Working Gal Rock and Roll Poet: Ask Me Anything

Sunday, December 24, 2017

Ask Me Anything

Dear Dearest Friend

when it’s too late—

please say something nice about me.

Love trickles down—this I must believe.

If anyone is to be free

it’s us loudly shoving that reality,

Let the meek inherit the earth

put your hurt on the front burner

for us all to comfort together

My Beloved Family,

I stand my ground

even when you put me down.

Emancipation Proclamation!

Do some homework, and learn what that means

Dignity must descend to daughters and sons!

Let the meek inherit the earth

put your hurt on the front burner

for us all to comfort together

My amazing country,

I declare freedom

but sometimes you ask me for too much.

It starts with my neighbor and in my backyard.

I’ve called your offices, sent you emails,

So don’t condemn us citizens for our requests.

Let the meek inherit the earth

put your hurt on the front burner

for us all to comfort together

Brothers and sisters

asking for attention.

Partners on our journeys.

“They’d like to help you if they can find the time

but they’re doting over Facebook and some in-laws that died.”

I’ll only keep you a while. I know if I’m nice, they’ll be nicer.

hahahahahaha

I don’t know.

oh,

give it up, nobody cares,

I can’t solve a problem but I can sing,

and maybe then someone will be listening

Let the meek inherit the earth

put your hurt on the front burner

for us all to comfort together

-Anne Leighton, 2017

My book is called THE LEIGHTON EXPLOSION, which is a title I've played with throughout my entire adult life. It's based on The Music Explosion who rocked with a favorite song, "A Little Bit Of Soul." It's optimistic, and self-empowering, which is a quality I love in art... Three things have been constant in my life—- writing, music, and animals. Likewise, I've adapted the words to Frank Sinatra’s hit, “That’s Life.” I sing, “I’ve been a poet, a pauper, a publicist…. up and down…..” My poetry book, The Leighton Explosion (Soul Asylum, Canada) shows my range of emotion and different interests, especially rock music. My publisher Ken Cowle says I “made him laugh.” Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson, who writes the book’s foreword, praises my “lilt” and “personality” in an encouraging note. While I usually work as a music publicist with musicians including Jethro Tull, Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius, Sharon Katz & The Peace Train, and Michael Veitch, I've also made money from my poetry. This includes the Grammy-nominated album, Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat, (Audio & Video Labs) with me reading my poem “Feed Your Parents Well.” My poems have been published in The Indie Collaborative’s “Holiday Program,” “The Literary Parrot Anthology,” “Elephant Journal,” “BOG GOB,” “Powerline,” “the Aquarian,” and “Nickel.” I've performed live at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and Peter Max’s Studio. Some of my plays have been performed live—one by the Poets Repertory Theatre of Long Island and another by the San Antonio Living River Church, and at New York City’s Howl Fest. My other books are Paws For Thought: How to Understand What Your Cat is Thinking (Rockwell Books, UK), Using Your Art & the Media to Comfort People (Free To Run Books, West Hills, CA), and the self-published e-book, Get the Gig (Common Sense Career Consulting). I recently started producing pop music singles, which can be heard at soundcloud.com/leightonmedia/sets/anneleightonsongs.