Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

“No Matter What Sign You Are,”4th Supreme
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
16 Jan 2019
🖨️ Print Article
the supremes
The Supremes

Mary was mysterious,
but the best dancer
Diana, the magnetic,
cooing romancer—
But, here’s a secret I know:
cats like me dug Miss Flo—
And the 4th Supreme’s ‘fro!

The 4th Supreme came
Singing tones ‘tween
Douglass and Carmen McRae—
Malcolm X and Lady Day

The 4th Supreme came
Singing “Stop In The Name Of Love!”
by way of Brandeis/Bombing-ham—
hitting Dynamite Hill high notes

The 4th Supreme came
Singing “Reflections”
in silver bracelets, on a
Newsweek cover captioned:
“Red, Black and Wanted!”

Hoover hated her harmonies with millions…
But I heard, “Set me free, why don’t you, babe?”
Rocking me to “ …Try Something New:”
Dialectics…

 

The 4th Supreme came
Singing, “I Hear A Symphony—”
“No Matter What Sign You Are,”
in ’08—but I
forgive her and comrades
and friends for singing flat
Madison Avenue smash hits: “Yes,
we can and bottle Jim Jones Juice;”
“regime Change you can believe in—”
delivering “Nothing But Heartaches” to
Honduras, Libya, Syria, Mother Africa…

© 2018. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.
Raymond Nat Turner, our poet in residence, is an accomplished performing artist. You can find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com.

poetry

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


More Stories


  • Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Flashbacks of wild Boers storming Capitalist Hill
    15 Jun 2022
      Flashbacks of wild Boers storming Capitalist Hill
  • BAR Book Forum: Habiba Ibrahim’s “Black Age”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Habiba Ibrahim’s “Black Age”
    15 Jun 2022
    In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book. This week’s featured author is Habiba Ibrahim. Ibrahim is Associate Professor of English at the University of…
  • No COINTELPRO in DC
    Pan-African Community Action PACA
    No COINTELPRO in DC
    15 Jun 2022
    April Goggans is an organizer with Black Lives Matter in Washington DC. After years of FOIA requests she has been granted a hearing to determine if the Metropolitan Police Department are required to…
  • The Soweto Uprising’s Unfinished Business
    Mark P. Fancher
    The Soweto Uprising’s Unfinished Business
    15 Jun 2022
    Worldwide outrage over the killing of Soweto youth protesting on June 16, 1976 was a turning point in South African history. But the end of apartheid was not the end of racist oppression or corporate…
  • Leaders of the Americas and the Caribbean Miss Historical Opportunity to Deal Blow to US Imperialism
    Gerald A. Perreira
    Leaders of the Americas and the Caribbean Miss Historical Opportunity to Deal Blow to US Imperialism
    15 Jun 2022
    The U.S. excluded Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela from the recent Summit of the Americas held in Los Angeles. While there was widespread condemnation against the U.S., only six heads of state had the…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us