THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem

Rob Ayling, yer Gonzo Grande Fromage, writes:

"Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Thom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth and Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied within seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not?

I AM NOT LEONARD COHEN

LEONARD COHEN IS NO LONGER LEONARD COHEN

Like David Bowie,he left us posthumous gifts

i do not wish to be posthumous.

i have always admired and respected Leonard Cohen and David Bowie

Both of whom departed /it seems like yesterday

because their songs are still being played

because their poetry is still being read and released

This is cause for joy /in a world of wasteland sold as gold

There is still nuggets of hard truths like this

I am not and never have been Leonard Cohen

But i rejoice to have heard his voice/read his books

and like his posthumous attitude.

But i do not wish to be posthumous.

So i will never be Leonard Cohen.

Last week brought the release of The Flame, a posthumous collection of poetry and lyrics written by Leonard Cohen in the months prior to his death in November 2016. As singer-songwriter Amanda Shires points out, one such entry is titled, “Kanye West Is Not Picasso”.

It goes something like this:

Kanye West is not Picasso
I am Picasso
Kanye West is not Edison
I am Edison
I am Tesla
Jay-Z is not the Dylan of Anything
I am the Dylan of anything
I am the Kanye West of Kanye West
The Kanye West
Of the great bogus shift of bullshit culture
From one boutique to another
I am Tesla
I am his coil
The coil that made electricity soft as a bed
I am the Kanye West Kanye West thinks he is
When he shoves your ass off the stage
I am the real Kanye West
I don’t get around much anymore
I never have
I only come alive after a war
And we have not had it yet

The poem is dated “March 15, 2015” and appears to have been written in response to comments Kanye made at Oxford University earlier that month. And yet three years later, on a day when Kanye West is set to visit Donald Trump’s White House with Kid Rock by his side, Cohen’s sentiment seems even more appropriate.