Gretchen Dick - Nebulous (1923)

Forgotten Poems #41

 
       Nebulous
       Weariness—
       Absinthe—
       Music—
       Exquisiteness
       Sloe-black eyes, a dash of crimson lips,
       A naked body in the dance.
       Narcotic paralysis, ties that bind—
       Inertia
       Weariness.
 

Gretchen Dick (p. 1923)
P: All's Well (1923), etc.

Lived in New York, and was well-known in the music scene, composing song lyrics, writing articles, and conducting interviews with local musicians. She wrote numerous lyrics for the opera singers Reinald Werrenrath and Barbara Maurel, among others, often using the moon as a central image, as in the songs ‘Moonrise’, ‘Sun & Moon’, and ‘Moon Dream Shore’.

A tireless supporter of the local music scene in New York; “It was Gretchen Dick who conceived the idea of the American Concert series (focussing on American trained composers and musicians), and who personally went out and obtained the financial guarantees for it. The concerts certainly promise to present to New York's music lovers the very best American talent now before the public, and they deserve to be liberally supported by all those interested in good music.” (The Music Magazine, 1919)

While Gretchen Dick has been remembered for her involvement in the New York music scene, I can’t seem to find any more poems, and have no idea if she published any others. It’s a pity. This one’s such a banger!

 
            For Gretchen Dick
                         (by Dick Whyte)

      from the open
      bathroom
                       window
      louder and louder
      movements
      of planets,
      stars,
      and dust—

      and a burning wind
      plays the strings
      of the gods’
      aeolian harp
     
      while i wait for a shit
      and my tooth aches,
      and i remember
      i'm out
      of toilet paper—

      a solar wind
      beats its wings
      on the gods’
      aeolian harp

                                        xoxo
                                        dw

 

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