An ordinary man who writes extraordinary poetry, Gallatin resident Dan Powers was recently featured in the PBS series The United States of Poetry (shown locally on CATV-Channel 19). He was in good company: Other poets on the show included Rita Dove, Maya Angelou, Derek Walcott and Lawrence Ferlinghetti.
That was a high honor for the local poet, who, aside from a couple of poems he wrote as a student at Tennessee Tech, didn’t begin writing poetry until he was 37 years old. An engineer for TVA, Powers grew interested in poetry after he read through some old issues of Number One, Volunteer State Community College’s literary magazine. He decided to try his hand at writing and started participating in Vol State’s writers group, led by professor Betty Palmer Nelson, who found promise in his work. That was 11 years ago. Since then, he has published two chapbooks, and 300 of his poems have appeared in numerous periodicals, including the New York Quarterly, the Cumberland Poetry Review and the Wormwood Review.
The best way to experience Powers’ poetry, which could best be described as a combination of Helen Steiner Rice and Charles Bukowski, is to hear the poet read it himself. His deep, drawling voice—at turns sardonic, portentous, sarcastic and reverent—reveals an aspect of his work that printed words alone cannot. He frequently appears at open-mic readings around town and is a regular at Joe Speer’s monthly readings, now being held at the Owl’s Nest.
“It’s not just a chance for me to get up there and find myself being validated because somebody likes my poems,” says Powers. “It’s the community that’s there.”
The next open mic poetry night at the Owl’s Nest Coffeehouse takes place 8 p.m. March 26. Call 366-9012 for more information.—Peter Goodwin
No matter what T.S. Eliot says, April is a good month for poetry. April was recently declared National Poetry Month, and Davis-Kidd Booksellers will celebrate by hosting a special poetry reading each week. On April 2, the Young Fugitives, a group of local high school students from the Nashville Institute for the Arts, will read their works. The following Thursday, April 11, will be open-mic poetry day: Between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., a microphone will be set up on the first floor, and anyone who’s interested will be allowed to give a reading. At 7:30 p.m., the mic then moves upstairs to the Second Story Cafe for the bookstore’s regular poetry night.
Many of Nashville’s British residents will be on hand April 18 for British Night in the Second Story Cafe. Organizers say they hope people with different British dialects will read poems and prose from their respective regions. Closer to home, Vanderbilt professor and poet Mark Jarman will finish out the monthlong celebration with a reading of his works Wednesday, April 24. Call Davis-Kidd at 385-2645 for more information about National Poetry Month events.
James D. Squires, former editor of The Chicago Tribune and media advisor for Ross Perot’s unsuccessful presidential bid, will be in town next Thursday to sign copies of his latest book, The Secrets of the Hopewell Box, which tells the story of Boss Crump and his infamous gang. Squires knows his subject well: His grandfather, Dave White, a state highway patrolman, was a key player in Crump’s gang. Squires will be at Davis-Kidd 6 p.m. March 21. Call 385-2645 for more information.
Mystery writer Sarah Shankman, best known for her Samantha Adams series, is encroaching on Steven Womack’s territory. Shankman’s latest work is a mystery set in Nashville, and it features a new heroine. I Still Miss My Man but My Aim Is Getting Better is centered around aspiring songwriter Shelby Kay Tate, who, on the eve of a big writers’ night gig at the Sutler, discovers she’s being followed by her ex-husband, Leroy.
While the characters are a lot more countrified than most Nashville residents, the book is light, engaging and entertaining: I Still Miss My Man... is like a country song: There’s plenty of lyin’, drinkin’, cheatin’ and lovin’—and a potential murder or two thrown in just for good measure. Shankman will sign her book 5 p.m. March 22 at Davis-Kidd.
Country music is the subject of another recent publication, this one a rerelease from the Vanderbilt University Press in conjunction with Country Music Foundation Press. First published in 1975 and updated in 1986, Dorothy Horstman’s Sing Your Heart Out, Country Boy: Classic Country Songs and Their Inside Stories includes the lyrics of more than 360 country songs and tells the stories behind them.
Along with background information on such classics as Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line” and Willie Nelson’s “Funny How Time Slips Away,” the latest edition features 20 additional titles, including Steve Earle’s “Guitar Town,” Dale Evans’ “Happy Trails to You,” and Dewayne Blackwell’s “Forever and Ever, Amen.” Sing Your Heart Out, Country Boy is available at area bookstores or by mail order from Vanderbilt University Press, c/o Publisher Resources, Inc. 1-800-937-5557.
