Poem and reminiscence
This time you were a man
Akua Lezli Hope
for TEW II
In your man skin
you made many kin
roped inks vagrant vagaries
raveled un der stood
rode big wheels thru hood
reveled in trope trifles
decon rhythmed rhyme
broke blues baked song
bread read mighty
many tomes Thomas right
smote left
all
storm
Thomas Elias Weatherly
storm
winds strum
power lines
free wheel
hums pace
line elias
spins alone
boston post
Remember I’m half divine, 1/2 man, 1/2 god, 1/2 alligator
— Thomas Elias Weatherly II, circa late ’70s
Reminiscence
Weatherly was dear to me — a boyfriend and mentor and later a friend. We met when we both read on the same bill in the ’70s. Larry Neal included his Maumau American Cantos in our curriculum when I was at Williams College. I thought he was an old man. When I met him, I was blown away. He was gorgeous and had this incredible warm deep voice. I was amazed that one of my poet heroes was so young. I was more into jazz than he was at the time — I had begun to study the tenor sax with Marty Erhlich — but I loved and played the Wild Tchoupitoulas singing fiercely along. He turned me on that New Orleans sound that connected with my love of funk.
Edited by David Grundy