Another Side of Tommy Talton
Posted: Nov 26, 2007Tommy Talton is no doubt best known for his work with the 1970's Capricorn Records recording group Cowboy, as well as his own smoking hot Tommy Talton Band. But Talton is no one trick pony, not by a long shot.
Besides being an excellent singer and guitarist, and stellar songwriter, Tommy is an impressionist, a visual artist and a poet. Talton gave GRITZ permission to reprint a handful of his poems. We hope you enjoy reading them as much as we did.
Keep it Real. Keep it Southern.
Buffalo
LESSONS OF THE LABS
The Labradors were always in love with the water.
They became my teachers.
They were my connection to the waves
That lapped against the shores I walked,
As long as I care to remember.
The water was an obstacle to be tamed, to me,
Nothing but a wall.
But, their bodies carried the spirits of sailors
Their eyes saw seas for movement.
I, in landlocked boredom moved nowhere; Until…
Baby, the youngest of the two Labs revealed a perfect lesson.
Perhaps she knew what she showed me.
Perhaps she did not.
No matter.
She did reveal a simple, beautiful, undeniable fact, the day I watched her play with the driftwood she carried in her teeth to the edge of the dock.
She placed the stick at dock’s edge and slowly shoved it into
The dark blueness of the water, so precisely, with her precisely perfect nose.
Patiently, she watched it float, as it sent ripples,
Perfect circles
Upon the surface of the blueness she would fly into with love.
When she did fly to retrieve her prize,
I received my own special prize.
I saw the spirit of true Joy.
The spirit of true Freedom
An action performed for no purpose but love of action.
As Baby swam to her goal, her entire reason to live lived in each stroke.
I saw Life in those strokes.
I saw love in the strokes she lived.
Simple and complete.
Solid and focused.
She revealed to me the time I had wasted…..
Wading in the shallow end of the pool.
- Tommy Talton
SONGS OF THE WAILING WHINER
The birds are too loud
The sun is too bright
The a.c. is too cold
The heat is too hot
I hate that song
What a mindless movie
She’s such a jerk
He’s a real asshole
Are we there yet?
Those were the good old days
It’s not my fault
Who cares?
I couldn’t care less
Father, I want to confess
Do I have to get down on my knees?
The pad isn’t thick enough under this carpet
I can’t believe they treat their dog like a dog
Why does it trouble you she drives a BMW?
Can you imagine living like that?
What a wonderful world it would be, If it wasn't for certain people.
- Tommy Talton
There was shaving cream
On the troubled man’s face
Seeing Santa in reflection
In the mirror of the tiled white bath
Where he grasped a shaving blade
There were blueish TV beams
Shooting from the bedroom direction
Fluttering in a strobelike glow
As his final stroke was made
Suicide’s Shape………..
- Tommy Talton
Comments
JaniceK. says...
I always liked the Cowboy band and often felt like Tommy was a poet, as well as a great singer...it's all about the words for me...what a great idea sharing the poetry! thanks again, Janice
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