Hear an electronic music tribute to poet Anne Sexton

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Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/07/29/hear-an-electronic-music-tribu.html

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I thought “Mercy Street” was already such a tribute.

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Interesting point on that. “45 Mercy Street” by Sexton is likely the poem that Gabriel based the song on, and there’s also a play called “Mercy Street” by itself, Sexton’s only play. I wouldn’t mind seeing a performance of it.

“45 Mercy Street” by Sexton has such a strong opening:

In my dream,
drilling into the marrow
of my entire bone,
my real dream,
I’m walking up and down Beacon Hill
searching for a street sign –
namely MERCY STREET.
Not there.

Gabriel can’t really match it, the ‘daddy’s arms’ line is really tacky:

Looking down on empty streets, all she can see
Are the dreams all made solid
Are the dreams all made real

All of the buildings, all of those cars
Were once just a dream
In somebody’s head

Dreaming of mercy
In your daddy’s arms again

That’s a tough bet, trying to match a poem like that, and credit to PG for the attempt. I love the ambitions of 1980s Peter Gabriel (1977-1992, specifically). He owned those fifteen years of weird electronic pop. Bowie’s Eno records and Suicide the band, too.

With some happy nostalgia, I remember I used to crank Peter Gabriel really LOUD.

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