A Collection of Jazz Poetry — Spring, 2022 Edition

April 7th, 2022

 

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Biographies of the artist and poets contributing to this collection are listed in the order their work appears

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Corey Barksdale

The Atlanta-based artist Corey Barksdale was born in Nashville. Tennessee into a family of artists.  He was exposed to color and form at an early age by his grandmother, a quilt artist, and his mother, who was gifted with an intuitive feeling for design and a fastidiousness for detail which she experienced in all aspects of her daily life.  This rich beginning is the root of Barksdale’s creative expression.

Barksdale earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree at the prestigious Atlanta College of Art/SCAD Atlanta in 1994.  During this period he was heavily influenced by the abstract impressionists and admired such artists as Jasper Johns, Clifford Still, and Willem de Kooonig.  The African-American masters Aaron Douglas, John Biggers, Romare Bearden, and William Tolliver instilled in him an appreciation of African/American artistic heritage.

A prolific artist, his fine art subject matter ranges from human figures in non-objective abstracts.  In recent years, he has concentrated his talents on themes that portray the love and strength that exists within the African American community.  His paintings grace the covers of books, magazine, CD covers, posters, and murals.  Among his convictions is to give back to his community through arts education.

To view a more complete selection of his work, please pay a visit to his website by clicking here.

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Michel Steven Krug is a Minneapolis poet and fiction writer from the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars. He’s Managing Editor for Poets Reading the News (PRTN) and litigates. His poems have appeared in Liquid Imagination, Blue Mountain Review, Portside, New Verse News, JMWW, Cagibi, Silver Blade, Crack the Spine, Dash, Mikrokosmos, North Dakota Quarterly, Eclectica, Writers Resist, Sheepshead, Mizmor Anthology, 2019, PRTN, Ginosko, Door Is A Jar, Raven’s Perch, Main Street Rag and  Brooklyn Review.

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Namaya is an internationally reknowned Jazz poet, storyteller, humorist and sublime improvisational artist. He has performed throughout the US and has toured in Europe, New Zealand, Japan, Asia, the Americas and Palmyra Syria.

Both as a solo artist, with his band the Jazz Beat Blues Poetry Ensemble, and with jazz musicians around the world, Namaya performs an astonishing blend of jazz word, story and improvisation.

Visit his website by clicking here

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Gloria Krolak is a member of vibesworkshop.com, a website where her favorite vibes players teach, share and spread the word about the unique appeal of the instrument. Gloria has served on the board of the Junior Jazz Foundation, based on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Her book, Jazz Lines, all poems built with jazz tune titles, was inspired by poet Hayden Carruth’s poem “The Fantastic Names of Jazz,” which lists jazz musicians by their nicknames, from Zoot Sims to Jelly Roll Morton. Photography is one of her favorite pastimes. She is fascinated by the close-up intricacies, patterns and vibrant colors found in nature. The author’s favorite spots are the beach and The Jazz Corner, also on Hilton Head Island, where great live jazz rings out almost every night.

Visit her website by clicking here

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Panagiotis Papanikolaou is a Greek secondary school student who is keen on writing poetry and occupying himself with literature in general. He also plays the piano, especially classical and jazz music.

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Gene Hyde lives near Asheville, North Carolina where he spends his days archiving Appalachia in all its diverse wonder. His writing and photography have appeared in Valley Voices; Tiny Seed Literary Journal; The Goose: A Journal of Arts, Environment,  and  Culture;  Light: A Journal of Photography and Poetry; Canary: A Literary Journal of the Environmental Crisis;  and  Mountains Piled Upon Mountains: Appalachian Nature Writing in the Anthropocene.

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Russell duPont is an artist and an author whose artwork is included in a number of public and private collections. He has published two novels, King & Train and Waiting for the Turk; two books of poetry; and two non-fiction chapbooks. His essay, “The Corner,” is included in the anthology Streets of Echoes. His work has been published in various newspapers and literary magazines. He was the founder & publisher of the literary magazine,.the albatross.

Visit his website by clicking here

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Phil Linz was born in Brooklyn, NY and has lived in several cities across the United States. He began writing poetry in 1971 and is founder and publisher of Fierce Grace Press, which specializes in chapbooks, believing in the concept of “Publishing Under the Radar.”.His new book, The Chapbooks: Collected Poems, is available on Amazon.  Mr. Linz currently lives in Wilmington, DE.

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Dan Franch, who grew up in the Chicagoland area, currently lives in Estonia. Living a life full of random experiences and adventures and people, he currently owns his own English & coaching company.

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Martha Patterson has had plays, essays, poetry, and fiction published in more than 20 literary journals and anthologies (by Applause Books, Pioneer Drama Service, the Sheepshead Review, Silver Birch Press, Syndrome Magazine, Smith & Kraus, and others), and has had plays produced in 21 states and eight countries.  She has two degrees in Theatre from Mount Holyoke College and Emerson College, and lives in Boston, the USA.  She loves being surrounded by her books, radio, and laptop.

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Brooklyn-born Arlene Corwin is age 85, and is a harpist, pianist and singer – a jazz musician forever. She earned her BA at Hofstra Univ. She has published 19 poetry books. In the 1950s her mother owned a jazz club in Hempstead, Long Island with Slim Gaillard. She currently lives in Sweden.

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photo by Jane Higgins

Jean Fineberg is an award-winning jazz saxophonist who has studied poetry with Kim Addonizio. Her poems have been published in Modern Poets Magazine, Soliloquies Anthology, Vita Brevis, Dove Tails, Uppagus, Literary Yard, FLARE: The Flagler Review, Riza Press, High Shelf Press, The Fibonacci Review, The Creativity Webzine, Quillkeepers Press, Superpresent Magazine, Lucky Jefferson, Unlost Journal, Kerning: A Space for words and Shot Glass Journal. Her first chapbook, A Mobius Path, will be available from Finishing Line Press in March, 2022.

Click here to visit her website

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Rodney Wood is retired and lives at Farnborough in the UK. He’s published two books of poetry: Dante Called You Beatrice and When Listening Isn’t Enough. Rodney is also co-host of a monthly open mic and has been widely published.

Click here to visit his website

 

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Antoinette F. Winstead is a poet, playwright, director and actor living in San Antonio, Texas, where she’s a professor at Our Lady of the Lake University. Her poetry has appeared in several publications, including Voices de la Luna, Langdon Review, Texas Ballot Poetry, Tejas Covido, and The Poet Magazine. She is currently serving as the 2021-2022 Writer in Residence for the Carver Community Cultural Center in San Antonio, Texas. She was nominated for the 2022 Pushcart Prize by Jerry Jazz Musician for her poem “Life Is…

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Daniel Brown has loved jazz (and music in general) ever since he delved into his parents’ 78 collection as a child. He is a retired special education teacher who began writing as a senior. He’s content to write with the sunrise each day and always appreciates being published in a journal or anthology. His first poetry collection Family Portraits in Verse is forthcoming. 

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Paul Juhasz

Paul Juhasz’s work has appeared in many literary journals, including Red River Review, Concho River Review, Dragon Poet Review, Voices de la Luna, and The Oklahoma Review. He is the author of two books, Fulfillment: Diary of a Warehouse Picker, a mock journal chronicling his seven-month term as a Picker at an Amazon Fulfillment Center; and Ronin: Mostly Prose Poems, named a finalist for the 2022 Oklahoma Book Award. He currently lives in Oklahoma City.

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photo by Cheryl Pyle

Susan Yung…Domestic–violence; misogynist–hater; anti–racist; democractic–anarchist; ghettoe–girl; Chinatown–Harlem; East Village–West Village; homesteader–gentrifier; yuppie–squatter; homeless–sheltered; American–Asian; World–Traveler; Adventress–Common–Law–Wife; Photographer–Videographer; Martial–Fine–Artist; Musician–Drummer; Artist–Scientist; Geologist–Librarian; Mathematician–Designer; Collector–Exhibitionist; Buyer–Seller; Cook–Politician; Migrant–worker; Independent–Dependent; Pacifist–Activist.

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photo by Jenn Merritt

Douglas Cole has published six collections of poetry and The White Field, winner of the American Fiction Award. His work has appeared in several anthologies as well as journals such as The Chicago Quarterly Review, Poetry International, The Galway Review, Bitter Oleander, Chiron, Louisiana Literature, Slipstream, as well Spanish translations of work (translated by Maria Del Castillo Sucerquia) in La Cabra Montes. He is a regular contributor to Mythaixs, an online journal, where in addition to his fiction and essays, his interviews with notable writers, artists and musicians such as Daniel Wallace (Big Fish), Darcy Steinke (Suicide Blond, Flash Count Diary) and Tim Reynolds (T3 and The Dave Matthews Band) have been popular contributions. He has been nominated twice for a Pushcart and Best of the Net and received the Leslie Hunt Memorial Prize in Poetry. He lives and teaches in Seattle, Washington.

Click here to visit his website.

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Michael L. Newell lives in Florida.

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Michael Keshigian is the author of 14 poetry collections his latest, What To Do With Intangibles, published by Cyberwit.net . Most recent poems have appeared in Muddy River Review, Bluepepper, Smoky Quartz, San Pedro River Review, Tipton Poetry Journal. Published in numerous national and international journals, he has 7 Pushcart Prize and 2 Best Of The Net nominations.

Click here to visit his website

 

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Erren Kelly

Erren Kelly is a two-time Pushcart nominated poet from Boston whose work has appeared in 300 publications (print and online), including Hiram Poetry Review, Mudfish, Poetry Magazine, Ceremony, Cacti Fur, Bitterzoet, Cactus Heart, Similar Peaks, Gloom Cupboard, .and .Poetry Salzburg.

Click here to read “Under Quarantine” — COVID-era poetry of Erren Kelly, published by Jerry Jazz Musician

 

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Meisha Synnott

Meisha Synnott grew up in the Australian bush where she cared for injured wildlife. She continued this work as an adult being involved with organisations such as WIRES, a wildlife rescue and care organisation, and Land for Wildlife, a conservation initiative. In January 2022 she moved to Canada with her husband and their kelpie, an Australian breed of herding dog. She has studied classical piano and played saxophone in a small jazz group and will commence fine arts at AUArts in September 2022.

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A native of Maryland’s eastern shore, Joel was educated at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (B.S.) and Rowan University (M.M.). He is the organist and choir director at First Presbyterian Church in Ocean City, MD. 

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Amy Barone’s poetry collection, Defying Extinction, will be published by Broadstone Books in 2022. New York Quarterly Books published her book, We Became Summer. She wrote chapbooks Kamikaze Dance (Finishing Line Press) and Views from the Driveway (Foothills Publishing.) Barone belongs to the Poetry Society of America. She lives in New York City.

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Bernard Saint is a U.K. poet who has published in U.K. and United States literary magazines since the 1960’s. He is a regular contributor to International Times. His most recent book is ROMA, published by Smokestack Books. He worked as a therapist and supervisor in the U.K. National Health Service in psychiatry and in addiction recovery.

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Alan Yount has published poetry for over 50 years. His poems have appeared in WestWard Quarterly (featured poet for summer, 2018). Big Scream, Spring: the Journal of the E.E. Cummings Society, and Waterways. He has been in three anthologies: Passionate Hearts, Sunflowers.and Locomotives: Songs for Allen Ginsburg, in which Alan was one of 31 poets, along with Gary Snyder and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Also Chrysalis Reader. Alan plays trumpet and has led his own dance band.

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Ed Coletti is a poet, painter, fiction writer and middling chess player. Previously, he served briefly as an Army Officer, then as a Counselor and later as a Small Business Consultant. Recent poems have appeared in The Brooklyn Rail, North American Review, Volt, Spillway, Modern Poetry Quarterly Review, Inflectionist Review, and So It Goes The Literary Journal of The Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Museum. His book Apollo Blue’s Harp And The Gods Of Song was recently published by McCaa Books. Ed also curates the popular twelve-year-old blog “(ed coletti’s)No Money In Poetry” 

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Freddington works as a shipper/receiver in Toronto, Canada, and has been a lifelong jazz fan ever since he was “corrupted” as a teenager by Charles Mingus’ “Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting.”

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Jessica Lee McMillan is a poet who expects to be buried under her shelves of books and records. Her writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Blank Spaces, Pocket Lint, Pinhole Poetry, Rat’s Ass Review, Tiny Spoon, The South Shore Review, Dream Pop Journal, and Blue Heron Review, among others. Jessica lives in New Westminster, British Columbia. She can be reached at https://twitter.com/JessicaLeeMcM

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Isabel White has performed across the UK, at Shakespeare & Co in Paris and in Rotterdam. She was twice runner up in the BBC Radio 3 Proms Competitions; a finalist in nine others and poet-in-residence for organizations working with marginalized communities. With three full collections and a pamphlet under her belt, Isabel’s poetry has been widely published – in 18 books and journals to date. Isabel founded performance collective Alarms and Excursions in 2009, www.alarmsandexcursions.com

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Laura  Trigg is a retired physician, jazz and blues fan of many years, and amateur poet. Her poems are influenced by the music and culture of the American South.

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Ermira Mitre Kokomani is an Albanian born, bilingual poet. Her poetry has been published in five continents. Ermira is a member of a few literary groups in United States and Europe where she reads her poems in Open Mic. She has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize for 2022 by Brownstone Poets. Her poetry chapbook Blooming as a Sacred Lotus has been selected as a finalist by the National League of American Pen Women.

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Byron Beynon coordinated Wales’ contribution to the anthology Fifty Strong (Heinemann ). His poems and essays have been featured in several publications; Jerry Jazz Musician, The London Magazine, Wasafiri, North of Oxford, Agenda, Poetry Ireland Review and the human rights anthology In Protest (University of London and Keats House Poets). Collections include The Echoing Coastline (Agenda Editions) and A View from the Other Side (Moonstone Press).

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Born in Norman, Oklahoma, Carrie Magness Radna is an audiovisual cataloger at the New York Public Library, a choral singer and a poet who loves traveling. Her poems have previously appeared in  The Oracular Tree, Muddy River Poetry Review, Poetry Super Highway, Walt’s Corner, Alien Buddha Press, Cajun Mutt Press and  First Literary Review-East. Her new poetry book,  In the blue hour  (Nirala Publications) is now published! (Find it on Amazon.com and SPD.com)

Click here to visit her website

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Dr. Roger Singer was in private practice for 38 years in upstate New York. He has four children, Abigail, Caleb, Andrew and Philip and seven grandchildren. Dr. Singer has served on multiple committees for the American Chiropractic Association, lecturing at colleges in the United States, Canada and Australia, and has authored over fifty articles for his profession and served as a medical technician during the Vietnam era. Dr. Singer is the Poet Laureate of Old Lyme, Connecticut. He has had over 1,070 poems published on the Internet, magazines and in books and is a 2017 Pushcart Prize Award Nominee. He is also the President of the Shoreline Chapter of the Connecticut Poetry Society.

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Aurora M. Lewis is a retiree, having worked in finance for 40 years. In her fifties she received a Certificate in Creative Writing-General Studies with Honors from UCLA. Aurora’s recent poems, short stories, and nonfiction were accepted by The Literary Hatchet, Jerry Jazz Musician, The Copperfield Review, and Gemini Magazine, to name a few. She self-published her first book, Jazz Poems, Reflections on a Broken Heart in 2021 and it is available on Amazon.

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photo by Jack Underwood

Terrance Underwood is a retired Rolls-Royce Service Engineer, veteran, College Grad (B.A. History) who has been listening to recorded jazz music since he was 5-6 yrs old. One of his first memories is listening to a 78 version of “Cherokee” by Charlie Barnett.

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Susan Anmuth lives in Newark, New Jersey with her son Ethan, Yorkie Xena the Warrior Princess, and green-eyed cat Jelly.

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Paul Brown writes poetry and fiction in Belleville, Ontario. His novel Wolf Pack of the Winisk River, written in free verse, was published by Lobster Press, Montreal, in 2009.

 

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George Held’s work has appeared in, among other periodicals, Blue Unicorn, Spring, Transference, and Two Cities Review and has received eleven Pushcart Prize nominations. Among his 22 books is the poetry chapbook Second Sight (2019); his forthcoming book, The Lucky Boy, collects nine of his short stories.

 

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Hardarshan Singh Valia is an earth scientist by profession. His poems have appeared in  Wards Literary Journal, Northwest Indiana Literary Journal, Poetic Medicine, Who Writes Short Shorts, Dove Tales – Writing for Peace- an anthology, Pages Penned in Pandemic – A Collective, Caesura, Sage-ing, Literary Veganism, COVID tales journal, Poetry and Covid, Nightingale & Sparrow, The Sikh Review, A Magic Hour Family Christmas, Hoosier Horizon, and Diamonds-75 Years of Indiana Poetry –An ISFPC Anthology. (WC: 72)

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Harriet Ribot became a Registered Nurse at twenty, married at twenty-two, raised four successful sons through the seventies and eighties, and collated the works and biography of friend, classical guitarist and composer Frantz Casseus into a book of sheet music for solo guitar: The Complete Works of Frantz Casseus (Tuscany Publications, 2003). She then earned her long-desired BA with a concentration in Journalism at Rutgers-Newark. Her chapbook, Willow Tree, is forthcoming from Finishing Line Press.

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R. Bremner has been writing since the 1960’s. He appeared in 1979’s first issue of Passaic Review, along with Allen Ginsberg and Rich Quatrone. International Poetry Review, Oleander Review, Paterson Literary Review, Red Wheelbarrow, and.Shot Glass Journal.are a few of the journals he has been in. Ron has won Honorable Mention in the Allen Ginsberg Awards, and has published six print books, including.Ektomorphic(Presa Press), and thirteen eBooks.

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Catherine Perkins, resident of Lexington, KY, has poems printed in numerous locally published anthologies. She wrote for the Jazz Arts Foundation blog, briefly, in 2016. Catherine was brought up listening to jazz, blues and swing and owes her deep connection to music and the arts to her mother, Antoinette. The Thomas Merton Memorial Concert, held on December 9, 2018, was performed by vibrophonist Dick Sisto and his Trio.

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Dr. Emory D. Jones is a retired English teacher who has taught in high school and in several community colleges. He has four hundred and ninety-eight credits including publication in such journals as Writers Digest, Jerry Jazz Musician, The Storyteller, Modern Poetry Quarterly Review, and Encore: Journal of the NFSPS. He is retired and lives in Iuka, Mississippi.

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T.W. Parrish was formally educated in music performance. He writes original songs and performs equally well on trumpet, tenor sax, flute, and vocals. He’s performed in 47 states and abroad with some of the biggest names in entertainment. Originally from Fla., lived 16 years in Seattle, now retired in Lake of Ozarks, Missouri, playing occasionally in Kansas City. He has also written four books with painted illustrations. His favorite bands are Tower of Power and Poncho Sanchez, and his favorite music is Latin Jazz and Be Bop.

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photo by Alice Mello

Jim Mello is a counselor and clinical supervisor in the substance use disorder field. He’s also a part time clergy person, and has taught in the University of Maine system as an adjunct professor. Besides People, .his passion is music and he.became a poet by default. He has three books published, two by Moon Pie Press, and one self-published.

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Nesha Henderson is a poet, writer and painter from Detroit MI. She writes with the intention to inspire others to find & embrace their voices by sharing their experiences. She believes that art in complete form can be the turning point to change the world while bringing forth love and transparency one piece at a time! You can contact her on Instagram @Elevation2bliss or on twitter @neshaisblessed.

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Robert Milby, of Florida, NY has been reading his poetry in public since March, 1995. He is the author of several chapbooks, books, and CDs of poetry, and served as Orange County, NY Poet Laureate from 2017 – 2019. He currently hosts four Hudson Valley, NY poetry readings series, and is a listed poet with Poets & Writers, Inc. NYC since 2005

Click here to visit his website

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Molly Larson Cook is an award-winning Oregon writer, writing coach, and artist. In 2016, she received the first Steve Kowit Poetry Prize in a national competition. Molly was a Fellow at the Fishtrap Writers Conference in Oregon where she worked with poet Naomi Shihab Nye. Molly’s jazz novel, Listen, was published in a limited edition in 2003. Her “Colors of Jazz” paintings can be viewed by clicking here, and were featured in the Jerry Jazz Musician Fall/Winter 2021/22 collection of jazz poetry.

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Mark Fogarty is a poet, musician and journalist. He curates The Jaco Pastorius Gig List on Facebook

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Gerald Ryan is an award-winning writer who has written for Chicago and suburban papers and magazines. In May 2007, St. Martin’s Press published his story “A.K.A.” in the anthology, Next Stop Hollywood: Short Stories Bound for the Screen. His poetry has appeared in The Prairie Light Review, won the Mountainland Publishing Poetry Grand Prize and received an award in the Fifth International Poetry Contest in the Firstwriter.com Magazine. “And The Road Goes On Forever, won first place in the Creative Nonfiction contest in the 2021 Bacopa Literary Review.

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Patricia Carragon’s poem “Paris the Beautiful” won Poem of the Week from great weather for MEDIA. Her fiction piece “What Has to Happen Next” is nominated for Sundress Publications Annual Best of the Net Anthology. Her latest book from Poets Wear Prada is Meowku. Her debut novel, Angel Fire, was just released by Alien Buddha Press. Patricia hosts Brownstone Poets and is the editor-in-chief of its annual anthology. She lives in Brooklyn, NY. 

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After having taught middle and high school English for 32 years, Marianne Peel is now nurturing her own creative spirit. She has spent three summers in Guizhou Province, teaching best practices to teachers in China. She received Fulbright-Hays Awards to Nepal (2003) and Turkey (2009). Marianne participated in Marge Piercy’s Juried Intensive Poetry Workshop (2016). Marianne’s poetry appears in Muddy River Poetry Review, Belle Reve Literary Journal, Jelly Bucket Journal, among others. Marianne is also a veteran musician, playing flute/sax and singing in various orchestras, bands, choirs, and jazz bands her whole life. She has a collection of poetry forthcoming from Shadelandhouse Modern Press.

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D. H. Jenkins’ plays have been staged in California, Arizona, Australia, and Japan. His poems appear in the art films “Call From a Distant Shore” and “Our Autumn,” and in The Tiger Moth Review and Jerry Jazz Musician.

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Dana I. Hunter is one of the Top Ten Poets in the 2021 NAMI NJ: Dara Axelrod Expressive Arts Poetry Contest. She has been published in MIGHTIER—Poets for Social Justice, Adelaide Literary Magazine, Alpha Female Society, and  Bare Back Magazine.

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Jeffrey Holman’s work as author and Illustrator has been published over the years by traditional and non-traditional publishing companies. He has been a contributing writer and illustrator for the literary arts journal Adunna, and has been published in Nailed Magazine, I Am Seoul Arts Magazine, and Spaces Between Us. His stage play, Jumpin’ Turnstiles (and other misdemeanors) opened for a successful six day run Off Broadway at The Tank Theatre in 2019. He is currently a Building Equity Advisory board member.

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Mary K O’Melveny, a retired labor rights lawyer, lives with her wife in Woodstock NY and Washington DC. She is the author of three books of poetry and co-author of two anthologies; her award-winning poetry has appeared in many print and on-line literary journals and on national blog sites.

Click here to visit her website

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A 2016 Pushcart nominee, Mike Jurkovic’s poetry and musical criticism have appeared in over 500 magazines and periodicals worldwide with little reportable income. Full lengths include: American Mental, (Lu-chador Press 2020) Blue Fan Whirring (Nirala Press, 2018) President (Calling All Poets, New Paltz, NY). CD reviews appear online at All About Jazz, and Lightwood. He was and hopes to be again the Tuesday night host of Jazz Sanctuary, WOOC 105.3 FM, Troy, NY. He loves Emily most of all.  

Click here to visit his website

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photo by Mya Smbg

Moe Seager is a poet and jazz & blues vocalist who sings his poems on stages in Paris, New York and elsewhere and has recorded two jazz-poetry CD’s. Seager founded and hosts “Angora Poets World Caffé,” in Paris, and now hosts the event on Zoom. He also hosts “100 Thousand Poets for Change,” Paris and is one of the coordinators for le Fédération des Poètes, Paris. He has six collections of poetry and currently publishes with Onslaught press, Oxford, U.K. Other poetry collections include Dream Bearers (1990); One World, (2004); We Want Everything in French translation (1994); Perhaps (2006); Fishermen and Pool Sharks Busking (1992). Additionally Seager won a Golden Quill Award (USA) for investigative journalism, 1989 and received an International Human Rights award from the Zepp foundation, 1990. Two collections, We Want Everything and I Wanna Make Jazz To You, Onslaught press, are available from Amazon.com

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Sean Murphy has appeared on NPR’s “All Things Considered” as well as in USA Today, The New York Times, The Huffington Post, and AdAge. A long-time columnist for PopMatters, his work has also appeared in Salon, The Village Voice, Washington City Paper, The Good Men Project, Memoir Magazine, and others. He has twice been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and his chapbook, The Blackened Blues, is now available from Finishing Line Press.

Click here to visit his website

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Anthony Ward chooses to write because he has no choice. He writes to get rid of himself and lay his thoughts to rest. He derives most of his inspiration from listening to classical music and jazz since it is often the mood which inspires him. He has recently been published in Jerry Jazz Musician, Synchronized Chaos, Literary Yard, Mad Swirl, Shot Glass Journal and Ariel Chart.

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Sean DesVignes

Sean Des Vignes is a Professor of English at Saint Peter’s University in New Jersey and author of the chapbook Take My Eyes To The Dry Cleaners (evolNYC, 2014). A NY-Emmy Award Winner, his poetry has won the Beinecke Scholarship and the Burton A. Goldberg Poetry Prize. His work appears in or is forthcoming from  Rumpus, Kweli, Radius, African-American Review, and more.

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M.G. Stephens is author of 24 books, including the just published hybrid work of prose and poetry, fact and fiction, about an out of work actor who lands the part of Hamlet, and is entitled History of Theatre or the Glass of Fashion (MadHat Press). In the autumn, Dispatches Editions will publish his nonfiction work, When Poetry Was the World, about downtown New York in the 1960s, including chapters on Thelonious Monk.

 

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Click here  to read the fall/winter 2021/22 collection of jazz poetry

Click here  to read the summer 2021 collection of jazz poetry

Click here  to read a 2021 poetry collection – inspired by Miles Davis

Click here  to read the autumn 2020 collection of jazz poetry

Click here  to read “Under Quarantine” — COVID-era poetry of Erren Kelly

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Click here  for information about how to submit your poetry

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5 comments on “A Collection of Jazz Poetry — Spring, 2022 Edition”

  1. Lots of new names in this edition. While I pore through, this line from Gene Hyde’s poem TRIO sticks in my mind: “Savoring so much, I smile.” –

  2. This is truly a beautiful collection of work. I’m extremely proud of myself and all the other writers featured.

  3. Mr. Maita is to be congratulated for putting together such a fine collection of poems. Every poem in this group deserves some sort of commendation, but there are too many poets and too many poems for one person to engage in such a fulsome response. Instead I will comment on poems that particularly engage me as a reader, recognizing that many poems of value will be left unremarked.

    Michael Krug’s “Equinox” opens the collection with an explosion of sound and imagery. He provides a strong opening with which to draw in possible readers.

    Namaya’s “Dance naked with your poems and howl at the lilac moon” is a lovely burst of lyricism built on a strong rhythmic foundation and compelling imagery.

    Gloria Krolak’s “Nica’s Dream” uses short bursts of rhyme and rhythm, in a way that is reminiscent of certain of the poems of Robert Francis. Fine work.

    Panagiotis Papanikolaou’s “Something Is Missing” is a meditation on meaning and fulfillment that is both witty and insightful.

    Gene Hyde’s “Trio” is a lyric, deeply personal, quietly imagistic response to the work of a group of jazz masters.

    Russell Dupont’s “Midnite Blue” combines a compelling narrative voice with carefully chosen imagery to bring to life a deeply personal response to the work of jazz genius.

    Phil Linz’s “Life Is Not A Bitter Mystery” is subtle, insightful, and highly skilled.

    Dan Franch’s “Timeless Nostalgia” has a first-rate narrative voice, wed to a deeply personal tale to tell, and finds music and life in nostalgia.

    Martha Patterson’s “New Jersey Jazz” reminds readers of how alive we all once were, and how important jazz was to some of us, and how vibrantly we once lived while listening to what is timeless music.

    Arlene Corwin’s “A World Full Of Beautiful Songs” reminds us just how much music means to us. Its closing lines are especially powerful:
    “This world of word and meter.
    World of euphony and melody to sing about.”

    Jean Fineberg’s “All Music Has A Story” is a powerful history lesson that ties music and human interaction deftly together.

    Rodney Wood’s “Friends” tells a powerful tale and reminds us how musicians’ work is often misused by others.

    “If Only In His Mind” by Antoinette Winstead is a heartbreaking tale of Arthur Briggs that also uplifts the reader by bringing to life Briggs’ ability to find redemption in the midst of horror. The narrative voice in this poem is powerful and compelling.

    Erren Kelly’s “Listening to Round Midnight Under Quarantine” is up to Mr. Kelly’s usual high standards. He always manages, as he does here, to draw a reader into his virtual world and make his poetry a type of jazz in its own right.

    “Resilience: For David Sanborn” by Alan Yount is a fine piece of poetic biography which has an appealing personal touch.

    “For Pepper Adams: 110 %” by Freddington is another admirable example of poetic biography which has a very successful driving narrative voice.

    Gene Hyde’s “Coltrane And The Flower Moon” is a lovely tribute to one of Coltrane’s greatest musical achievements which ties music to the natural world in a compelling way.

    “She Sips Her Drink” is another fine poem by the always skillful poet, Erren Kelly.

    Byron Beynon’s “Raising The Bar” is filled with the rich historical world of jazz with all its beauty and skill and larger than life personalities.

    Roger Singer’s “Digging Deep” is another in a large number of poems that Dr. Singer has had published in Jerry Jazz Musician, and it is another solid example of jazz poetry by someone who has long specialized in creating jazz poems.

    “He Gives Me The Blues” is another successful blues poem by Aurora M. Lewis, a poem filled with life, and one which is deeply personal.

    “Upon Hearing ‘Little Rootie Tootie’
    After Quite A Long Time” by Terrance Underwood is a fine example of creating a poem which mirrors the musical style and eccentricities of a quirky musical genius. You can hear Monk’s music in the poem’s language and rhythms.

    Paul Brown’s “Coltrane” is a lovely tribute to the great man and his astonishing music.

    “The Big Easy?” by T.W. Parrish is a fine tribute to a city where the roots of jazz were laid.

    Jim Mello’s “Tuba Skinny” is a loving response to my favorite street band. It is nice to see my love of Tuba Skinny shared by another poet.

    “Bass – ist” by Russell Dupont is another skilled jazz poem by Mr. Dupont, one which celebrates the work of several of the greatest bassists.

    Moe Seager’s “Tribute to Steve Dalachinsky” uses street rhythms and lexicon to pay tribute to a fine writer now gone, but not forgotten. The poem is both skillful and deeply felt.

    Patricia Carragon’s “A Cool Cat in Town” is another fine tribute to the late Steve Dalachinsky. The poem relies on strong rhythmic drive and a skilled use of repetition to bring back memories of Dalachinsky’s own work.

    There are many more poems worthy of praise in this collection, but I am old and weary, and have done the best I can in the limited time that my eyes can hold up.

    I salute you, one and all — anthologist, poets, artists, and musicians.

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Site Archive

In This Issue

painting of Clifford Brown by Paul Lovering
A Collection of Jazz Poetry — Spring/Summer, 2024 Edition...In this, the 17th major collection of jazz poetry published on Jerry Jazz Musician, 50 poets from all over the world again demonstrate the ongoing influence the music and its associated culture has on their creative lives.

(featuring the art of Paul Lovering)

Interview

Interview with James Kaplan, author of 3 Shades of Blue: Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans and the Lost Empire of Cool...The esteemed writer tells a vibrant story about the jazz world before, during, and after the 1959 recording of Kind of Blue, and how the album’s three genius musicians came together, played together, and grew together (and often apart) throughout the experience.

Publisher’s Notes

photo by Rhonda Dorsett
On turning 70, and contemplating the future of Jerry Jazz Musician...

The Sunday Poem

Anefo, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
“Straight, No Chaser,” by Steve Trenam...

Click here to read previous editions of The Sunday Poem

Essay

“Gone Guy: Jazz’s Unsung Dodo Marmarosa,” by Michael Zimecki...The writer remembers the late jazz musician Michael “Dodo” Marmarosa, awarded Esquire Magazine’s New Star Award in 1947, and who critics predicted would dominate the jazz scene for the next 30 years.

Feature

Excerpts from David Rife’s Jazz Fiction: Take Two – Vol. 5: “Scott Joplin: King of Ragtime”...A substantial number of novels and stories with jazz music as a component of the story have been published over the years, and the scholar David J. Rife has written short essay/reviews of them. In this fifth edition of excerpts from his book, Rife writes of three novels that include stories about Scott Joplin, the primary forerunner and significant influencer of jazz.

Interview

Interview with Larry Tye, author of The Jazzmen: How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie Transformed America...The author talks about his book, an intensely researched, spirited, and beautifully told story – and an important reminder that Armstrong, Ellington, and Basie all defied and overcame racial boundaries “by opening America’s eyes and souls to the magnificence of their music.”

Short Fiction

Impulse! Records and ABC/Dunhill Records. Photographer uncredited/via Wikimedia Commons
Short Fiction Contest-winning story #66 — “Not From Around Here” by Jeff Dingler...The author’s award-winning story is about a Jewish kid coming of age in Alabama and discovering his identity through music, in particular the interstellar sound of Sun Ra..

Click here to read more short fiction published on Jerry Jazz Musician

Poetry

John Coltrane, by Martel Chapman
Four poets, four poems…on John Coltrane

Feature

What we discover about Kamala Harris from an armful of record albums...Like her or not, readers of this site will enjoy learning that Vice President Kamala Harris is a fan of jazz music. Witness this recent clip (via Youtube) of her emerging from a record shop…

Playlist

photo of Teddy Wilson by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
“Trios – Three’s Not a Crowd” – a playlist by Bob Hecht...In the history of jazz there have been many variations of instrumentation within the trio format (think of Benny Goodman’s trio or Jimmy Giuffre’s) but on this playlist, Bob Hecht concentrates on a handful of the classic trio configurations—either piano, bass and drums, or in a few instances, piano, guitar and bass...

Poetry

“Revival” © Kent Ambler.
If You Want to Go to Heaven, Follow a Songbird – Mary K O’Melveny’s album of poetry and music...While consuming Mary K O’Melveny’s remarkable work in this digital album of poetry, readings and music, readers will discover that she is moved by the mastery of legendary musicians, the wings of a monarch butterfly, the climate and political crisis, the mysteries of space exploration, and by the freedom of jazz music that can lead to what she calls “the magic of the unknown.” (with art by Kent Ambler)

Book Excerpt

A book excerpt from Designed for Success: Better Living and Self-Improvement with Midcentury Instructional Records, by Janet Borgerson and Jonathan Schroeder...In this excerpt, the authors write extensively about music instruction and appreciation records dealing with the subject of jazz.

Interview

The Marvelettes/via Wikimedia Commons
Interview with Laura Flam and Emily Sieu Liebowitz, authors of But Will You Love Me Tomorrow?: An Oral History of the 60’s Girl Groups...Little is known of the lives and challenges many of the young Black women who made up the Girl Groups of the ‘60’s faced while performing during an era rife with racism, sexism, and music industry corruption. The authors discuss their book’s mission to provide the artists an opportunity to voice their experiences so crucial to the evolution of popular music.

Short Fiction

MartyRus, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
“Briscola” – a short story by Emily Xu...The story – a short-listed entry in the recently concluded 66th Short Fiction Contest – is an exaggerated version of the dynamism of domestic/romantic relationships between spouses and the difficulty to sustain a family.

Art

photo of Leroy Jenkins by Giovanni Piesco
The Photographs of Giovanni Piesco: Leroy Jenkins...photos of the eminent free jazz violinist, taken at Amsterdam's Bimhuis on January 4, 1999.

Essay

“Like a Girl Saying Yes: The Sound of Bix” – an essay by Malcolm McCollum...The first time Benny Goodman heard Bix Beiderbecke play cornet, he wondered, “My God, what planet, what galaxy, did this guy come from?” What was it about this musician that captivated and astonished so many for so long – and still does?

Trading Fours with Douglas Cole

Trading Fours, with Douglas Cole, No. 21: “The Blue Truth”...In this edition, the poet riffs on Oliver Nelson’s classic 1961 album The Blues and the Abstract Truth as if a conversation between conductor and players were caught on tape along with the inner monologue of some mystery player/speaker of the poem.

In Memoriam

Hans Bernhard (Schnobby), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
“Remembering Joe Pass: Versatile Jazz Guitar Virtuoso” – by Kenneth Parsons...On the 30th anniversary of the guitarist Joe Pass’ death, Kenneth Parsons reminds readers of his brilliant career

Book Excerpt

Book excerpt from Jazz with a Beat: Small Group Swing 1940 – 1960, by Tad Richards

Click here to read more book excerpts published on Jerry Jazz Musician

Jazz History Quiz #175

photo by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
This famed jazz artist played the piano professionally as a seventh grader before switching to drums, learning to play in the styles of Chick Webb and Sid Catlett. Before forming his own band in the early 1950’s, he played with Mary Lou Williams (pictured) in New York, toured the South with Fletcher Henderson’s band, and was the drummer in Billy Eckstine’s group from 1944 – 1947. Who is he?

Community

photo via Picryl.com
“Community Bookshelf” is a twice-yearly space where writers who have been published on Jerry Jazz Musician can share news about their recently authored books and/or recordings. This edition includes information about books published within the last six months or so (March – September, 2024)

Contributing Writers

Click the image to view the writers, poets and artists whose work has been published on Jerry Jazz Musician, and find links to their work

Coming Soon

An interview with Larry Tye, author of The Jazzmen: How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie Transformed America; an interview with Jonathon Grasse, author of Jazz Revolutionary: The Life & Music of Eric Dolphy; A new collection of jazz poetry; a collection of jazz haiku; a new Jazz History Quiz; short fiction; poetry; photography; interviews; playlists; and lots more in the works...

Interview Archive

Ella Fitzgerald/IISG, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Click to view the complete 25-year archive of Jerry Jazz Musician interviews, including those recently published with Judith Tick on Ella Fitzgerald (pictured),; Laura Flam and Emily Sieu Liebowitz on the Girl Groups of the 60's; Tad Richards on Small Group Swing; Stephanie Stein Crease on Chick Webb; Brent Hayes Edwards on Henry Threadgill; Richard Koloda on Albert Ayler; Glenn Mott on Stanley Crouch; Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom on Eubie Blake; Richard Brent Turner on jazz and Islam; Alyn Shipton on the art of jazz; Shawn Levy on the original queens of standup comedy; Travis Atria on the expatriate trumpeter Arthur Briggs; Kitt Shapiro on her life with her mother, Eartha Kitt; Will Friedwald on Nat King Cole; Wayne Enstice on the drummer Dottie Dodgion; the drummer Joe La Barbera on Bill Evans; Philip Clark on Dave Brubeck; Nicholas Buccola on James Baldwin and William F. Buckley; Ricky Riccardi on Louis Armstrong; Dan Morgenstern and Christian Sands on Erroll Garner; Maria Golia on Ornette Coleman.