Thomas Antonic‘s “Allen Ginsberg in Austria” is essential reading.
Today marks the release date for American Give A Shit! The title is, of course, from the poem by Peter Orlovsky
“In 1980, Allen Ginsberg toured Europe accompanied by his long-term partner, and poet in his own right, Peter Orlovsky, along with the young musician Steven Taylor. On November 10, they performed at Forum Stadpark in Graz, a small venue in a small Austrian town. The entire performance was recorded by ORF, the Austrian National Broadcasting Corporation, but was never broadcast and, until now, unreleased.
Poet, filmmaker and Beat scholar Thomas Antonic went into the vaults of ORF and excavated the recording, acting as the producer of this record of astounding audio quality, mastered by legendary sound wizard Kramer, released on Tate Swindell’s label Unrequited Records in San Francisco. This is a unique historical document which preserves an exceptional 94 minute performance of this trio who were only active together for a short period of time.”
The first edition of this double-album is limited to 200 copies on 180g vinyl in violet color. It includes an 8-page booklet with extensive liner notes by Antonic who managed to track down the organizer of the Graz event, as well as attendees. He also interviewed Steven Taylor for his insights and remembrances.
The booklet also features previously-unpublished photographs by Ginsberg capturing the trio’s jubilant spirit. Whether they are clearing the snow from James Joyce’s grave in Zürich, posing for a possible album cover in front of the Goethe Monument in Vienna, or clowning around in Budapest, these intimate snapshots provide a peek behind the scenes while touring through Central Europe.”
Allen Ginsberg: vocals, percussion – Peter Orlovsky: vocals, banjo, percussion – Steven Taylor: vocals, guitar.
David S Wills’ incisive review can be found – here
“Lost Ginsberg Recording Resurrected” – Simon Warner‘s notes on the recording – here
and further Centennial presentations:
May 17-19 (the beginning of next week), Independent Beat Waves (at ULICES (University of Lisbon Centre For English Studies)), a two-day symposium convened with the intention of highlighting “the connections between the poetical and the political on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the independence of the United States and the 100th anniversary of Allen Ginsberg” – Special Guest – Anne Waldman
Back in the US, Sunday is also the date of the presentation in Santa Barbara – of “Philip Glass and The Poets” – (featuring music of Philip Glass performed by Timo Andres, readings by Taylor Mac, and special guest appearances by Lucinda Childs and the San Francisco Girls Chorus
“You don’t grow up queer in America, and I don’t mean just queer, you know? You don’t grow up an outsider in America without knowing about Allen Ginsberg, and he’s mythical to us and and partially because of his erotic glee. I think eroticism has so much shame and oppression and privacy attached to it, and it’s dismissed. And he just went all in with it. He said no shame. And he connected it to nature in a way that our modern society is so afraid of. The natural world! Our modern religions are so afraid of the natural world. And so he really just connected it to who we are as human beings, and our messy, fleshy bodies, and that’s liberating when you’re living in a world that says nature, the natural way, is wrong, and somebody, this incredible poet, is saying, “No, it is the natural way,” you know, with his bright energy. And then America, whether they debated him or not, or were offended by him or not, they embraced him as an American figure. And so that as a queer, as an outsider, is completely right. “Oh, wait, I belong here, too.” And so I think, yes, of course, he’s mythic.”
Joe Richey‘s hour-long program – “A Birthday Garland For Allen” is now available for your listening pleasure on www.alternativeradio.org – “I was Ginsberg’s student”, Joe writes, (at Naropa), “And what an honor to put a little sand on his 100th Birthday Mandala”
and more critical musings – (May 20) Regina Weinreich – “Allen Ginsberg – Guilt By Association” – see here
Nina Zivancevic recalls Allen on Rock and the Beat Generation
& Allen’s is not the only Poet Centennial this year.It’s also the Centennial year for Robert Creeley. We’ve already mentioned this – “Onward!” (a celebration at the Poetry Collection at the University of Buffalo) on-going through to the end of the year), and this – “Active Complement” (an exhibition at the University of Buffalo Art Galleries, which opened March 26, closes May 23rd). Opening tonight at Black Rock Arts – “There’s Things (an exhibition for/about/around Robert Creeley” – “Through works of homage, interpretation and remembrance, “There’s Thing”s pays tribute to one of our most important and influential poets on the occasion of his 100th birthday. The exhibition includes contributions from over a dozen artists, several of whom worked in direct response to Creeley’s writing and biography to create new works especially for “There’s Things.”
“The Story is True – Robert Creeley on Film”, the series of film screenings at The Anthology Film Archive in New York that we mentioned last week continues. Notably, Bruce Jackson and Diane Christian‘s Creeley (1988) and Richard O Moore‘s WNET footage (these played this past Wednesday, and, beginning Friday, Colin Still‘s Robert Creeley, Black Mountain Blues
Jackson and Christian will also be showing footage at Black Rock, Tuesday May 19
Also, don’t miss – we mentioned this too last week, a distillation, out of the incomparable PennSound (from the University of Pennsylvania) – Chris Mustazza‘s “Creeley Listening Station”
Richard Avedon was born on this day
May 16 (tomorrow) – Wavy Gravy is celebrating his 90th with a party
&, finally, (following on from yesterday(‘s theme) – May 15 (tonight!) – also in San Francisco – Gay Propaganda 3.0, Slava Mogutin‘s mini- film fest at the Bob Mizer Museum, featuring
“a diverse lineup of international queer artists and filmmakers”, (Allen, significantly among them) “serving as a creative, rebellious response to anti-LGBTQ+ “gay propaganda” laws in Russia and Eastern Europe”.
