Thanks, Doug. By the way there is a review of a new bio book on Nina Simone in today's NYTIME. In the review there is - I think - a priceless Langston Hughes' review of a show she did in Chicago in the early 60's. Hughes for me sets a mark - in a colorful on defining genius among performers no matter the medium.
I saw Simone a few years before she died in performance at the great Paramount Theater in Oakland. True to form she bantered with audience, sometimes abusively, no matter or whatever the praise. One woman called out, "Nina, you saved my life." To which she in a split second responded,
"If I did that, honey, you owe me a lot of money."
Stephen V
http://stephenvincent.net/blog/
--- On Fri, 2/19/10, Douglas Barbour <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
From: Douglas Barbour <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Snap - Vincent
To: [log in to unmask]
Date: Friday, February 19, 2010, 7:38 AM
Oh, nicely caught, Stephen. Lucky you to be on that streetcar, with
desire....
Doug
On 18-Feb-10, at 2:38 PM, Stephen Vincent wrote:
> Saturday evening, February 13, on the J-Church Trolley,
> over the loudspeaker, the Driver - between stops - conducts a little
> Rap
> mixing Valentine's Day Greetings, Presidents' Day, & African-
> American History:
>
> "Happy Valentines Day"
>
> "Martin Luther King
> Abraham Lincoln"
>
> "Happy Valentines Day"
>
> "John F. Kennedy
> Medgar Evers"
>
> "Happy Valentine's Day"
>
> "Aretha Franklin
> Billie Holliday"
>
> "Happy Valentines Day"
>
>
> "Patrick Henry
> H. Rap Brown"
>
> Does not ever over-do it.
> Does not say,
> "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death"
> or
> "Burn Baby Burn"
>
> Not even clear if he is being nostalgic
> or contemporary. Shielded behind his window
> not even clear if he is black, white or other.
>
> A kind of pure poetry
> He leaves the connections
> to each of us.
>
> Stephen Vincent
> http://stephenvincent.net/blog/
>
Douglas Barbour
[log in to unmask]
http://www.ualberta.ca/~dbarbour/
Latest books:
Continuations (with Sheila E Murphy)
http://www.uap.ualberta.ca/UAP.asp?LID=41&bookID=664
Wednesdays'
http://abovegroundpress.blogspot.com/2008/03/new-from-aboveground-press_10.html
Swept snow, Li Po,
by dawn's 40-watt moon
to the road that hies to office
away from home.
Lorine Niedecker
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