Celebrating Daevid Allen: Donall Dempsey

Daevid Allen, musician, poet, and founder of GONG, died on March 13 2015 aged 77, after a full life and fascinating career. Some of his family members and friends met at his home on the night of March 21st to celebrate his life with poetry and music. Here is a selection of the poems shared on that occasion, reproduced here with permission. Copyright for the writings and photos used here remains the property of the authors or other copyright holders. f you would like to learn more about Daevid, I recommend this excellent Guardian obituary.

Showing posts with label Donall Dempsey. Show all posts

3/22/2015

I'm a Flying Teapot!

By Donall Dempsey

GONG! There goes...
the bell for the final round!

The body's soft machine
gave up the ghost

and glid
into forever.

It's just the simple
past tense.

I know you have never
glid before

but crazy Daevid
this is the angel's egg

we are.

I still see you
in the Paris riots

handing out
teddy bears to policemen.

Now follow
into the where ever

the music leads
you

going...goingGONG!

The Music of Bone

By Donall Dempsey

GONG ride the shellac waves
of nineteen hundred & 71.

I gaze into the black pool
that the record spins

as an Youtube video

that has lain dormant
all those seconds ago

suddenly awakens & so
a Neanderthal flute from

80,000 years ago
suddenly decides to

join in as
eerily the ages dissolve.

Slovenian Neanderthal & GONG
now as one

making mocking
animal noises.

The cave bear's femur
the giver of music.

Fragments of music
scattered across time

shards of men's minds.

Divje Babe & Camembert Electrique
journey through thought

like starlight that has
finally arrived.

Link to the recording referred to in the poem:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8c-Nl_r9Zs&feature=youtu.be

Click this link for pronunciation of Divje babe

daevid

3/22/2015

I'm a Flying Teapot!

The Music of Bone