Here's a really neat clip that I've never come across before. The meaty stuff is in the last couple of minutes: great! playing by Billy Branch, and some gritty blues poetry by Sterling Plumpp, a master of the blues poetic form. If anybody can get a copy of the original film, entitled SWEET HOME CHICAGO, I believe, I'll be grateful--and I'll pay.
@ kudzurunner - I'll ask Billy next time I see him. Back in the day when I was a young 22 year old whipper snapper fresh out of the Army in 1979 and learning to write, I was taking a junior college poetry class, and had occasion to go to several of Dr. Plumpp's poetry readings of that era, as my professor was good friends with him. I ran into him many years later at Billy's birthday party at Artis's as well as at a few shows at the Mines and at Buddy Guy's where he is treated as royalty by Billy. Billy had him as a professor at University of Illinois in Chicago.
He is a great guy, I'd love to see more of this for sure. His poetry is excellent. I really love his book Steps To Break The Circle, and all of his writing is outstanding.
Note: the person who posted this IS Billy Branch. kazuharp is his YouTube account name.
Below is a short biography of Sterling Plumpp from the Mississippi Writer's and Musicians Workshop website. You should get your bio posted on this site, Adam.
http://www.mswritersandmusicians.com/writers/sterling-plumpp.html
Last Edited by on Sep 19, 2012 4:01 AM
I've known Plumpp for more than a decade. He's an interesting guy. I came across his poetry in the late 1990s when I was working on my dissertation; he ended up blurbing the book that came out of it, and we became friends. I invited him to participate in the first couple of "Blues Today" symposia here at the U of Mississippi. I didn't realize that he'd ever had facial hair; he's been clean shaven (including his scalp) since I've known him.
Yeah, I know that Billy posted that clip, but I assumed that he wouldn't want to part with his personal copy of the film.
Now THAT is some damn good stuff... I've had it in my mind that solo harp and slam poetry are a natural match... I don't know any slam poets around my new digs here in Indiana, but I was talking to a couple poets back in Arizona about working together... Unfortunately, it never did pan out. This stuff that Branch and Plumpp have going on is the sh*t hot real deal, and blows the concept of this type of duo that I had in my mind clean away. I would buy an album of this stuff in hot minute... I WANT MORE!!! ----------
