“The Boy Who Plays” — a poem by Gannon Daniels
At the piano
his two hands pump fingers
wide in unison
one hand does one thing
the other another
his eyes fixed on the sheet
music sheathed in
Archive for “Poetry”
“Toots Thielemans” — a poem by Roger Singer
An open free reed.
The winds of blues under
Paris lights. Crystal rain.
Wool overcoats and hats.
Long night highways.
“With Us Yet” — a poem by Susandale
Theirs’ was a kind of mediation between then and now
No, it was a meditation on their only freedom: the deliverance of their music
No, no: a melding. One musician calling out: another answering.
Or maybe, a metaphor for the chorus of life
The way Lady-Day lamented the brief glory of
“Pizzazz Curator” — a poem by Alan Campbell
Excursions in free-fixed melodic,
A quirk-offering; dust of suitcase-bearing dreams
Plucking away sobriety in taps of steps
Blending day chords with night rhythms
An immediate perfume, instinctively
A collection of poetry celebrating love and jazz
In anticipation of Valentine’s Day, I recently invited many of our contributing poets to submit work that combines the themes of jazz music and love, with the result being a collection of voices expressing their own contributions to the language of love…
Dozens of writers submitted over 100 poems, and the best of the submissions — 29 poems by 18 poets — are found on the following 12 pages. Advance through the selections by utilizing the page monitor at the bottom of each page.
Many thanks to everyone who submitted their work.
JJM
“the lover’s quarrel” — a poem by Steven Dalachinsky
the music’s so profound
so round & loud
& full of love
her word not mine
how stupid to argue over little
nothings
stupid to wrap ourselves around
“A Long Line” — a poem by Roger Singer
Jazz rich,
falling water
a stream of story’s
open bleeding
years releasing pain
backside alleys
whispers without words
tan and white
Jazz poetry by Steven Dalachinsky, Michael L. Newell, John Stupp, Ron Kolm, and Freddington
A wealth of excellent poetry has been submitted recently. Poems by Steven Dalachinsky, Michael L. Newell, John Stupp, Ron Kolm, and Freddington are examples…
Jazz, Poetry, and Love
I have invited many of our contributing poets to submit their work that combines the themes of jazz music and love. The result will be a collection of poetry to be published on Valentines Day, this coming February 14.
If you wish to have your work considered, please submit it to
“For Keely Smith” — a poem by Diane Elayne Dees
Godmother of the gypsy tramp
half-breed goddess, unparalleled queen
of less is more, effortless weaver
of that old black magic—
your strength lay in the space between
the screaming sax and the scatting singer.
If midnight blue velvet were sound,
