Real good for free
slipping out of k-count silk
into carrie bradshaw blahniks,
now clicking down fifth avenue.
there — a busker bum with
a clarinet. now jaywalking, she
stands near enough to smell
the cooking high notes.
stunned, brimming with props,
lunch at the carlton can wait
My title and poem are tributes to Joni Mitchell’s song, “Real Good for Free.” Miles of Aisles was recorded live at Pine Knob Music Theater in the village of Clarkston, Michigan.
Whimsy Gizmo (De Jackson) is today’s host at dVerse. De says:
Get off your bum and brandish us a poem of exactly 44 words (not including the title), and be sure to blast in some form of the word bum. Bum-rush a rhyme. Go wild with hyphens. Have fun with sound bump. Just be sure to buzz us your best bum poem, and share it here!
Tao Talk 
Oh, Lisa! I can hear and see this so clearly! So well described.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks De!
LikeLike
I love how you can see those performers and watch them for free… but did you ever see what happened when Joshua Bell performed in rush hour at a Washington train station…?
LikeLiked by 1 person
No but am guessing a mob scene? I’ve seen U2 busking in the NYC subway and Eddie Vedder busking outside of the baseball stadium in Chicago (on youtubes of course.)
LikeLike
Nobody stopped to listen… they all let him stand there playing on his priceless Stradivarius
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is really surprising! Not one person stopped :( I know the worker bees were focused on their destinations, but still!
LikeLike
I have heard him live once… and he is an amazing violinist
LikeLiked by 1 person
Awesome! I bet it sounds all the better in a concert hall with the special acoustics.
LikeLike
I used to see street musicians and some were very good. I always left a few bucks. You have given this character life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Truedessa.
LikeLike
Very beautifully written! Loved these lines the most:
“into carrie bradshaw blahniks,
now clicking down fifth avenue.
there — a busker bum with
a clarinet.”
So vivid and utterly descriptive!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Lucy. Joni Mitchell always inspires me :)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well that was just a little bit jazzy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
:)
LikeLiked by 1 person
One of my most favourite Joni songs, Lisa. I used to sing it when I still had a voice, before adult onset asthma, and I used it as a creative writing prompt when I was teaching. I love the rhythm of the phrase ‘now clicking down fifth avenue’ and the idea that a busker bum with a clarinet can come between a woman in Blahniks and lunch at the Carlton!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I knew you would like this, Kim and pleased to hear you used to sing it and used it as a creative writing prompt. I bet you got some good responses and I hope your students took away the lesson you were teaching them with it. Thanks for the comment.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I kept a lot of them, but had to throw them away. I might still have some saved on a USB stick.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This has such a natural flow and rhythm to it, Lisa :D I love; “a busker bum with
a clarinet. now jaywalking, she stands near enough to smell the cooking high notes.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
:) Glad you like it, Sanaa, thank you.
LikeLike
Joni and Leonard Cohen are constant Muses for me. When I lived in CA, I drove home (WA state) several times a year, cruising at 90 on I-5, in my Impala super sport convertible with the top down, with Joni and the Beatles blasting from my speakers.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That makes for a nice visual, Glenn. I bet you were wearing some really cool sunglasses also :)
LikeLike
Lovely poem a vivid scene. Luv the music too
Thanks for dropping by to read mine
(✿◠‿◠)
much love
LikeLike
Thank you, Gillena and you are welcome <3
LikeLike
This major Joni fan thanks you deeply for the reminder of her lyric, and even more deeply for this splendid stepchild. Well done.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ron, thank you very much. Glad to know you are a Joni fan and that enjoyed the poem.
LikeLike
Aha the charming busker bum stopped her short in her Mannolos! Love this.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Beverly :)
LikeLike
kaykuala
Good music often but people are busy and many don’t stop, missing it all
Hank
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes they are and yes they do, Hank.
LikeLike
You had me Carrie Bradshaw Blahniks. Nicely done.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Arcadia.
LikeLike
Love the visuals you’ve built up
LikeLiked by 1 person
:) Thank you, Sadje.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Always a pleasure
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nice write Lisa, loved it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Rob!
LikeLike
the rhymes and then the cooking notes sound super good to me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you very much.
LikeLiked by 1 person
you’re welcome. :)
LikeLiked by 1 person
vivid images that summarise Joni’s song nicely … really lovely!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Kate!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Liked this a lot – all the senses going. I particularly liked “she / stands near enough to smell / the cooking…” line just took me there.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks and glad you liked it, Peter. BTW, I’ve watched all episodes of Detectorists — and loved the show, thank you for making me aware of it.
LikeLike
Very vivid! Nice one, Li :)
LikeLiked by 1 person
:) Thanks Chris!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I haven’t got a clue what most of those words mean, but they have a really beaty beat, like high heels clicking down the street.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Jane.
LikeLike
:)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Very nicely done Lisa. I like the rhyming lines and they way music can grab you and pull you in!
Dwight
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks, Dwight.
LikeLike
I don’t think I’ve ever heard this song before, Lisa. Or if I did, I never really listened to the words.The music is nice, but I like your words better… J
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad to have introduced it to you, Judy :)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well done! Good wordplay.
A few years back would have had no idea what “Carrie Bradshaw blahniks are” but my sweetie loves ‘Sex & the City’ so now I do. Not a favorite show of mine but I was able to work references to it into my novel, since the protagonist is a 30-something woman set when the series was running.
LikeLiked by 1 person
aha! I used to love watching the show. This was in the day where one had to wait a week for each new episode. Now we can binge watch series over a weekend. Glad you enjoyed the poem, Dave :)
LikeLike