Thursday, September 7, 2006
Nick’s Pub
Harlem, USA
Jonathan Baptiste, piano
Phil Kuehn, bass
Joey Saycor, drums
Kenneth Oshodi, guitar
Aaron Holland, saxophone
and of course
Jennifer Sano, vocals
This poem is dedicated to the Jennifer Sano
for her delicious gifts from Lady Day.
The Lady Is Back
Orchid scented
sharps and flats
ascend like
sweetly painted
not quite off key
nasal dream tracks
of a new
Lady Day
softly flowing
through her
uniquely pitched tunes
once again
encore after encore
lyrically
just
above her
raspy whispers
slowly walking
through my ears
releasing salty tears
watering
strange fruited trees
planted at the edges
of a darkened smoke-filled
black and white picture show
of bluesy images
within my solitude
of sounds
from another time
another place
a surreal visitation
of a born again legend
a tender familar
ghostly mistress of song
haunting another
new harlem
waaay uptown
a grand seance
tonight
at Nick’s Pub
the ruby red lipsticked
Lady is back
embrace her sultry
melodic enchantments
a warm breeze from
the other side of now
no deathly powders
between stiff drinks
from swiveling bar stools
an appropriate place
for The Lady
to inhabit
to bewitch and captivate
her people
once again
welcome her
clap your hands
compel her to stay
she is back
from long gone
downtown cabarets
she is back
once again
in harlem.
Larry H. Spruill
