Sunday, June 21, 2009

Yesterday's poem on John MacLean reminds me of the Matt McGinn song

"There was nane like John MacLean
The fighting dominie"

which can be heard here.

I wrote at the beginning of the poetry season that I'd met three real poets, meaning published poets. Well, if I add Matt McGinn, the singer songwriter, that's four.
I was introduced to Matt by a mutual friend who demanded (the right word) that Matt recite for me a poem about "The English Royal Family", and he did so. I later found out that Matt sang these lyrics to the tune of "An English Country Garden". Still, no harm, it was poetry when he spoke it.
The other poets I have Met; Ken Smith, as I already mentioned, John Heath-Stubbs, and Seán Hutton. Seán, to my knowledge, writes his verse exclusively in Irish, which makes his inclusion here ... What, unlikely? Maybe not, here's a very short one I've found -

PAX ROMANA (NICEARAGUA)

Tá an chrois in áirithe
an sciúirse, an casúr is na tairní;
tá an choróin spíne fite.

seo chugainn Iúdas
chun póg an bhraite a bhronnadh.

(published 1986)

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