Mo Browne gives us another inspired collection of poetry with a nod to the Hip-Hop generation with some tight music adding atmosphere to the words. As with her other great CD's of poetry she once again takes on some difficult subject matter touching on love, troubled relationships and abuse, and with the hidden track at the end of the CD, having her words stolen by imitators! This one strong lady who is not afraid to speak her mind.

In addition to Mo Browne, we also get a guest appearance by her partner in crime Jive Poetic on ‘Special Circumstances I’, a great piece touching on a man's abuse of a women. Jive is another poet that you should check if get the chance as he always delivers.

Overall this is another strong collection of poetry with some thought provoking subject matter. It doesn’t beat the live experience, you really need to see this girl live to get the real deal, but it’s a good introduction to her work if you haven’t been lucky enough to catch her in the flesh.

If you’re still not convinced to rush out and get your hands on this CD, you check out a couple of her poems on http://www.myspace.com/mahoganylbrowne

Dear reading mind out there somewhere...

Tuesday 31 may 2005 - 18.30 -

Le maitre des mots was poet Nii Ayikwei Parkes of the
shiny eyes and the curly hair and the ebony skin and
the mischief smile always waiting to burst out -

The venue was Borders Bookshop in Charing Cross Road
in London in UK -

Yet the space was not books so much but music caught
on cds and tapes - a different level - to escape the
noise of visitors using the WC on level one...

The projected poet was John Burnside - The grand
neighbour was le hors d'oevre -

Wild Irish Donal Dempsey told us what love is not and
to see his hand tear open his shirt for the proper
impact of autopsy is an imprint on the rushing mind
space - haiku abracadabra and falling star and love
loses its way opened the way for

The wormlady Elena leading us into the earth moving
with the worm and asking us to be custodians of this
planet - and we learnt about the mystery of pearls -

Ray Burk served encounter and asked what does a day to
me ? with debris of a blowing wind his soft voice
played around with syllables -

Sean Beath pushed at us the question ? what have u
done to make god proud of u ? and told us about faces
i can never forget her face...

x&al danzabel read from day 24.365 a message for
glorissa who will be her greatgranddaughter one time
in time but is not even conceived followed by day
24.382 - one version of suicide in one body - cutting
space and of day 24.375 another suicide in another
body - i am falling -

Margot in her soft voice told us that men are not only
stupid but s o stupid and a soft poetic poem about
the gift - i bring to u myneed and the last poem ended
with ...u worthless little bitch... which was quite a
surprise from the lips of an advanced and English
lady...

Dave of the red tee short showered us with oneness - I
am an a-national - humility - the eternal present -

And then Nii A. Parkes guided us thru the submarine
blues dedicated to the fishermen on the beach of Ghana
-

Marie of the soft voice told us in a poem about the
mother of mybride and activist hell from the viewpoint
of a new yorker surprising words -

Next was Susanne in a floating flower dress sharing
with us the gloom of yesterday and jonny...

We heard more of John Burnside - the featured poetry
book hero - anniversary and appleseed

Le maitre des mots Parkes said that at least 6 poems
he liked and he said that is ..pretty cool.. and of
his poems his poem about ...one day my prince will
come sung with his ghanaian soft voice still lingers
on and on

And Roccolo followed with page 21 - like the
avid quiet of radar and what I believe in, now -
until....

What a necklace of pearl words pressed into such a
short period - the setting was perfect and leaves
memories stirring strange subcell things in all
present and gratitude wells up in between -

Well done - and since there is no payment in coins the
payment was in the sound of clapping hands -

Come and bring your poems -

Read in your own voice -

Play the strings of emotions -

Don't be shy -

You poets
Out there
Somewhere -

On Saturday 21 May 2005 at 8.00 I found myself at the
Albany Theatre - Douglas Way - Deptford - London - I
had read that BBC Radio 3 did a recording for a
broadcast as part of AFRICA LIVES ON THE BBC in
association with Apples & Snakes - and I have the
pleasure of being a faness of the poetess Ebele Ajogbe
who read her story not on the platform but in the
audience holding on to a mango...

The running order started with a silken suit clad
overpowering Segun Lee French running in and out the
following performances of Zena Edwards - Ebele -
Malika Booker - Janine La Rosa - Charlie Dark - Jason
Grant - Jan Blake - Jay Bernard - Tuup - and the whole
evening was produced by Shabina Aslam.

these stories and poems were specially commissioned
about issues of family and slavery and belonging
reflecting and exposing the veins that run through a
shifting landscape to places where the bloodlines were
born.

Ebele's blooline started ... We lived in Emene - the
outskirts - just next to the airport. You could see
big butterfly planes landing, swooping over the tinned
roof huts & the other place where Mama Chi-Chi sold
akara and akamu... and ran right to her persona
holding the mango that evening.

There were some repetitions after the performance to
adapt and edit the evening for send out which I think
is a shame - for the live feeling was perfect for me
with satire and nostalgia and aggression and humour
well mixed and I have fond memories of admiration for
all artists indeed.

With a bloodline not started in Africa I include a
memoriiiiiiiiiessmiiiiiiile
x&al danzabel
xandaldanzabel@yahoo.com

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Small Business - Try our new Resources site
http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/resources/