I haven’t made a bit of music for a while. Some would say I never have — including after hearing any of the pieces. Fair enough.

With that in mind, here’s my most recent. A wee piece I call Dark Winds. Might use it for some spoken word at some point, but for now, here it is.

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When George Harrison died, I helped move a friend from her flat in Elizabeth St to her new place then in Tasman St. From Mt Vic to Mt Cook sounds like the title to a down-scaling book but this was just how it was back in 2001. We scrubbed the walls to get the smoke stains off from where the pictures had been and all the while the radio was playing Beatles songs.

I was on the heavy lifting, helping the removal men when they arrived. I was lifting tables and chairs, computer desks and various things down the alleyway to the street front. It was baking hot; I’d played a gig the night before and stayed up late drinking whatever was in the house as a toast to the Quiet Beatle. My hangover was getting a workout.

The removal truck arrived, driven by the world’s rudest man. He was instantly a caricature. Loud and dumb and full of himself. And his truck was in the middle of the street – a one-way road. He figured everyone could wait because he was on a paid job. And when he did, grudgingly, move the truck, he backed it into someone’s car. A neighbour popped his head in to say he’d seen what happened. The moving man stuck his neck out to tell the man to forget what he saw if he wanted to keep all his fingers. Then there was a car of women beeping. Beeping. Trying to tell this man to move.

I was head-down and just bringing out the loads of stuff. But I said, at one point, that maybe he ought to move his truck. He laughed maniacally and then went to meet the women in the car. He bent down, leaned in and hoiked a giant spit right into the face of the driver. His co-worker laughed, then corrected himself, shook his head, was mortified. And he asked the lunatic, “why did you do that?”

The meathead replied that it was the “the dirtiest thing I could think to do”.

The radio belted out I Me Mine and Here Comes The Sun and Taxman and While My Guitar Gently Weeps. All those great George Harrison-penned Beatles songs. We heard a few of the solo gems too – obviously My Sweet Lord and All Those Years Ago, that cover of Got My Mind Set on You and a Travelling Wilburys song – or two.

But this was the end of the line. A guy spat in a woman’s face because he couldn’t be bothered to move his truck. Because he was sure that he was the boss. Because he knew that he was large – and if not in charge he was still the king. At least of anything that mattered in his world. We were mortified. Horrified. We were stunned to silence – and didn’t feel good about that.

We had a story. A weird story. And it’s one we’ll always have. Me and the friend I helped move that day…were married a few years on, we’ve moved houses a handful of times since that occasion. We’ve streamlined all we can but the mess continues to grow, the stuff we don’t need builds up around us. And we have a son now that wants to know any story about The Beatles that we can think of.

One day, he can read this. And make of it what he will.

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It was my first time reading at The Office in Newtown, a regular get-together for some, but a new venue for it.

I read two new poems — including one so new I wrote it the morning of the day I read it. The other is a couple of weeks old, both were new to being read aloud.

They have a musical guest and a guest-poet but the first half of the programme is all-comers on an open mic. So check it out above to hear my two new poems.

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Here’s three brand new poems from me at the regular Poetry in Motion open mic at the Fringe Bar in Wellington.

Where all of last year and even into early this year I have been rehearsing and showcasing material from The Richard Poems, this was my first time in years reading brand new material.

So the three poems captured here are being read for the very first time.They are called Worlds Colliding, Ex/Terminate and Shake What Ya Mama Gave You. In the case of Ex/Terminate, I haven’t even uploaded it to Substack, but you can read Worlds Colliding —

— and Shake What Ya Mama Gave You —

— you know, for those that like to read along at home.

Anyway, new poems, the start of reading new poems out and about again hopefully. Let me know what you think.

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I’ve mentioned my little book, The Richard Poems a bunch here. Launched in November last year. I’ve shared a few (audio) readings along the way to publication —

and then a couple that have come out since the release:

But there at the top you have a video poem, I’m reading Summerslam, 1988 — a piece from early in the book. A scene-setter I guess.

I also will include here a bonus video of a handful of poems from the book — being read for the first time, and as you’ll see (and hear) chosen on the fly:

This Friday, Feb 21, I am taking some of these poems, and many more, and performing them on stage with a band. If you buy a ticket, all the money will be donated to Women’s Refuge. Just $10 a ticket.

You can even watch some rehearsal footage to get an idea of how it’s going to sound:

Buy your ticket/s to the show!

Buy a copy of the book

Let me know if you’d like to see more video content, or hear more audio content.

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The final rehearsal for our show “DICK” is in the can — here’s a couple of sneak-peek clips; we were in the main room at Photospace Gallery today, where we’ll be delivering the show this Friday, Feb 21, 7.30pm.

A reminder to buy your tickets online from The Fringe website — it’s $10 and that money goes to Women’s Refuge. There are no door sales on the night.

I popped along to the New Zealand Society of Authors — Wellington’s first event of 2025, an open mic at Undercurrent bookshop. There were all sorts of readings from all sorts of readings, including from novels and short stories and memoir and children’s books, and poetry.

For my five-minute set, I read four poems from my latest collection, The Richard Poems. And you can listen to the recording here.

It was also — of course — a chance to plug the upcoming show:

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We are back with the ninth episode of We All Float Down Here — A Stephen King podcast. Our first of 2025 is the classic Pet Sematary, and the slightly less classic film adaptations (plural). Will they ever get this book right on screen? We think not.

The podcast goes out on YouTube first and foremost — so we’d love you to like and subscribe over there.

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