Jamie, yes ‘not talking down to people’ is how he came across to me too. I don’t know about Roger and Brian, but Adrian was very much involved in doing poetry readings in Liverpool and elsewhere up until he got ill. He did a lot of poetry readings at schools as well as giving talks. I think this sort of thing is what differentiates him (and other mainstream poets) from perhaps many avantgarde poets — the willingness to engage with local communities. Maybe I’m being unfair, and am speaking out of ignorance. Maybe there are avantgarde poets who do this sort of thing too.
From: Jamie McKendrick <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: British & Irish poets <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wed, 17 Jan 2018 13:26:56 +0000
Hi Jeff, yes I was thinking it could sound like name-dropping, but because none of them came across, or come across, as ‘stars’ however famous they were or are, it feels more like affectionate remembering than boasting. I think I get what you mean by ‘humble’ though I’d say it was more not talking down to people, though sure enough people have kept on talking down to them. What all three managed, in slightly different ways, was to make an immediate connection with their audiences - wider audiences than are found by most contemporary poetry - and I think that’s had an ongoing effect on the whole phenomenon of poetry readings from which many of us continue to profit.
Jamie
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