Reading Response 11/12

When I read Henderson's poems I read them with the some what lackadaisical attitude. Even though his poems are about the exact opposite. He tends to write about being active, whether that be about working or about going around the city and enjoying observing the views. All his poems are about an experience, and what is interesting is the fact that he constantly uses colors to add emphasis on a description. He mentions the, "..blue Capricorn rains", the, "black galaxy", the, "white bars". The color just makes you kind of double take and re read the line, which in return gives you a more vivid image.

These poems all seems to have this musical feel to them, almost as if anyone who reads them will kind of want to sing them in a way.  Like in music, each poem tells a story and we see that in, "Lee Morgan". I think that this poem is about a night in the city. It seems like someone went to a club and on their way home they encountered some musicians who just encapsulated them. Each stanza has a unique sound to it just like any musical piece. At the end of the poem the author describes these street musicians and he picks up on their passion for music. We know this because he says, "slick trumpeteers, jericho jammin, ass-kicking, good timing, hard bopping, good lovin, slick be bop blues and ghetto dues". I think this is what is most important to Henderson. The idea of capturing the love and style that the musicians show. The word "slick" in this context gives off this feeling of "free flowing", of smooth style. The music comes out so naturally but it also sounds good. What I mean by this is that it's not like someone just walking up to a set of drums and slamming on them with all their might, it's someone walking up to a set of drums and slamming on them are the right moments. Timing is everything in music, and these street performers have their timing down! He literally says it 3 lines down, "good timing".

It's pretty clear that Henderson appreciated music; non the less good music. I think the whole point of this poem was to capture the love of music. The deeper meaning may have been that anyone, regardless of their color can associate with music. The other poems that talk about music seem to all give off this good vibe, and I think that's the message he's trying to send to the world, good vibes.