by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner
Some artists write poems and novels. Others paint and perform. Some build imaginary worlds you can immerse and lose yourself in. Some bring messages from the future, prophesying, fortelling the fates of this one. Our poet recalls one of these...
Ra Was Right
by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner
like a flaming guitar
sprinkled with lighter fluid,
four alarm fires roar
through Dark Ages on
synthesizers,
saxophones, trumpets,
pianos, drums, basses—
bari on bottom of
Interstellar swing—
Bebop blessings of
High Priests of Black Music
Time’s one dimensional
flying forward—
Fly Me To The Moon
let me loiter in the
Universe beyond
historical blips:
Above smoke stacks
spewing mushroom clouds;
Above wingtip-wearing
idiots poisoning our planet’s water;
Above primitive
Tomahawk missiles,
‘Apache’ and ‘Blackhawk’
helicopters and drones;
Above true believers
babbling ‘bout ‘our democracy;’
Above multibillionaire
media disguised as ‘mainstream;’
Above 37% ‘approval’ ratings;
Above an orange meteorite
un-humbled by the stars!
Fly Me To The Moon
with a connecting
flight to Saturn—
Recalibrating
my mind ‘round icy rings,
low-riding unknown
regions, horizons—
Finding formulations,
Equations, for overthrowing
gray-suited, star-spangled
lapel pin patriots—
True believers in
Yes, we can—
Yes, we can and
Bottle Jim Jones Juice
and deliver regime
Change you can believe in…
They said Ra was out—
way, way too far out:
Now, out is in, and
In is out—and the
cosmos is cool,
Saturn’s home—
“Space is the place!”
Raymond Nat Turner © 2017 All Rights Reserved
Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performance artist. Find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com.
In this week’s segment, we analyze the first month of Zohran Mamdani’s administration as mayor of New York City. But we begin with discussion of a new book from an activist and writer about the…
We're joined by Arlene Eisen, author of the new book, In the Worldwide Family of Militant Women, published by Iskra Books. Arlene Eisen has been a militant in the struggle against imperialism since…
Lance Hawkins joins us from New York City to discuss the first month of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration. Lance Hawkins is a community, labor, and anti-war organizer, and a proud socialist born…
Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist, joined Garland Nixon in a conversation about the coordination between the Democratic and Republican parties in the descent into an…
The importance of the Epstein files cannot be underestimated. They provide a view not just of scandal and sex trafficking but of international ruling class corruption.
