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YOU’VE GOT MAIL: Briefly Meet & Greet the Corresponding Society
I am giving a reading tonight with Joanna Smith Rakoff at Oblong Books, in (presumably) scenic Rhinebeck, NY. So I was trying to figure out which train to take there (Amtrak) and then how to get from the train station to the actual town/store–but then I got bored and figured I’ll deal with it when I get there. Which I will–or won’t, I guess. Anyway.
Last night I went to the KGB Bar to hit up the issue #3 launch reading of Correspondence, the journal of The Corresponding Society, itself the love-brain-child of Lonely Christopher, whose forthcoming Little House on the Bowery story collection (The Mechanics of Homosexual Intercourse; February 2011) I am very, very excited about. I first saw Lonely Christopher give a delightfully bizarre and divisive reading a couple years ago in the living room of founding Small Anchoress Jen Hyde; he read with Joshua Cohen, Mathias Svalina, and Joshua Furst, Small Anchor authors one and all. Anyway, last night’s reading featured Christian Hawkey, Jenny Stohlmann, A.E. Wilson, Jody Buchman, Ben Fama, Adrian Shirk, and LC himself, all of whom have work in the new issue. You heard it here first, kids: these guys are onto something. I can’t remember the last time I sat through a seven-reader poetry+fiction reading and wasn’t bored for a minute. Plunking down my ten bucks for a copy of Correspondence #3 was almost certainly the most fun thing I spent money on yesterday, and yesterday I had a great Vietnamese noodle soup and also several alcoholic beverages. But this was better. You should give their blog a look, and generally speaking keep them on your radar. They’re certainly on mine. Oh, and a hearty hat tip to Jeremy Schmall, who not only told me about the reading but convinced me to get my ass out of the house and actually go to it. Brother!
Okay, now I need to get back to figuring life (ie trains) out, but since the banjo tunes from yesterday seemed to be well-received (by one guy anyway) I leave you with this video of Pete Seeger and his grandson, Tao Rodriguez-Seeger, singing one of my (and, apparently, Tao’s too) favorite Seeger originals- “Well May the World Go.” I’ve been pretty much obsessed with the version of this song that appears on the New Lost City Ramblers 20th Anniversary Concert album, and while this clip doesn’t quite have the heft of that version (there’s really nothing quite like Seeger when he gets his street-preacher shoes on) it’s pretty cool for a whole host of other reasons which I will allow it to disclose to you as you watch.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHDI7Yw0AkU
Tags: Corresponding Society, Jeremy Schmall, Lonely Christopher, Tao Rodriguez-Seeger, Well May the World Go
What a blast! Lonely Christopher……..why u lonely! (I think i saw him smooching!)
What a blast! Lonely Christopher……..why u lonely! (I think i saw him smooching!)
To be honest, he never looks that lonely to me. Maybe he’s from one of those families where they give the kids words for names–not like in a trailer-park way but in a like “my family has their own crest and seal” kind of way.
To be honest, he never looks that lonely to me. Maybe he’s from one of those families where they give the kids words for names–not like in a trailer-park way but in a like “my family has their own crest and seal” kind of way.
Justin, thanks for writing this. Kids, you heard it here first (when I posted about this reading *before* it happened) and third, in this comment, which reminds Justin that The Corresponding Society is a *Society*. Lonely Christopher is not lonely: in fact he is might be the only member of the Society who didn’t read during a memorable evening at Schoen Books (where, Wester Mass readers take note, Justin reads with Joshua Cohen on May 16) last year. As Christopher Smart might write:
Let Lonely CHRISTOPHER, who is Christopher Sweeney, rejoice with Robby Snyderman — members of the selfsame Society, who have a chapbook coming out soon. God be gracious to Adrian Shirk (who, seconded, is a reader of readers), as well as Greg Afinogenov, Chanelle Bergeron and the other members of this growing(?), glowing Society.
As for Lonely C. Good news about his book in the Bowery (what a) series. In the meantime, he’s reading–solo?–I believe, on March 27, at Unnameable Books, where you can buy his chapbooks…and should.
Justin, thanks for writing this. Kids, you heard it here first (when I posted about this reading *before* it happened) and third, in this comment, which reminds Justin that The Corresponding Society is a *Society*. Lonely Christopher is not lonely: in fact he is might be the only member of the Society who didn’t read during a memorable evening at Schoen Books (where, Wester Mass readers take note, Justin reads with Joshua Cohen on May 16) last year. As Christopher Smart might write:
Let Lonely CHRISTOPHER, who is Christopher Sweeney, rejoice with Robby Snyderman — members of the selfsame Society, who have a chapbook coming out soon. God be gracious to Adrian Shirk (who, seconded, is a reader of readers), as well as Greg Afinogenov, Chanelle Bergeron and the other members of this growing(?), glowing Society.
As for Lonely C. Good news about his book in the Bowery (what a) series. In the meantime, he’s reading–solo?–I believe, on March 27, at Unnameable Books, where you can buy his chapbooks…and should.
Just to clear up any possible confusion, The Corresponding Society would like the clarify that Lonely Christopher, Christopher Sweeney, and Robert Snyderman are all separate people. Sort of. Anyway, they inhabit three individual bodies. The chapbook Nathaniel generously mentions is, in actuality, a full-length volume of poetry from all three aforementioned poets. It is titled “Into” and it will be released shortly from Seven CirclePress. The Corresponding Society itself is less of a cabal and more of a network of writerly communities — but the editorial team for issue three is as follows: Greg Afinogenov, Sonia Farmer, Lonely Christopher, Adrian Shirk, Christopher Sweeney, and David Swensen (international editor: Robert Snyderman). Lonely Christopher is by no means the lone force behind this project. It is an amorphous group effort, as Nathaniel points out. LC is not even reading “alone” at Unnameable Books on the 27th — but with Marc Andreottola and Ryan Doyle May (with Rachel Levitsky hosting). The curious reader will have to ask him herself why he thinks he is so lonely. Anyway! we thank Justin and Nathaniel for supporting the machinations of the Society.
Just to clear up any possible confusion, The Corresponding Society would like the clarify that Lonely Christopher, Christopher Sweeney, and Robert Snyderman are all separate people. Sort of. Anyway, they inhabit three individual bodies. The chapbook Nathaniel generously mentions is, in actuality, a full-length volume of poetry from all three aforementioned poets. It is titled “Into” and it will be released shortly from Seven CirclePress. The Corresponding Society itself is less of a cabal and more of a network of writerly communities — but the editorial team for issue three is as follows: Greg Afinogenov, Sonia Farmer, Lonely Christopher, Adrian Shirk, Christopher Sweeney, and David Swensen (international editor: Robert Snyderman). Lonely Christopher is by no means the lone force behind this project. It is an amorphous group effort, as Nathaniel points out. LC is not even reading “alone” at Unnameable Books on the 27th — but with Marc Andreottola and Ryan Doyle May (with Rachel Levitsky hosting). The curious reader will have to ask him herself why he thinks he is so lonely. Anyway! we thank Justin and Nathaniel for supporting the machinations of the Society.
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