NOTES

Thinking of Les Coleman this morning (the title of this post is one of his aphorisms translated by Lucien Suel from the book of Les’ he published titled JE SUIS TROP VIEUX POUR MOURIR JEUNE) I remembered a couple of links from here, some years back. Here and here. The second one has a link to the Belgian press with some of the books still in print. There’s some more stuff here, and here’s a drawing from 2007 titled Shadows.

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Until now the DONATE button has been hit perhaps five times during the past decade: that it was used four times during the past twenty-four hours tells this non-believer in such coincidences to be grateful for whatever loosed the flood. Thank you.

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Matt Taibbi The Divide – American Injustice in the Age of the Wealth Gap
Geoffrey Squires HAFEZ – Translation and Interpretation of the Ghazals. A major work of translation from the Persian.
Ed Dorn from The Day and Night Book Joint #6 (99 copies) Shuffaloff/Eternal Network, 11 Conrad Avenue, Toronto, ON M6G 3G4, Canada.
Pier Franco Uliana Ingens Sylva – Cansiglio dentro e ditorno. Uliana’s fragmentary thoughts and observations are as much paths and clearings in the thickets of Self as they are records of The Great Forest. His inspiration and mirror is Cansiglio, “the last Venetian wood”. Ecopoetry and psychogeography meet.

Straight, No Chaser (take 3) Thelonius Monk & Gerry Mulligan Mulligan Meets Monk
We’re Coming For You The Last Resort This Is My England
And A Bang On The Ear The Waterboys Fisherman’s Blues
Louie, Louie Toots & The Maytals Funky Kingston
If I Should Lose You Chet Baker & Paul Bley Diane

Direct download: mocha.mp3

I would like to thank the anonymous person somewhere in the UK who sent me some money today (and it couldn’t have come at a more useful time) with a note, the gist of which was that (s)he had just bought a signed and numbered copy of my first book and “it seemed wrong that only the bookseller got paid that rather excessive sum as you are alive! Sorry Barry Hall isn’t here to share.” I am too; and whomever you may be, your generous thought and action are much appreciated.

I’m grateful if that is an apt word in this instance to Nicholas Johnson for letting me know of the death of Les Coleman more than a year ago. In the mess of life and the avoidance of The Daily Telegraph I’d missed the sad news. Here’s a link to The Telegraph’s note and if you don’t know Les’ wry, gentle but sharp work, just follow the obvious threads. I’ll miss his distinctive handwriting on the occasional envelope and the guaranteed pleasure from its contents. My condolences to his family.

…. to Peter Gilpin

I was amused by this memory of Ron Turner in a San Francisco before HiTech, not least because when I was broke there in the middle 1970s doing odd jobs like cleaning for an opera singer and being a guinea-pig for eye research, Ron gave me bridging work for some weeks packing and dispatching Last Gasp comics. He also bought me a giant burrito for lunch every day. Thanks, Ron.

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Bringing it home: Azadeh Akhlaghi

Prelude for Piano (1935) Conlon Nancarrow Lost Works, Last Works
This Is England The Clash Cut The Crap
Come On Eileen Dexy’s Midnight Runners Too Rye Ay
Helicopter Of The Holy Ghost Microdisney Love Your Enemies
Down By The Sally Gardens The Waterboys Room To Roam (Collector’s Edition-Bonus Disc)
Talk to me Lee Konitz/Paul Bley/Bill Connors Pyramid
The Dark End Of The Street Percy Sledge The Percy Sledge Way
AHK Knows HD Freedom Earned African Descent
Never Get a Job The Last Resort This Is My England
Blues for Piano (1935) Conlon Nancarrow Lost Works, Last Works

Direct download: unab.mp3

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From Delete Press a pdf of Works and Days of the Fénéon Collective, by Anonyme with an afterword by Tao Lin

and a pdf of Homage to Villon by Kent Johnson, from Beard of Bees.

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photo by gayle foster

It’s a year ago today that our old and dear friend Peter Gilpin died, quite suddenly, in Spain. Thinking of him, and Gayle, this morning I remembered this photo she sent of us earlier in that year, wearing the only two of those t-shirts. Atque in perpetuum, frater, ave atque vale.