Bob Creeley (poet, writer) died today.

[skip fox]

For all those who knew his work, this is sad.

[skip fox]

1. I Know a Man

As I sd to my
friend, because I am
always talking,--John, I

sd, which was not his
name, the darkness sur-
rounds us, what

can we do against
it, or else, shall we &
why not, buy a goddamn big car,

drive, he sd, for
christ's sake, look
out where yr going.


"I Know a Man" by Robert Creeley, ca. 1953, and often anthologized. Deservedly so.

[BurtWorm]

2. There's a funny discussion of that poem here.

http://wings.buffalo.edu/epc/authors/creeley/interview.html

I wouldn't have known about it or the author if I hadn't checked into this thread and then Googled his name. May he rest in peace:


RC: There was a very curious discussion of this poem in context with Philip Larkin's 'The Whitsun Weddings' as instances of the reemergence of Christian themes in contemporary poetry, somewhere back in the 60s. It was in the TLS. The contention was that the speaker of the poem is Jesus Christ and the John is John the Baptist. It was quite seriously made.

AR: Would you say that's a wrong interpretation?

RC: Oh, who am I to say? I only work here, I don't know... It seems to me absurd, frankly. But I only wrote the poem.....

[SmokingJacket]

3. One of the great old poets.

He did good work.

from Broken Back BLues

I havent got a nickle—
I havent got a dime—
I havent got a cent—
I dont have that kind of time
(all rite for you, friend
that's the most
we herewith
propose a toast:
It's a hopeless world.

:cry:

[Cats Against Frist]

4. Ahhhh Creeley

I like his stuff. Have many friends who LOVE his stuff. He anthologized one of my favorite poems in the BAP series: "On Antiphon Island," by Nathaniel Mackey.

Here's to you, Bob -- your poetry, and your good taste...

[skip fox]

5. WOW. Nathaniel Mackey!!!!

A literarte group at DU>

(I wrote an secondary bibliography of Creeley--with Dorn and Duncan--in the 80s for G.K. Hall as Willard Fox. Creeley was the poet who "brought me in.")

[Cats Against Frist]

6. What do you think -- that grad students in poetry stare at the clouds

all day? ;)

I've actually spent a large part of my MFA program giving myself a MA in Libertarian Studies, alongside writing -- and I've spent quite a bit of time on DU. I couldn't write poems from April to November, because I was addicted to politics -- so, I came here to work out my chops by participating in flamebait threads and being the "logical fallacy police."

It's good to know that there are others that are, say "Beyond Bukowski" in liberal political circles. Thing is, you'd think there would be more...

:hi:

[skip fox]

7. Always, but there is always hope. Thus the thread.

I've been active in both circles since the 80s. In poetry more thoroughly and sicne 1969, but have been arrested abd jailed, have written items which have put me in conflict with K. Starr (and onto Burden of Proof), as well os bks of poetry &c.


Hell, it seems a natural conjunction to me.

Olson, Duncan, Creeley, Dorn, Gisnberg, Corso, Spicer, Snyder, Jonas, Notley, Mayer, Pound, Williams. Neidecker, Loy . . . oh so lovely many . . .