jump count
The cycle sunk
and with disaster
capsized the bounty:
a quick game played into
extra terms and over time,
a reckless plot with
some mention of revenge;
a speculative view
afforded by affronting the populace.
the spring is wound…
the sword is drawn with crayons,
and you and I are pawns
in a game of pick-em-up 52.
-Zumwalt 1973
This is from Gemini 3.0:
If Billy Collins—a two-term U.S. Poet Laureate known for accessibility, humor, and narrative clarity—submitted his best work under the name “John Doe” to a random mix of 100 literary journals today, here is the harsh statistical reality:
He would likely be rejected by 85% to 95% of them.
Here is the breakdown of why:
Billy Collins writes “accessible” poetry. It is clear, often funny, and typically ends with a turn that invites the reader in.
Most journals accept less than 1% of submissions.
He would more likely be accepted by:
The New Yorker: (10% to 15% chance of acceptance.) They publish him now, but blind? They favor a very specific, polished voice that he has perfected, so he might still crack their code, but it’s not guaranteed.
Rattle: (40% to 60% chance of acceptance.) They prioritize “accessible” and “narrative” work. He is their ideal aesthetic.
The Sun: (15% to 25% chance of acceptance.) They want emotional resonance and clarity.
In 1925, recording technology continued to improve with jazz bands across the USA making their first recordings, even if it was only one double-sided 78 record.
1925 was the year Armstrong transitioned from being the greatest 1920s jazz sideman to a leader of his own group. He began the year in New York with Fletcher Henderson and ended it in Chicago recording the first “Hot Five” tracks starting in November — some of my favorite jazz recordings of all time, and generally recognized as highly treasured musical landmarks.
Other notable names made recordings this year: the trumpeter Bix Beiderbecke, Fats Waller, Duke Ellington with his group The Washingtonians, Bessie Smith, and Ethel Waters. The sides they recorded are still musical gems a hundred years later.
Lesser names recorded, of course. Some had big hits, including Ben Bernie and His Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra’s original hit recording of “Sweet Georgia Brown” and Paul Whiteman’s symphonic jazz version of James P. Johnson’s “Charleston,” which became a popular representation of the vitality and character of the “Roaring Twenties.”
There were many lesser names with less known recordings that are worth checking out including the Original Crescent City Jazzers recording “Christine” and The Halfway House Orchestra’s “Pussy Cat Rag.” Yes, we still had rags being featured in both jazz and in written concert hall music, but ragtime was now a historical style, and most pieces titled rags in 1925 were jazz and not ragtime.
1925 was a diverse and productive year for concert hall music including George Gershwin‘s Piano Concerto in F, Edgard Varèse‘s Intégrales ,and Alban Berg‘s masterpiece, the opera Wozzeck.
Even rock fans will find 1925 abundant with gems that they would likely appreciate: “Cow Cow Blues” by Dora Carr and Cow Cow Davenport which is a blues recording enlivened with early elements of boogie woogie as well as Blind Lemon Jeffersons first recordings including “Black Horse Blues.” At the same time, many recordings of “pre-bluegrass” and “pre-country” music were recorded including Charlie Poole’s unrelenting, banjo-driven “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down Blues” with traditional fiddle and rhythmic acoustic guitar.
All in all, 1925 had a wealth of music that any music lover can spend a few weeks, if not a full year, exploring.
Agamemnon Never Had It So Good
The creeping crabgrass sprouts…
And in a malaise of malcontent challenges the
wafting, drafting hydrocarbons.
A lawn of moldering green cadavers.
Mercury, mercury, everywhere, and not a drop
to drink.
The salmon croaks. the sardine croaks, the crimson
crawdad croaks, even the warted frog croaks.
But do crooks croak? Nay!
O, justice, thou art not blind —
a bit deaf maybe — but not blind!
All that is left are saltines and brushed suede.
Thus we reach Armageddon.
—Zumwalt (late 1970s?)
I have been going through Louis Armstrong’s recorded catalogue, and such a treat! I love this video of Louis and his all-stars performing “Someday” from 1962. This was almost a year after all-star clarinetist Barney Bigard left the band and was replaced with Joe Darensbourg, and about 20 months before Louis recorded his version of “Hello Dolly” which when released the following year in 1964 would push the Beatles out of the top spot in the charts for 14 consecutive weeks. Yes, only Louismania could contend with Beatlemania!
YOUTUBE VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDg–Bb79YM
This should also warm your heart for the holiday seasons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elJb_Inyazk
zumpoems 