You can't beat the old myths for characters and creatures Biz

You're right! There's a whole cornucopia of treasures for you to tap into. It will be a long time before you run out of inspiration.

Indeed Biz Seren's David Bowie tribute, which I talked about on the previous page, reminded me of something. I largely went off Bowie in the Eighties and I couldn't stand the noisy group he formed back then, they were called Tin Machine. Frustrated at the demise of one of my heroes, I sent a poem into the Melody Maker on the subject. To this day, it remains my only published work. It was printed in the October 12th, 1991 edition

I remember a time when your music would fly
And a Starman was waiting for us in the sky,
You sang about changes, got stranded in space,
The prettiest star with that paint on your face;
But the Tin Machine's dull next to your early glitter,
It seems you've become one more boring old sh*tter.

[quote=Biz;60672709]

No, I wouldn't call me a fan. I'm all corners me.



QUOTE]

LOL...corners are pretty cool too Biz


Hunky Dory is my favourite album too, although I also love Aladdin Sane, it's good to meet a fellow Bowie fan


I'm not sure I agree with the last line Musty but it made me laugh out loud

Wow! I bet that warmed the cockles of their hearts.


;
Thank you Seren. How very perceptive of you. There are those on these boards who just don't appreciate that would you believe? ROFL (I've never used that expression before - and probably never will again.)

It was a bit harsh I guess Aladdin Sane's a corker Seren! Lady Grinning Soul - what a song

Gentlemen Prefer Blondie

When music really mattered
And each band seemed a gang
My heart of glass just shattered
When Debbie Harry sang.

For our blank generation
She was the queen of punk,
A Monroe-style sensation
Who looked good wearing junk.

A constant top ten fixture
With sweet atomic parts,
The disco-new wave mixture
Of Blondie ruled the charts.

Yet Debbie, underpinning
The image of rock star
You were since the beginning
A goddess from afar.


©

The editor of the letters page must have agreed with me Biz

Hula Hula Baby


Hula hula baby
a silent screen
express away
in the flow
so and so
bow and woe
hula hula baby
Rock n Roll.

Love it Sandy - the thread's on a rock and roll roll, if you know what I mean

Train of Thought

Ideas
Gliding
Gliding
Round
To the hazy solo buzz
Of a blur, a cosmic fuzz

Fragments quoting
Rights and wrongs,
Bits of floating
U2 songs
Come and go inside my head, funny how the thoughts
Imbed

Tripping, they keep on and on
That's the way it’s always gone,
Flotsam, jetsam
Set some free,
Plot some nothing
Get some sea
In your sights and be driftwood,
Every single good boy should

In a dream world gladly caught
I create my train of thought


©

You know for several days I've had one song continually popping up in my head.

Great stuff Musty.

As you already know, I adore poems based on Greek mythology.

Haha..I do occassionally LOL, but I doubt anyone does actually ROFL..it sounds a bit painful

Very clever title Musty, Debbie Harry was a favourite of mine too, proving that it's not only gentlemen who prefer blondies. Another great poem, I've really enjoyed this recent 'theme'


I love this poem!!! It perfectly describes those tunes that float endlessly in our heads. Very clever indeed

Vanishing Act

The secrets of the conjurer’s trick
Lay shrouded in his heart
As mortal masks could not unveil
Or lips could not impart

The beam is blazing brightly, while
The spotlight leaves his face
As the deck fades in his hand, we’ll
Applaud his final ace

Malignancy is hidden in
The sleight within his hand
The glass upon the magic stand
Exhausted of its sand

No spells concealed within the pack
Will make us gasp with awe
A starless stage filled with echoes
Of his last grand encore

With ashen glove he flicks his wand
As rabbit turns to black
Our king of hearts is broken and
Lies bleeding in the pack

As the audience applaud him
Eyes locked within a tear
All up stand his last ovation
And watch him disappear

A Day Trip to Hell

The two greeters grinned a ghastly grin;
As they granted cold welcome to the hopeless ones.

But these greeters were not misanthropic
People in dead-end jobs, mechanically
Performing their laborious duties.
These greeters guarded the iron gates;
To the realm of Lucifer;

The gates of Hell!

With scythes in hand, and the hourglass of lost lives
Hanging from each skeletal neck, they continued to grin.

And grin!

Their onyx rings, symbols of rank in this underworld,
Shined dully in the dim misty light;
Black as the cloaks of mystery
Which adorned their skeletal figures.

The interminable line of haggard lost
Souls, shuffled slowly in single file;
Along the road to Hell, known colloquially
To the greeters, in their own warped
Sense of non-humour, as route 666.

These greeters were people once.

The confused girl, only seventeen,
Unsure in life; and now, in death even more
Uncertain, looked despairingly around her
For a friendly face; 'anyone, please'.

But the only friendly face to be seen in
This realm, was her own; reflecting from
Polished, mirror-like obsidian rock walls.
The walls so steep, towered above her
On both sides of this narrow path of the dead;
As the reflections of the hopeless ones
Echoed all around her, in collective misery.

The confused girl continued to shuffle along
The rock strewn path; unwillingly partaking in
This absurd ceremony of the dead, originating
From the deepest depths of time;
Ever since the Archangel Lucifer claimed
Dominion over the souls of certain human beings.

Closer and closer she came to the iron gates,
To within a few yards of the greeters and their
Putrid odour, who continued, as ever to grin-
Their unwelcome.

But suddenly, as she prepared to enter the
Gates to her doom;
Pain exploded within her as her senses returned;

And the warm lights of the hospital emergency
Room flooded her vision;
As her almost lost soul was yanked back
From the brink of Eternal Hell and into
The vibrant land of the living.

Where the greeters did wear friendly faces.

Wow!!!!!!! I I felt meyself stepping through those gates with her, your writing is so vivid!! I wonder what life she'd led that would take her to the gates of hell at such a young age,

An amazing poem, I love the 'route 666' touch and the ending has a great twist...absolutely superb writing - well done!!

Thanks Seren.

So much in our modern life seems to be misplaced
How much is apportioned in worth is so two faced;
People get paid in perverse proportion to their skill
In some cases related to the tabloid pages they fill.
It's an abortion and a distortion of what's at all fair
The more worthy work their guts off for a tiny share;
Yet no-good tarts with smarts get lots for bare parts,
Exposed in so-called newspapers or scandal sheets
That hand out "thirty pieces of silver" sums to cheats
Who do the dirty on would-be pals those clever gals,
With no shame but a dubious claim to a spurious fame,
For at least fifteen minutes (mm .. half thirty) a bit ironic
Come to think. Maybe any of the ladies who slyly click
To nab that juiciest celebrity pic well deserve their pay,
And a fully earned reputation due every inch of the way.

That's better.

I know the feeling Biz


Thanks Troy I've always been a fan of Cerberus - what a beast


Thanks Seren The poem tries to convey how the mind tends to restlessly flit around. I have to concentrate hard on something to stop it happening. Meditation's a good way too.

'Gentlemen Prefer Blondie' isn't a very good title, especially as a lot of girls saw Debbie Harry as an icon. It included a reference to Marilyn though and I couldn't resist that

On the surface this seems to be about a normal magician, but there's obviously something more serious at work. The malignancy mentioned is a clue. A thoughtfully written poem with a very creepy atmosphere.


For me to find fantasy effective I need realism, and that's where this poem succeeds so well. Vivid details like onyx rings and obsidian rock walls paint images for the mind really well. A fascinating dip into Hell BE, despite the twist. You are truly The Master of Dark Arts on this thread


Ain't that the truth? I think this refers to the recent royal sleazefest involving Prince Harry. I was going to send in a ditty of my own about this overpaid and spoiled buffoon - but I think his stupidity speaks for itself. Anyway, Frank's summed up the whole sordid affair really well.

You're right AJH, welcome to you by the way. Thanks.

Thanks Musty, however I will be bowing out of this thread from now on.

I'll be posting my stuff on a specialist poetry site.

Thanks to you, Seren and Archiver for all your encouragement though.