own life song
You sang till your body simply wound right down
Now we sing for you,buried in the ground.
JIMMIE LOVED TEXAS
Texas loved Jimmie back
Jimmie sang of Texas
Yodeling down the railroad track
He built a home in Kerrville
was on San Antone radio map
His songs of travel endeared him to us all
He was of the people,unique, individual
His influence can be heard at Kerrville Folk Festivals
Now it seems so simple-to sing lyrics of your life
strum a guitar ,yodel ,laugh and smile
If that were the case,there'd be Jimmies every single mile
His passion for sharing led him to the blues
He learned at the feet of those who taught him tunes
which he then turned into memorable melodies
still sung by folk artists both wide and deep
Here's a tune for Jimmie-one he never wrote
To remind us of his heritage (a yodeling throat)
To praise the Texas that we love-the only one we know
and to remember Jimmie as we go...
JIMMIE RODGERS BLUES
I ran away from home to sing my life away
I was brought back my father but i could not stay
i worked on the railroad until my health finally failed
My marriage broke up,so i married again
My daughter died,my banjo i pawned
to get to her funeral-yes,we were poor
My second daughter died within a year or three
i sang the blues because that was the truth of me
Blues pursued both me and my family
I recorded songs when my band broke up
i met the Carter Family (that was a stroke of luck)
to live as an singer took everything i got
Consumption caught me /could not stop my song
My life intense(although i did not live long)
Remember me a yodeling along!
What you call "country"was my own life song..
One man with a guitar changed our listening-
with his blue yodel he could engage every ear
With his original songs ,he shared traditions-
slave songs,train songs,blues ,hobo and cowboy-
from which "country"music sprang fresh and clear
as a voice of the people who sang to their hearts
of trains and love and bar rooms and jailhouses
he became our"singing brakeman" right to the TB end
He built a home in Kerrville and was a Blue Bonnet Mason
He was the first inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame
His records sold millions.He toured with Will Rogers
His signature tune"T for Texas!"still resonates
He has influenced a pantheon of poets and singer-songwriters
His songs are covered every day.127 recorded in his brief 35 years
He came from a time of trains and left us with carriages of memories
That is why we still love Jimmie-one voice lifts all others to sing-
T for Texas,T for Tennessee!"I'm in the jailhouse now..."
JIMMIE RODGERS IN BLACK&WHITE
One man with a guitar and one voice
that could yodel its way into your art.
He could play banjo and ukelele
but his songs were for voice and guitar
See him for nine minutes and three songs
His blues chords and vocalizing hold you
even though that was 80 years ago-and in black and white
His image-thin,pale,wan .As if his life was struggle
knowing his end was certain.Radio and recordings
remind us of his originality.He loved Texas
had a home in our Hill Country/a radio show in San Antone
Such love animates more than image
His songs still move hearts.Even over 80 years
Even in black and white
JIMMIE RODGERS 1933-2010
Now that he has gone,we value his songs
Voice and guitar,haunting and strong
words from the first Great Depression in our time
singing of hobos and homeless,bar rooms and jail times
He was the first to popularize yodeling
in records that sold in the millions
He made the first music film clip(3 songs,9 minutes)
He merged slave songs,blues,cowboy into country
before there was such a category!
He put all his passion into song and entertaining
filled his brief life with us now-his heritage lives on
from Doc Watson to Bob Dylan-simple and strong
He was the first to love America into song.
BLUES FOR JIMMIE
You went out in a rainstorm
Your tent got blown away
You caught TB/consumption came to stay
Nothing on this earth
could make you cease to play
You sang of TB(and the TB blues
You sang of TB with those TB blues
when your woman poured likker on your back
you licked it through and through
You would not let TB slow you down
You would not let TB knock you down
You sang even when you couldn't hold that guitar hand
You wanted to die singing-that was all you planned
Well,you sang and rambled,told your own life song
You sang till your body simply wound right down
Now we sing for you,buried in the ground.
JIMMIE LOVED TEXAS
Texas loved Jimmie back
Jimmie sang of Texas
Yodeling down the railroad track
He built a home in Kerrville
was on San Antone radio map
His songs of travel endeared him to us all
He was of the people,unique, individual
His influence can be heard at Kerrville Folk Festivals
Now it seems so simple-to sing lyrics of your life
strum a guitar ,yodel ,laugh and smile
If that were the case,there'd be Jimmies every single mile
His passion for sharing led him to the blues
He learned at the feet of those who taught him tunes
which he then turned into memorable melodies
still sung by folk artists both wide and deep
Here's a tune for Jimmie-one he never wrote
To remind us of his heritage (a yodeling throat)
To praise the Texas that we love-the only one we know
and to remember Jimmie as we go...
JIMMIE RODGERS BLUES
I ran away from home to sing my life away
I was brought back my father but i could not stay
i worked on the railroad until my health finally failed
My marriage broke up,so i married again
My daughter died,my banjo i pawned
to get to her funeral-yes,we were poor
My second daughter died within a year or three
i sang the blues because that was the truth of me
Blues pursued both me and my family
I recorded songs when my band broke up
i met the Carter Family (that was a stroke of luck)
to live as an singer took everything i got
Consumption caught me /could not stop my song
My life intense(although i did not live long)
Remember me a yodeling along!
What you call "country"was my own life song..
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)