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The Sunday Poem is published weekly, and strives to include the poet reading their work.
Charles Albert reads his poem at its conclusion.
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Herbie Hancock’s “Watermelon Man” first appeared on his 1962 Blue Note Records album Takin’ Off
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Watermelon Man
I admit I’d never heard of “Watermelon Man” before Harry Reid came to my kids’ elementary school to put together a concert band. He wasn’t a salaried teacher, but a part-time outsider brought in by the PTA. Yes, he ruffled the fur of the full-timers and some parents as well with his pretensions of teaching music to fourth graders in two half-hour sessions per week. But when he asked for help from parents, I volunteered. For six months he ran the kids through “Go Tell Aunt Rosie” and “Aura Lea” though for the spring concert he somehow put it in their heads to play the Herbie Hancock standard. On the big day, there he was, jamming away on his percussive electric keyboard, while our kids on their squeaky clarinets and farting trumpets honked away: “Heeeeeeey, water MEL on MAN.” Over and over. Until some of the parents in that little cafeteria room may have actually begun to get an inkling of what real jazz is.
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Listen to Charles 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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Listen to the 1962 recording of Herbie Hancock performing his composition “Watermelon Man,” with Freddie Hubbard (trumpet); Dexter Gordon (tenor saxophone); Butch Warren (bass); and Billy Higgins (drums). [Universal Music Group]
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Click here to read previous editions of The Sunday Poem
Click here to read “A Collection of Jazz Poetry – Winter, 2024 Edition”
Click here for information about how to submit your poetry or short fiction
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Jerry Jazz Musician…human produced (and AI-free) since 1999
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