In this Friday’s piece, KD writes about what makes a song catchy, and discusses some of the catchiest songs he knows, then invites Almanackers to put forward ones of their own.
Almanac (Prose) Poetry: After Reading Ovid’s ‘Dedalus’
February 27, 2023 by Leave a Comment
This Monday’s piece from Kevin Densley is his poetic take on the Greek myth of Dedalus and Icarus as told by the Roman poet, Ovid, in his famous work ‘The Metamorphoses’.
Almanac Poetry: Erasmus Fell
February 20, 2023 by 2 Comments
Eureka! Almost being clocked on the head by a large framed print (of the Renaissance scholar, Erasmus) gave Kevin Densley the idea for this week’s poem.
Almanac Poetry: Archangel
February 13, 2023 by Leave a Comment
Kevin Densley’s poem this week references the Archangel Gabriel, Mary and the Annunciation; ‘the basic concerns here are beauty and tenderness’.
Almanac Life: First Car
February 10, 2023 by 26 Comments
A person’s first car is a milestone event. In this Friday’s piece, KD talks about his, a 1962 Ford Anglia, and invites Almanackers to share their own ‘first car’ stories.
Almanac Poetry: The Musician and the Boy
February 6, 2023 by Leave a Comment
This week’s poem from Kevin Densley was inspired by the time he played in his school brass band.
Almanac Music: ‘I Forgot to Remember to Forget’ – It Began with Elvis
February 3, 2023 by 9 Comments
In this week’s Friday piece, KD looks at six versions of a song that was Elvis Presley’s first Number 1 hit and recorded down the years by numerous other artists, including Johnny Cash and The Beatles.
Almanac Poetry: Amherst Wisdom
January 30, 2023 by 2 Comments
Kevin Densley based this poem upon a line from a well-known Emily Dickinson poem; Dickinson (1830-1886) was born and lived most of her life in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Almanac Music: Six Heartland Songs
January 27, 2023 by 19 Comments
In this Friday’s piece, KD puts forward six of what he calls ‘heartland’ songs, in other words, six songs that ‘get him where he lives’. He encourages Almanac readers to respond with some of their own.
Almanac Poetry: Journey into the Underworld
January 23, 2023 by Leave a Comment
Jean-Paul Sartre famously wrote that “Hell is other people.” In this wry poem, Kevin Densley observes that it can be as simple as one mate’s dunny!
Almanac Poetry: Unsolved Murder at the Fun-o-Rama
December 19, 2022 by Leave a Comment
This week’s poem from Kevin Densley is loosely based on an infamous unsolved murder that took place about fifty years ago in a locale where he grew up.
Almanac Music: Songs for Adults Only – The ‘Adult Contemporary’ Genre
December 16, 2022 by 12 Comments
In this Friday’s piece, KD looks at the ‘Adult Contemporary’ song genre, which he believes has become extinct.
Almanac Poetry: Sorrento, Victoria, 1983
December 12, 2022 by Leave a Comment
According to Kevin Densley: ‘It’s inescapable that some poems are about tough, painful subjects.’ That includes this one…
Almanac Music: The Mother Lode – Ten Rock Songs on the Heavier Side
December 9, 2022 by 12 Comments
KD looks at ten key rock songs – on the heavier side – that were important in his young years, and invites Almanackers to share some of theirs.
Almanac Poetry – Nineteenth Century Street Scene: Evening
November 28, 2022 by 2 Comments
Kevin Densley based this poem upon a piece of Geelong motel art he grew to know well – a print on the wall of a room about half way from his home in Gherang and work at Ballarat’s university.
Almanac Music: Six Songs for St Cecilia’s Day
November 22, 2022 by 18 Comments
In many Christian churches, today, November 22, is celebrated as St Cecilia’s Day. St Cecilia is the patron saint of music and musicians, and her day has traditionally been associated with concerts and festivals, as well as music and literary work dedicated to her. In recognition of this bright, happy day, KD puts forward a set of six uplifting songs of the modern era, from artists diverse as The Beatles, Belinda Carlisle, and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.
Almanac Poetry: Jaded Shakespearian Actor
November 21, 2022 by 5 Comments
Todays poem from Kevin Densley is about a Shakespearean actor who has become very bored with his work.
Almanac Music: At Long Last Benatar!
November 18, 2022 by 4 Comments
Earlier this month, Pat Benatar was among the musicians inducted into the USA’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Some (including KD) would certainly say that this was long overdue. In this context, KD takes a brief, celebratory look at Benatar’s most important years, through some of her key songs.
Almanac Poetry: Such is Life
November 14, 2022 by 2 Comments
Kevin Densley’s latest Ned Kelly poem was written just this month…perhaps he’d had the bushranger’s November execution 142 years ago at the back of his mind. What can be said for the levers of history and a vivid dreamer; would you have pulled the trigger?
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