I
jazz
the most American of art forms
the will to play together
an argument
with the attempt
to work something out
- Wynton
Marsalis
II
somebody tried to kill it
I know who it was
somebody brought over British musicians
to cover us over
just like a blanket
- Abbey
Lincoln
III
the first album I bought
not under the auspices of my older sister
was the Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl
a rip-off of a rip-off
a band-aid over a blanket
IV
my friend threw me a life preserver
jazz was a linking of hearts
a community of two, we had
jammed on fakebook favorites
a new door opening
another hanging in the balance
V
watching Ken Burns jazz, episode 10
assassinations and wars
Viet Nam, MLK, JFK, Medgar Evers
the war on America’s blacks
footage of regime police
beating them back
Mingus, Roach, Art Ensemble of Chicago
the boom-boom-buh-boom of the heart
weeping, screaming soundtrack
a wound to heal us
but first, to tear us apart
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