Cahuenga Press
Publishes it's 14th Book of Poetry!
by
Sanora Bartels
Too often in the world of poetry, books
come out without the usual attention paid to publication of a new
volume. On July 17, 2005 I was invited by Cahuenga Press to an
afternoon party/reading celebrating James Cushing’s latest collection
Undercurrent Blues (Cahuenga is a cooperative press and
Undercurrent Blues is the 14th book they have published
since their inception in 1989). The collection includes poems written
from 1989 through 1991 and 1997 through 2002. If you’re like me, you
immediately ask where 1992 through 1996 went. Mr. Cushing kindly
explains the skip in time in his Author’s Note at the beginning of the
book and true to his personality; he does it with humor and grace.
Basically, the book reflects the first 25 years of his writing life.
I want to take a moment to express how
wonderful it was to spend time with a large group of writers who support
one another and truly enjoy giving the limelight to one of their
colleagues. I should also mention that Mr. Cushing is an engaging
reader and it was a pleasure to sit back in the midst of such good
company on a Sunday afternoon and be entertained by poetry.
In Undercurrent Blues, The poems
from 1989 through 1991 are from Mr. Cushing’s first book, You and the
Night and the Music published by Cahuenga Press in 1991. The titles
and poems are inspired by 20th Century American songs that
have become jazz standards. Among these, one of my favorites is Fly
Me to the Moon. His lyrical style matches the desire for transport
in that old standard but he offers us a deeper yearning in his stanzas.
We picked roles (insomniac shepherd,
complaining nymph) from
a basket of fruit. Orisons rise from
every third house, a glow like
a broadcast ending, and we wanted this,
to live near the sun, that
constant burnt offering.
His poetry from 1997 through 2002 is a
reaction to the death of both parents and the end of his second marriage
– to put it in the author’s words “darker stimulation”. In spite of the
dark stimulation, these poems have a sly sense of humor, an acceptance
of life’s slings and arrows. Of these, I love The Turn of April
(which he read):
I think we are moving, slowly and
patiently,
within a great walled garden along an
eastern path,
and I think I can assume we keep walking,
lightly
and with kindness, until the garden ends,
and we fall off the edge
where the next dream begins in a rush of
kisses and cameras.
In his introduction to the reading of
this piece, he dedicated it to his love, Marnie L. Parker (who is also
the recipient of the dedication of the book).
Undercurrent Blues
by James Cushing is a wonderful book and lives up to the reputation that
Cahuenga Press has for publishing only poetry of the highest quality.
You can order it (and other books they’ve published) by going to their
website
www.CahuengaPress.com.
If you purchase the book, I would love to
know what you think, so please send an email to
sanora@lawritersgroup.com.