I was deeply moved today when I read that Tuli Kupferberg had died some weeks back.
I first saw Tuli perform with his band The Fugs in 1967 in Chicago at the Electric Playground, and this pivotal concert opened up more than a few doors of perception. Tuli wrote amazing songs, and one of my favorite was "Morning, Morning" which is pure poetry.
These lines written by Ted Berrigan and Anne Waldman in Memorial Day 1971 describe Tuli perhaps better than anything ever written.
"I asked Tuli Kupferberg once, "Did you really jump off of The Manhattan Bridge?" "Yeah," he said, "I really did." "How come?" I said. "I thought that I had lost the ability to love," Tuli said. "So, I figured I might as well be dead. So, I went one night to the top of The Manhattan Bridge, & after a few minutes, I jumped off." "That's amazing," I said. "Yeah," Tuli said, "but nothing happened. I landed in the water, & I wasn't dead. So I swam ashore, & went home, & took a bath, & went to bed. Nobody even noticed."
A god of peace and vicious personal honesty has passed.
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2 comments:
Thanks for sharing this, Paul. The YouTube sound is frustrating so I am listening to the Vimeo clip now and I would encourage everyone to do likewise. The link to Vimeo is found by expanding the details below the YouTube clip. The song "Morning, morning" on the vimeo clip starts at about 20:10 minutes in. It is such a beautiful song!
What a loving memorial for an obviously great artist.
thanks Cile for the input. I was acting fast, but I'll check out the Vimeo options in the future. I know, youtube sound often SUCKS! If you want a great version of this song check out Richie Havens'
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