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The Sunday Poem  is published weekly, and strives to include the poet reading their work.

Charles Joseph Albert reads his poem at its conclusion.

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Listen to Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band play “The Jazz Police” [The Orchard]

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Big Phat Jazz Police

When that first rumbling bass line
Tells me I’m listening to Gordon Goodwin’s
Big Phat Band playing “Jazz Police,”
I can’t help it, I always see an LAPD squad car
swinging out of the station
flipping on that groovy trumpet siren
as they join a pursuit with the whole horn section.

A crowd of trombone passerbys tut and chatter,
and when the cops lose the trail
all you hear that grumbling bari sax
and a tentative siren still fading in and out.

The alto sax solo sounds like a car fulla perps,
wailing away about how unfair life is
cuz they shoulda had a clean getaway.

The guitar solo is the response,
the cops in the lead, vaguely Barney Miller.
Now the speed is picking up, sirens really blaring.
The drum solo is the foot chase
and there’s even gunshots at the end—
all very stylish, very Tarantino,
as someone blows out—
not in a whimper, but a helluva bang.

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Listen to Charles Joseph Albert read his poem

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Charles Joseph Albert works as a metallurgist and writes poetry and prose while the slag is cooling. His most recent poems are collected in vvvA Feel for the Waterv (2022) and his short-story collection  A Horde of Cossacks  was published in 2023.

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Click here to read previous editions of The Sunday Poem

Click here to read “A Collection of Jazz Poetry – Spring/Summer, 2024 Edition”

Click here to read “Not From Around Here,” Jeff Dingler’s winning story in the 66th Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest

Click here for information about how to submit your poetry or short fiction

Click here to subscribe to the (free) Jerry Jazz Musician quarterly newsletter

Click here to help support the ongoing publication of Jerry Jazz Musician, and to keep it commercial-free (thank you!)

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