Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen - "The Moon Her Majesty "



I LOVE Jack Kerouac.

3 comments:

OrbsCorbs said...

Here's a good one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwUP0YZbJRc

These are from Kerouac's 1959 album Poetry for the Beat Generation, done in collaboration with Steve Allen. The infamous story goes that Allen had never met Kerouac and was waiting in the recording studio for him. Jack showed up, pulled out some poems and told Allen to improvise while he read. Afterwards, Allen said, "That was great. When do we record?" Jack said, "We just did."

Spontaneity and improvisation (like jazz) was central to Jack's writing. That's why On the Road was written on teletype paper: so that the sheets of paper wouldn't have to be changed in the typewriter (no word processors back then). It also was written while Jack was speeding on Benzedrine legally purchased in Vicks inhalers of the time.

sylvia said...

Oh Bodhisattva of the heavy eyebrows...

OrbsCorbs said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMEacD_4VdI