Lizzy~ here is Langston Hughes' poem....

[LaurieAK]

Lizzy~Here is the blues poem i mentioned by Hughes. Jazzy-manhattany-cool man.........

The Weary Blues
Langston Hughes

Droning a drowsy syncopated tune,
Rocking back and forth to a mellow croon,
I heard a Negro play.
Down on Lenox Avenue the other night
By the pale dull pallor of an old gas light
He did a lazy sway . . .
He did a lazy sway . . .
To the tune o' those Weary Blues.
With his ebony hands on each ivory key
He made that poor piano moan with melody.
O Blues!
Swaying to and fro on his rickety stool
He played that sad raggy tune like a musical fool.
Sweet Blues!
Coming from a black man's soul.
O Blues!
In a deep song voice with a melancholy tone
I heard that Negro sing, that old piano moan--
"Ain't got nobody in all this world,
Ain't got nobody but ma self.
I's gwine to quit ma frownin'
And put ma troubles on the shelf."

Thump, thump, thump, went his foot on the floor.
He played a few chords then he sang some more--
"I got the Weary Blues
And I can't be satisfied.
Got the Weary Blues
And can't be satisfied--
I ain't happy no mo'
And I wish that I had died."
And far into the night he crooned that tune.
The stars went out and so did the moon.
The singer stopped playing and went to bed
While the Weary Blues echoed through his head.
He slept like a rock or a man that's dead.

[lizzytysh]

Well, I guess I didn't have to look so far to find that, did I!?! Thanks, Laurie ! You're right, it is very cool. He really captured the essence, visuals, and feeling of that black man playing the Blues, as well as the deeper reality of his life. Sooooooo easy to picture and hear him in your mind's eye and voice. What a turn-on to New York coming across that poem had to be for you. Did you check out Lenox Avenue while you were there?

[LaurieAK]

Hi Lizz~

Actually my first trip to Manhattan was to see Bocelli's great outdoor concert. It as at Liberty State Park. Me and a friend stayed in lower Manhattan, just 2 blocks from the Twin Towers. Had to take a quick ferry ride from Lower Manhatt to get to the venue. The concert was shown live on PBS and then released on video/dvd....maybe you saw it? I took some amazing pictures. Got a couple great 8th row seats. The backdrop was of the Manhattan skyline...and as if on cue, these picturesque clouds floated by, reflecting pink from the setting sun. And the buildings started to sparkle, sigh...it was a dreamy July night. Sarah Brightman was a surprise guest...it was the first and only time she and Andrea sang Time To Say Goodbye, live in north america.
I fell in love with NYC those few days there...and have returned several times since.

Last year, i was browsing Ebay and saw a bootleg copy of this concert someone stuck on a music cd and they had MY Picture of Bocelli and Brightman on the cover! They must have pulled it off of a website i shared it with...just a crazy small world, eh? Come to think of it, it was someone in Florida I threatened them nicely to please remove it....

later,
L

[lizzytysh]

Sarah Brightman [b-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-g sigh] ~ I just couldn't afford the tickets for her performance in Jacksonville last night!!! What a wonderful combo she and Bocelli must make in person. One of those bigger-than-life experiences. 8th row ~ geez-oh-pete ~ you could see the whites of their eyes. I've seen some excerpts from that concert, but not the whole thing . A magical photo that New York arranged for you.....and that "as if on cue"? Well......... A great description of a great shot, too. Makes me want to grab a camera . Were the Twin Towers also in the photo? Did the Florida person comply with your threat, I mean request? Yes, it's easy to fall in love with New York. I'd planned to go back this early Fall, but my knee saw to it, otherwise. Another time.

[Teratogen]

ah, i like langston hughes, as well as most of the harlem renaissance. good stuff.