Hughes blues

[Doreen Peri]

On the way home,
listened to Langston Hughes’
blues poems, sax wailing,
his voice exhaling truths
on the radio. I so
wish you had heard him roar!
Jazz beats, pedal to the floor,
revving a fervent engine.
That dude is legend!

[mnaz]

Looking for freedom.
Not much freedom for awhile,
at least not on the Big Screen
until told we have troops fighting
for freedom, and that made sense, so I
went to bed almost believing in freedom
at some point in the last 2 or 4 centuries.
But what happened in the sixties (and the
forever twenties, thirties, forties, fifties and
seventies) kind of wrecked everything after
the big wars, though I can't be sure. Jack
should have never hung around in those
neighborhoods trying to get the blues
and the jazz and all that.

[saw]

the real deal
changed a lot of lives
he had a contemporary in baltimore
called himself Slangston Hughes
I met him at a couple at readings
he was cool...but I never liked that moniker he chose
seemed sacrilegious
because what you heard in the car
shouldn't be messed with
imho

[Doreen Peri]

Mnaz... who’s Jack? Friend of Langston’s?

Saw... yeah I heard of that guy’s handle. Never heard his poetry though. I agree with you.

[mnaz]

Kerouac. (Almost) a contemporary..

[Doreen Peri]

Aha! That’s who I thought you meant. Not really contemporaries I don’t think but that’s ok. I’m very certain Hughes must have influenced him.

Hughes was 1930s right? Kerouac was 1950s?

[mnaz]

Yes. Jack was about 24 years younger. The connection was jazz. Jazz and poetry. Jazz poetry ...

[Doreen Peri]

My fave!!! Love it!

[judih]

raised by his grandmother, supported in his creativity, hughes still speaks to us. powerful, simple language. direct messages.
His work is taught in our nation-wide literature curriculum.

thanks, doreen, for sharing your soul delight