People In Me
REVOLUTIONARY LETTER #1
I have just realized that the stakes are myself
I have no other
ransom money, nothing to break or barter but my life
my spirit measured out, in bits, spread over
the roulette table, I recoup what I can
nothing else to shove under the nose of the maitre de jeu
nothing to thrust out the window, no white flag,
this flesh all I have to offer, to make the play with
this immediate head, what it comes up with, my move
as we slither over this go board, stepping always
(we hope) between the lines
—Diane di Prima, Revolutionary Letters, 1971
…
And then summer was upon us. Summer in the Southeast, where the temperature differential between indoors and out fogs our lenses and curls our hair.
(Evening primroses in bloom)
Lord, what do we do with a world like this? A world in which hope seems to be in short supply, and spite and meanness is the lingua franca. Do we bow in the darkness and let the images flashing across our screens hypnotize us? Police shooting at protesters; ICE agents, many of whom seem to be half my age and raised on a steady drip of violence, chasing down immigrant farmworkers in the fields; politicians getting murdered in their beds.
(From our garden)
Or do we find a different way? Grab hope by the shorthairs, walk through the arcade at the farmers' market, bear witness to the green. Literally, but figuratively too. I guess that’s what I've been trying to do. Reading books, listening to music, cooking dinner for my family, playing my guitar, picking tomatoes from the garden, remembering that things are very hard in the world, and also very beautiful. At the same time. Living in that eternal dilemma.
I love mystery novels in the summertime: Georges Simenon, Jean-Patrick Manchette, James Lee Burke, Carl Hiaasen, Fred Vargas, John D. MacDonald, and Lord, Ross Macdonald, whom I consider among the greatest writers in my universe. I love comic books in the summer, too: Swamp Thing, Silver Surfer, The Eternals, anything by Jack Kirby or Alan Moore. And I love poetry, words to tame the strangling humidity; lately, Jayne Cortez, Thulani Davis, Etel Adnan, Diane di Prima, St. John of the Cross. Writes John,
If I'm no longer seen
following sheep about the hills,
say that I am lost, that
wandering in love I let
myself be lost and then was won.
Thank you for letting me soapbox. What's new with you? What's making you feel good lately, in the midst of a world that feels a little bit apocalyptic? Please let me know in the comments.
Work on the new Hiss record continues apace, and while there's so much I want to say about it, I'll hold off for now. Needless to say, I'm very excited about the music and everything that surrounds it. Because my portion of recording is done, and I don't want to be idle, I've been recording some covers in my studio when the spirit moves me. So, if you're a paid subscriber, you can find a version of Townes Van Zandt's “I'll Be Here in the Morning”—one of my favorite songs of his—below the paywall. Also, if you're a top tier subscriber of the Crow's Nest here at A Place Where No One Can Find Me, we'll be reaching out for your mailing address so we can send you some APWNOCFM swag sometime very soon.
While I'm trying to stay low and slow for the time being, I did want to remind everyone here of my 10th anniversary shows at One Longfellow Square in Portland, Maine, on August 8th and 9th. I daresay this is a tradition now, and if you haven't ever been to one of these intimate shows, you should come! Who knows, maybe I'll play a bunch of the new Hiss record? Get your tickets HERE for night one; HERE for night two.
Finally, I've got a new A Place Where No One Can Find Me Radio Hour on deck for you, featuring a grip of deep cuts from the archives here at Dad's Bar & Grill, all ripped from the vinyl for your listening pleasure. Dork shit? For sure. It makes me happy. As usual, if someone wants to make a streaming version, I'll post a link to it. My preference, obviously, is to listen to it as one long radio show.
A PLACE WHERE NO ONE CAN FIND ME RADIO HOUR / JUNE 2025 EDITION
Archie Shepp “Attica Blues > Steam” / June Tyson with the Sun Ra Arkestra Outer “Spaceways Incorporated” / Johnny Clarke “Ites Green & Gold” / Sam Cooke “Havin' a Party” / Charles Lloyd “TM” / David Allen & Gilli Smyth “Change the World” / Pastor T.L. Barrett “I Shall Wear a Crown” / Steve Hillage “Four Ever Rainbow” / Brightblack Morning Light “Oppressions Each” / Taj Mahal Travelers “Excerpt from August 1974" / Balinese Gamelan “Lullaby > Margepati” / SML “Industry” / The Isleys “Pop That Thang” / Prince Alla “Funeral” / Abbey Lincoln “People In Me” / Miles Davis “Great Expectations” / Burning Spear “Man in the Hills” / Syl Johnson “Talking About Freedom” / Donny Hathaway “I Believe to My Soul” / The Abyssinians “I 'n' I” / Rahsaan Roland Kirk “Many Blessings” / Eddie Head & His Family “Down on Me” / Tapper Zukie “Man a Warrior” / Miriam Makeba “Emabhaceni” / The Staple Singers “Long Walk to D.C.” / Bernice Reagon “There's a New World Coming”
In the last week, we lost both Sly Stone and Brian Wilson, both American musical visionaries, without whom it’s unlikely that I would be the type of musician I am. I consider both of them among the very greatest the world ever made.
Onwards!
Michael Crow Taylor
Durham, NC
16 June 2025