An homage to Jimmy Giuffre (and friends) – three poems by Terrance Underwood

April 10th, 2025

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The cover to the 1959 Verve album The Easy Way, by The Jimmy Giuffre 3

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The Giuffre Gang
Heads West, 1960

such Suite sounds cool
striding feels effortless
when bare feet
crosses velvet grass
and sandstone compacts
the sediment History inspires
woodwind breeze drifts
down dense forest slopes
alongside valved brass
with strings attached
toward rolling prairie arroyos
leading into boot heel
high-steppin’ canyon conclaves
lyrical settlement sans lyrics

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Thought

Clearly a perched dove’s coo
Penetrates the pane
Of glass just above pillows.
………………………….Repetitive
a same note tone mindful

Of a clarinet a Giuffre
or a temperate Dolphy perhaps
Bearing intent gracefully
………………………….Pure
like a splendid
Scattered memory that when reassembled

A preferential manner sensory appetizing
Becomes a seat round a campfire’s smoky crackle
Homed in a woodland of ponderosa pines
Canyon & elemental sky
Purpose having passed images remain
Lying in plush bedcover warmth

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The Blues Ain’t Nuthin’
But A Slow Freight

leaving swamp
two guys bone
pick, strum & hone
travellin’ tidy and light

led by Jimmy G
a triple duffle of urgency
though when in dire emergency
may take their humble vestiary

& toss such garments of tailored might
onboard Ray Bryant’s Slow Freight night
down the track they savor a treat
of Giuffre sauce over Crawdad Suite

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Apologies to those with memories of
Bob Brookmeyer & Jim Hall
For any factual errors

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Terrance Underwood is a retired Gas Turbine Package Engineer whose career offered opportunities to work all over the world. A devoted jazz enthusiast, his first memory operating a mechanical devise was a 4-speed spindle drop record changer for his father’s collection of 78s.

Click here to read Proceeding From Behind: A collection of poems grounded in the rhythmic, relating to the remarkable, by Terrance Underwood

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Listen to the 1959 recording of Jimmy Giuffre (clarinet), Jim Hall (guitar) and Ray Brown (bass) play Giuffre’s composition “The Easy Way.” [Universal Music Group]

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Click here to visit Jimmy Giuffre’s Wikipedia page

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