Every so often there a band that no matter who tries to use them as an influence, they cannot be equalled. Gang of Four is one—and, alas we could use such an equal now.

Bob Weir's organically quirky songwriting is one of the central building blocks of my musical understanding. Here's a solo guitar rendition of my favorite of his tunes. youtu.be/ko5C1rR2NQQ

Here’s an elegy for David Bowie recorded by the LYL Band the day after he died 10 years ago. Oddly—and I like oddly—the lyrics were written by American poet Carl Sandburg, who never would have known Bowie—and yet I think they’re fitting: frankhudson.org/2022/03/31/k...

I genuinely believe that the closest, if not only, historical analog to what we're experiencing now is the Fugitive Slave Act. (Not least because "states rights" but only the rights we want states to have.)

Everyone should watch this

Renée Nicole Good was a poet. A prize-winning poet.

#poetry #music Few click links on BlueSky, but if you go to the one below below there’s a jaunty 2 minute 50 second Rock quartet song freshly made from a 1929 poem by Vachel Lindsay. frankhudson.org/2026/01/05/m...

I’m like 5 days late for celebrating Patti Smith’s birthday, but after listening to some Matthew Sweet live videos posted here tonight I remembered this wild Parlando project combination of Amy Lowell poetry as if performed by the Patti Smith Group: frankhudson.org/2025/04/20/l...

Here is how the fine print “To Our Readers” note on page two of the newspaper changed from last Sunday to Monday as The Minnesota* Star Tribune silenced its Minneapolis presses and sent printing to Des Moines, Iowa.

@ethanhein.bsky.social alternative musical transcription system

Perhaps most have moved past New Year’s Day thoughts, but here’s a story about my great-great-grandparents, and how for one New Years 99 years ago my great-grandmother wrote a poem about a New Year’s Day 160 years ago. I made her poem into a song: frankhudson.org/2026/01/01/s...

Kenneth Patchen, “At the New Year”, 1939

A beautiful song from Martin Carthy taking us through the months of the year on this last day of a tumultuous one. youtu.be/dZcs9xtgUoo?...

Good morning. Here’s my fresh English translation of an early poem by French Surrealist poet Paul Èluard. The next message in the thread will include a link a piece about how I do these translations so that I can perform them with original music.

A troubling long read buttressed with difficult reporting. A sincere, worried, question occurs to me: will the depopulated & questionably administrated local media in MN & elsewhere in our country be able to do similar coverage for their cities?

Burning the midnight lamp tonight to finish a new Parlando Project musical piece where I perform a fresh English translation of this early Paul Èluard poem.

#poetry #music A festival of carols? A bunch of gifts to unwrap? Here’s another from the long-running Parlando Project that takes some Silk Road instruments to decorate a monologue by T S Eliot: frankhudson.org/2025/01/07/j...

#music #poetry Of the various newly made Christmas songs the long-running Parlando Project has presented over the years, this one may best reflect the complex feelings of this year’s holiday for me. frankhudson.org/2020/12/23/t...

A Christmas song of the awkward gift.

#music #poetry Difficult for me to present a musical version of Southwell’s “The Burning Babe” for this Christmas. Why? It’s the Ghost at the Feast factor—on a day to wish joy & celebration. If you’re finding that joy, feel free to leave these thoughts for later. frankhudson.org/2025/12/23/t...

Long thread & therefore awkward in short-format social media—but that reinforces its point that short rules have a hard task here, but longer ones do too.

“We're a garage band We come from garageland”

Samuel Beckett translates surrealist poet Paul Eluard on a poem dedicated to Pablo Picasso The World of the Painter To Picasso Surround the yellow with shapeless white of egg Wrap this white of egg in fine pliant blue In vain the straight black line comes from you Dawn is behind your picture

#poetry #music I'll write more about "The Burning Babe" on the Parlando Project blog later, but I've just released a version of this 16th c. poem made into a song. Here's a link to the place where it can be heard before I write more about the poem. parlando.libsyn.com/the-burning-...

Just learned Mick Abrahams has died. Kind of a footnote to his era—he was the original guitarist in Jethro Tull, formed his own group Bloodwyn Pig after leaving them—but the occasion has me watching this fiery live performance. youtu.be/lli5TN4Q_w0?...

As #WinterSoltice approaches I feel drawn to post one of my favorite covers the LYL Band’s ever done, “Winter Love” by @robynhitchcock.bsky.social youtu.be/brW3tV5InS0?...

If you or your loved ones are directly impacted by the ICE immigration crackdown, please contact me securely on Signal: signal.me#eu/1bUvkuaFR...

Tonight as it gets cold tell yourself what you know which is nothing but the tune your bones play as you keep going. And you will be able for once to lie down under the small fire of winter stars. Mark Strand Liat Noten

Rough week for me so far, the world near & far and my sullen art are not comforting me. Here’s a sort-of review of a book that’s helping: John Darnielle’s This Year, 365 Songs Annotated. #poetry #music Song made from a Keats December poem included: frankhudson.org/2025/12/15/j...

When I interviewed Spinal Tap and Marty DiBergi this summer, none of them broke character, for the whole hour. Except Rob Reiner, once, losing it when Michael McKean's David St Hubbins talked about minimalism. I didn't use this in the feature and hadn't published any audio, but this is joyful.

Nice feature in Film Daily about "The Best of the Best: Jazz from Detroit," now streaming on Prime Video. Don't miss the Q-and-A with the filmmakers--me, Daniel Loewenthal, Roberta Friedmam--following the writer's survey of the doc's themes and approach. filmdaily.co/indie-film/m...

A trained composer recently wrote how she distrusts/discounts those who she frequently encounters who tell her it’s easy to set Emily Dickinson to music. This naive composer, who largely self-realizes the work, worried for a day or so. Am I one of those? 🧵 1/3

The link’s to a short, smart & tart review that is likely right about the film. Oddly, it makes me want to watch it, since I’m hopelessly addicted to metaphor & often tolerant of dram am & ham—even if I’ll feel the same anger & disappointment after watching it.

Yes, this. And the allied thing from my youth: looking at a person’s record collection & judging their appreciation of life from their curation of cardboard-covered grooved vinyl.

New single 'Restless' out now. One of the sweetest ballads from the swing era, it was a dream to bring this to life again linktr.ee/ronanmurphym... Ryan Molloy - Bass Shugo Ishii - Guitar Eoghan McCloskey - Drums Recorded with Mikey Rogers @ Sun Studios, Dublin #jazzsky

#music #poetry At sunrise here’s an Emily Dickinson poem, now a short song, that starts at sunset & then regards time by considering those who disregard it. A picture postcard of “Cozy Gothic” frankhudson.org/2025/12/12/t...

Remembering Tom Verlaine on his birthday. Here are Television performing Foxhole on OGWT in 1978

As is my wont, rather than adding to the corpus of poetry, I’ll regift this voice of another poet, now sung, Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “The Sparrow” #PoemsAbout #YouShouldntHave @thebrokenspine.co.uk @alanparrywriter.co.uk #poetry #music Here it sung at the link: frankhudson.org/2024/01/12/t...

Burning the midnight lamp tonight to finish mixing a recording of an Emily Dickinson poem, now a song, that I did on her birthday anniversary this week. If it stands up, I’ll release it later this week as part of my long-running Parlando Project.

Mostly writers writing about typefaces in this thread. The long-running Parlando Project only has one piece about typography—this one with a hidden sadness & an indulgent guitar solo: frankhudson.org/2017/06/04/f...

#mspcyclecast Yup, snow. Sidestreets are a mess. Took a main snow emergency street for most of my ride to breakfast this morning. Had to “portage” over some intersections with irregular deep snow ruts. The one bikeway i passed wasn’t plowed yet. Still got there.

#MusicSky #poetry What’d I do with some studio space time yesterday? Worked out some music & a performance of a song I made from a poem written by my great-great grandma Susan Partain about falling in love during the American Civil War.

#music #poetry Just listened to the 1st episode of this new podcast “Really, The Doors.” The commonly used format here: “a couple of folks talking informally” cloys some for me—but likely better here that it’s majority female. Worthwhile insights in it, like this conversation at the end:

The week Kurt Vonnegut died the LYL Band did a little tribute to him by performing portions from his novels, including this one: frankhudson.org/2021/11/10/t...

Some days nothing works better to soothe 21st century pains than music that’s a thousand years old. Haunting, strange, utterly remote - and yet because of that sounding at times hypermodern - the music from the 11th century manuscripts of the Winchester Troper is presented beautifully on this album👇

#PoemsAbout #Imps @alanparrywriter.co.uk #music #poetry When I saw this week's subject I thought of this poem by Leigh Hunt (something of the Zelig/Forrest Gump of the English Romantic movement). I wrote music for the poem & recorded a performance of it here: frankhudson.org/2025/10/26/r...

A series of cars driving in a line on 33rd street in south Minneapolis with horns honking. Immigration raid?

The name of the poetic form the sonnet means “little song.” This long in the cask sonnet set in late autumn has been made into just that. frankhudson.org/2025/12/03/b...

I love seeing folks visiting older examples of the more than 850 recordings combining literary poetry & original music by the Parlando Project. Early 20th c. Chicago poet Fenton Johnson is a poet I've loved exploring/performing, and today I see a couple dozen are hitting this harrowing piece:

The featured song in this clip, “Dance Me To the End of Love” is adapted from a Spanish poem of Lorca’s by Leonard Cohen. Cohen’s dry wit on display in the interview. Cohen mentions Lorca & guitar—so here’s my performance & adaptation of Lorca: frankhudson.org/2024/07/09/t...