Imagine
by a California prisoner, May 2006
Imagine a world where time stands still
Where nothing you do is of your own free will
Stripped of your freedom, your hopes, your pride
Surrounded by strangers with no place to hide
Imagine a place where you?re told what to wear
A place where no one is allowed to grow hair
You are told each day you?re not to talk
And where and when you can and cannot walk
A world where you sleep, surrounded by hate
Where all you can do is just sit and wait
Imagine a world where you have no choice
Where you can?t even think because of the noise
A world where you work but get no pay
And made to feel worthless each and every day
A world where days crawl like a snail
Where all you have hope for is a piece of mail
A world where you have to eat real quick
Does this sound like a world that would make you sick?
Imagine a world surrounded by wire
Able to walk from this place is my greatest desire
A world like this is hard to conceive
Yet here I am and cannot leave
For some more prisoner poems of this standard see: http://www.etext.org/Politics/MIM/agitation/prisons/poetry/index.html
Wednesday, 31 January 2007
Monday, 29 January 2007
On T-REX
Born to Boogie
Of all the singers or groups that have had a profound effect on me, of which there were many, I would have to say that none had such an impact as T-Rex.
As an impressionable 15 year old who was bumbling through adolescence and trying desperately to establish some kind of street-cred, T-Rex came out of nowhere with this new sound that hit me like the proverbial ‘sledgehammer’.
T-Rex, formerly known as Tyrannosaurus Rex, (who would have guessed?) a glam-rock band of the 70s fronted by the diminutive Marc Bolan with his trade-mark corkscrew hair and elfish looks gave rock and roll a whole new sound and image that quickly catapulted the band into the forefront of the music industry. Not only did the band attain an almost cult status, Marc Bolan became a fashion icon through his wearing of kitschy and ostentatious garb both on and off stage thereby setting a trend that was quickly adopted by many of the groups contemporaries such as, ‘Sweet’, ‘Gary Glitter and the Glitter Band’, and ‘Slade’ to mention but a few.
In the early years Tyrannosaurus Rex consisting of Marc Bolan (vocals and guitar) and Mickey Finn (percussions) had only ever performed acoustically with a very limited fan-base in and around the London university campus’ scene. Feeling that they were not realising there full potential Marc somewhat reluctantly decided to try a new approach by introducing electric guitar, Bass, and Drums into the band. It was also decided to hyphenate the name to T-Rex (this was considered easier to remember). This formula coincided with the release of ‘Ride a White Swan’ the first of many singles that when released wasted no time and shot to the top of the singles charts and launched the band on a meteoric rise to stardom.
With the phenomenal success of their first single, T-Rex released yet another single soon after entitled ‘Hot Love’ which proved to be an even bigger hit than ‘Ride a White Swan’ and was followed with their first aptly named album ‘Electric Warrior’. I would have to agree that Marc Bolan was a bit of a narcissist in that he believed it was his ingenuity in bringing the group from relative obscurity into becoming one of the countries biggest ‘Glam-Rock’ bands ever. I tend to agree with him!
Needless to say, like all teenagers past, present, and future, I could hardly contain myself when my Idols T-rex were playing at the local disco, I would be up there on the dance floor in my skin-tight crushed velvet flared trousers, platform shoes (?) satin jacket and wearing my sisters make-up (which I used to smuggle out of the house in case my father ever seen me wearing it!), bearing in mind, my day job was working as ‘Steel-fixer’ on building sites! How would I ever live it down??
Still in the immortal words of another Glam-Rocker of that era a certain Rod Stewart when he penned the words we were:
In and out of jobs running free, waging war with society,
My dad said we looked ridiculous, but boy we broke some hearts!
Eddie
Of all the singers or groups that have had a profound effect on me, of which there were many, I would have to say that none had such an impact as T-Rex.
As an impressionable 15 year old who was bumbling through adolescence and trying desperately to establish some kind of street-cred, T-Rex came out of nowhere with this new sound that hit me like the proverbial ‘sledgehammer’.
T-Rex, formerly known as Tyrannosaurus Rex, (who would have guessed?) a glam-rock band of the 70s fronted by the diminutive Marc Bolan with his trade-mark corkscrew hair and elfish looks gave rock and roll a whole new sound and image that quickly catapulted the band into the forefront of the music industry. Not only did the band attain an almost cult status, Marc Bolan became a fashion icon through his wearing of kitschy and ostentatious garb both on and off stage thereby setting a trend that was quickly adopted by many of the groups contemporaries such as, ‘Sweet’, ‘Gary Glitter and the Glitter Band’, and ‘Slade’ to mention but a few.
In the early years Tyrannosaurus Rex consisting of Marc Bolan (vocals and guitar) and Mickey Finn (percussions) had only ever performed acoustically with a very limited fan-base in and around the London university campus’ scene. Feeling that they were not realising there full potential Marc somewhat reluctantly decided to try a new approach by introducing electric guitar, Bass, and Drums into the band. It was also decided to hyphenate the name to T-Rex (this was considered easier to remember). This formula coincided with the release of ‘Ride a White Swan’ the first of many singles that when released wasted no time and shot to the top of the singles charts and launched the band on a meteoric rise to stardom.
With the phenomenal success of their first single, T-Rex released yet another single soon after entitled ‘Hot Love’ which proved to be an even bigger hit than ‘Ride a White Swan’ and was followed with their first aptly named album ‘Electric Warrior’. I would have to agree that Marc Bolan was a bit of a narcissist in that he believed it was his ingenuity in bringing the group from relative obscurity into becoming one of the countries biggest ‘Glam-Rock’ bands ever. I tend to agree with him!
Needless to say, like all teenagers past, present, and future, I could hardly contain myself when my Idols T-rex were playing at the local disco, I would be up there on the dance floor in my skin-tight crushed velvet flared trousers, platform shoes (?) satin jacket and wearing my sisters make-up (which I used to smuggle out of the house in case my father ever seen me wearing it!), bearing in mind, my day job was working as ‘Steel-fixer’ on building sites! How would I ever live it down??
Still in the immortal words of another Glam-Rocker of that era a certain Rod Stewart when he penned the words we were:
In and out of jobs running free, waging war with society,
My dad said we looked ridiculous, but boy we broke some hearts!
Eddie
Friday, 26 January 2007
Anti-Slavery ballad by Robert Burns
Robert Burns'The Slave’s Lament—' (1792)
It was in sweet Senegal that my foes did me enthrall
For the lands of Virginia-ginia O;
Torn from that lovely shore, and must never see it more,
And alas! I am weary, weary O!
Torn from &c.
All on that charming coast is no bitter snow and frost,
Like the lands of Virginia-ginia O;
There streams for ever flow, and there flowers for ever blow,
And alas! I am weary, weary O!
There streams &c.
The burden I must bear, while the cruel scourge I fear,
In the lands of Virginia-ginia O;
And I think on friends most dear with the bitter, bitter tear,
And Alas! I am weary, weary O!
And I think &c.
Saturday, 20 January 2007
Trainspotting: A Railway Story
Trainspotting: A Railway Story by The Reverend Irvine Welsh
Thomas The Tanked-Up Engine
Wis playin’ wi’ his Mainline Friends
He wis puffin’ like a shite auld choo-choo
He couldnae chuff-chuff roond the bends
So Big Jimmy the fuckin’ Red Engine
Rolled up ‘n gie Tam a wee smoke
“Can I interest ye in some refreshments?” he said“
‘Cos things go better wi’ coke”
“Ye can keep yer toasted sangwidges ‘n snacks
An yer individual fruit pies
Ma buffet car’s sorted fer e’s ‘n whizz
Help yersel tae the goods, privatise!”
“Toot! Toot! This fare’s just the ticket!”
Whistled Tam as he shot up the track
“Let’s take a trip through the tunnel o’ love
A have it away day oan smack!”
Whoo-whoo! What a rush! Tam wiz speedin’!
“Hullo! Railway Children! Let’s rave!”
Jenny Agutter’s whipped oaf her knickers
Tae gie Tam a special wee wave
“Look at me! Ah’m The Flyin’ Fuckin’ Scotsman!” said Tam
“Ah go jet set tae Rio - first class!
Je suis un Eurostar train trash
Adios Airdrie ya bass!”
The Fat Cuntroller wiz ootay his box
The radge wiz goin’ loco
“Yer the 2.33 tae Cowdenbeath
No Acafuckinpulco!”
“This is Virgin on the ridiculous!” said the boss
Then the buffer gie Tam the big shunt
“Yer scrap son - git oan the heave-ho express” Tam laughed
“Fuck oaf ya fat cunt-roller”
“We interrupt this poem tae make a customer service announcement
Fer youse wankers oan platform eight
We’re sorry fer the delay but the trains are oan drugs
That’s why they’re aw fuckin’ late”
Elvis McGonagall
Thomas The Tanked-Up Engine
Wis playin’ wi’ his Mainline Friends
He wis puffin’ like a shite auld choo-choo
He couldnae chuff-chuff roond the bends
So Big Jimmy the fuckin’ Red Engine
Rolled up ‘n gie Tam a wee smoke
“Can I interest ye in some refreshments?” he said“
‘Cos things go better wi’ coke”
“Ye can keep yer toasted sangwidges ‘n snacks
An yer individual fruit pies
Ma buffet car’s sorted fer e’s ‘n whizz
Help yersel tae the goods, privatise!”
“Toot! Toot! This fare’s just the ticket!”
Whistled Tam as he shot up the track
“Let’s take a trip through the tunnel o’ love
A have it away day oan smack!”
Whoo-whoo! What a rush! Tam wiz speedin’!
“Hullo! Railway Children! Let’s rave!”
Jenny Agutter’s whipped oaf her knickers
Tae gie Tam a special wee wave
“Look at me! Ah’m The Flyin’ Fuckin’ Scotsman!” said Tam
“Ah go jet set tae Rio - first class!
Je suis un Eurostar train trash
Adios Airdrie ya bass!”
The Fat Cuntroller wiz ootay his box
The radge wiz goin’ loco
“Yer the 2.33 tae Cowdenbeath
No Acafuckinpulco!”
“This is Virgin on the ridiculous!” said the boss
Then the buffer gie Tam the big shunt
“Yer scrap son - git oan the heave-ho express” Tam laughed
“Fuck oaf ya fat cunt-roller”
“We interrupt this poem tae make a customer service announcement
Fer youse wankers oan platform eight
We’re sorry fer the delay but the trains are oan drugs
That’s why they’re aw fuckin’ late”
Elvis McGonagall
Elvis McGonagall
Elvis McGonagall is current World Poetry slam champion and no wonder -read this.
This Land's Not Your Land: A Republican Party Protest Song By A Global Village Idiot Called Backwoodsy Guthrie
This land's not your land,
this land is our land
From Columbus, Ohio to the Florida swampland
From the corporate jungle to the redneck ranchland
This land was made by Fox TV
It's bible bashin' Disneyland
It's yippee-ai eye for an eye
It's faith, family and flagGod, guns and apple pie
This land belongs to cowboys
In Stetsons, spurs 'n' suits
We're the Wall Street, Wal-Mart-Waltons
John-Boy, Jim-Bob, Jack-Boots
In the Burger Kingdom of the Stupid
Stupid is as Stupid does
Forrest Gump is President
Yee-haw! He's one of us!
e're Starbuckin' bronco Marlboro' men
We're big chief swingin' dicks
It's John Wayne's world in Washington
We're the Capitol Hillbilly hicks
We don't read books, we do action
All-American wham bam ma'am!
Schwarzenegger Uber Alles!
Gimme five! Jean Claude Van Damme!
Rambo is not a poet
The French is arty-farty funks
We hate cheese surrender chimpanzees
We hate perverts, pansies, punks'
Cos them flip-flop pinko girly boys
Don't walk
The American Way
The Dixie Chicks are Communists
SpongeBob SquarePants is gay
Hollywood is Satan's whorehouse
It's the Sodom 'n' Gomorrah
MotelRoute 666 to Tinseltown
Is the road to burnin' hell
We ride the hosanna highway
Saddle up our SUV
We got a two-ton tank 'n' a ten-gallon hatO-I-L spells victory
We're Team USA cheerleaders
Go! Go! Go! The Pentagon!Shakin' 9/11 pompoms 24/7 Armageddon?
Bring it on!We're the evangelical vandals
Shit-kick, kick, kickin' down Mecca's door
Rainin' baptist bombs on Babylon
Behold their Shock 'n' Awe!
We're pumpin'out Mohammed's diesel
Fillin' up Christ's limousine
Hallelujah Halliburton!
Glory! Glory! Gasoline!
We got no time for risin' oceans,
Ozone layers or polar bears Kyoto - is that a Japanese car?
It's gettin' hot in here - who cares?
We export Nike swoosh democracy
Handmade with Asian sweat
And golden arches of McFreedom
Built on African debt
That Chuck Darwin was a monkey boy
His science fiction's over
The Almighty made us, that's a factWay to go Jehovah!
The American Dream is born again
It's a big name brand New Deal
It's a holy roller Coca-ColaProzac Happy Meal
It's Britney Spears 'n' Bud Lite beers
It's Super-Size 'n' Super Bowl
It's Dunkin' Donuts on your mind
It's botox for your soul
We don't spare no cash for trailer trash
You gotta help yourself Jose
We wipe our ass with dollar-bills
Da-doo Enron-ron have a nice day
We're the bullet-head neo-conmen
We're the mob that franchise fear
Cat Stevens is an evil terrorist
Folk with beards ain't welcome here
We zip 'em up like chocolate oranges
Shackle, cage, interrogate
We protect Wild West values
Strip, abuse, humiliate
We don't murder unborn babies
We're pro-life NRA
We Kentucky fry deathrow deadbeats
We're electric chairmen KKK
We're the Saxon sons of Uncle Sam
Our blood's red, white 'n' blue
There ain't no black in the Stars 'n' Stripes
It don't fly for Apache or Sioux
We have loosed the fateful lightning
Of our terrible swift sword
We're the Pentecostal patriots
Kick-butt and praise The Lord!
This land's not your land, this land is our land
From the buffalo Badlands to the cotton-pickin' Dixieland
From the Dust Bowl wasteland to the Presley Graceland
This land is Jesusland! Amen!
Elvis McGonagall .For more of his poems : http://www.stetpress.co.uk/New%20writing.htm
This Land's Not Your Land: A Republican Party Protest Song By A Global Village Idiot Called Backwoodsy Guthrie
This land's not your land,
this land is our land
From Columbus, Ohio to the Florida swampland
From the corporate jungle to the redneck ranchland
This land was made by Fox TV
It's bible bashin' Disneyland
It's yippee-ai eye for an eye
It's faith, family and flagGod, guns and apple pie
This land belongs to cowboys
In Stetsons, spurs 'n' suits
We're the Wall Street, Wal-Mart-Waltons
John-Boy, Jim-Bob, Jack-Boots
In the Burger Kingdom of the Stupid
Stupid is as Stupid does
Forrest Gump is President
Yee-haw! He's one of us!
e're Starbuckin' bronco Marlboro' men
We're big chief swingin' dicks
It's John Wayne's world in Washington
We're the Capitol Hillbilly hicks
We don't read books, we do action
All-American wham bam ma'am!
Schwarzenegger Uber Alles!
Gimme five! Jean Claude Van Damme!
Rambo is not a poet
The French is arty-farty funks
We hate cheese surrender chimpanzees
We hate perverts, pansies, punks'
Cos them flip-flop pinko girly boys
Don't walk
The American Way
The Dixie Chicks are Communists
SpongeBob SquarePants is gay
Hollywood is Satan's whorehouse
It's the Sodom 'n' Gomorrah
MotelRoute 666 to Tinseltown
Is the road to burnin' hell
We ride the hosanna highway
Saddle up our SUV
We got a two-ton tank 'n' a ten-gallon hatO-I-L spells victory
We're Team USA cheerleaders
Go! Go! Go! The Pentagon!Shakin' 9/11 pompoms 24/7 Armageddon?
Bring it on!We're the evangelical vandals
Shit-kick, kick, kickin' down Mecca's door
Rainin' baptist bombs on Babylon
Behold their Shock 'n' Awe!
We're pumpin'out Mohammed's diesel
Fillin' up Christ's limousine
Hallelujah Halliburton!
Glory! Glory! Gasoline!
We got no time for risin' oceans,
Ozone layers or polar bears Kyoto - is that a Japanese car?
It's gettin' hot in here - who cares?
We export Nike swoosh democracy
Handmade with Asian sweat
And golden arches of McFreedom
Built on African debt
That Chuck Darwin was a monkey boy
His science fiction's over
The Almighty made us, that's a factWay to go Jehovah!
The American Dream is born again
It's a big name brand New Deal
It's a holy roller Coca-ColaProzac Happy Meal
It's Britney Spears 'n' Bud Lite beers
It's Super-Size 'n' Super Bowl
It's Dunkin' Donuts on your mind
It's botox for your soul
We don't spare no cash for trailer trash
You gotta help yourself Jose
We wipe our ass with dollar-bills
Da-doo Enron-ron have a nice day
We're the bullet-head neo-conmen
We're the mob that franchise fear
Cat Stevens is an evil terrorist
Folk with beards ain't welcome here
We zip 'em up like chocolate oranges
Shackle, cage, interrogate
We protect Wild West values
Strip, abuse, humiliate
We don't murder unborn babies
We're pro-life NRA
We Kentucky fry deathrow deadbeats
We're electric chairmen KKK
We're the Saxon sons of Uncle Sam
Our blood's red, white 'n' blue
There ain't no black in the Stars 'n' Stripes
It don't fly for Apache or Sioux
We have loosed the fateful lightning
Of our terrible swift sword
We're the Pentecostal patriots
Kick-butt and praise The Lord!
This land's not your land, this land is our land
From the buffalo Badlands to the cotton-pickin' Dixieland
From the Dust Bowl wasteland to the Presley Graceland
This land is Jesusland! Amen!
Elvis McGonagall .For more of his poems : http://www.stetpress.co.uk/New%20writing.htm
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