I’m pleased to say a poem of mine finds its humble place in A Landscape Pulsing with Life: Some tributes to the life and work of Ric Hool, edited by Ian Brinton, and published by the Red Squirrel Press that has also published six of Ric’s books.
I first
met Ric with Lee Harwood in Lewes, Sussex, I don’t know when, and also at a
reading or two, including the launch of Lee’s New Collected Poems – but
it wasn’t until June 2024 that I read Upstairs at the Melville in Abergavenny,
a blistering hot day. Or the next day was, after a late night drink at Ric’s,
and coffee and breakfast in the rising heat. I travelled back, overwhelmed by
his kindness and enthusiasm (detailed amply in personal responses to Ric in the
book), and carrying a lot of Ric’s books, and a CD of his rather accomplished music.
As several contributors to the book suggest, it is Ric’s imagistic eye for
detail that characterises his poems, although he is slyly witty (as he is in
person). A decent bloke, with an infectious smile.
So, there lots of tributes to him as an organiser as well as a poet, from John Freeman, Phil Maillard, Allen Fisher, to Elaine Randell (whose Collected Poems I am incidentally enjoying at the moment), Kelvin Corcoran, and some of the regular audience to the Melville, like Chris Hall, Jeremy Hilton and Lyndon Davies. Others, like Clare Potter and Melisande Fitzsimmons, add to the mix. Etc.
I didn’t reminisce in my piece (which is why I am here, a bit). I offered one of the sections of Holme Fell, my current collaboration with photographer Trev Eales, because it compares the vision of the ‘cathedral cavern’ of the Hodge Close quarry (I never call it that!) with a sudden memory of Ric’s native North East: of walking under a supertanker when I was on a school Economics Field trip in 1973. (We stayed at the Rex Hotel, a salubrious establishment in Whitley Bay. It appears in Ric’s poems, though I don’t think I’ve ever broached the subject with him: did he witness the Ugly Bug’s Ball on a Thursday (I’m guessing!) night?) The section seemed immediately appropriate – and the dedication to Ric will remain in any subsequent publication.
Ric’s poetry books are listed here: Red Squirrel Press | Poetry Pamphlets & Collections.
This tribute volume seems not yet to have been added to the site, so here’s the home page: Red Squirrel Press | Publisher of poetry, short stories, novels. I'll update if it appears.
Ric read one of Lee’s poems at the launch I mentioned; see here.
Pages: Lee Harwood New Collected Poems launched and on sale now
Here’s my set list from the 2024 visit ‘Upstairs’. I conclude: ‘It was a wonderful atmosphere, it was good to see old friends, and read to unknown people. It's a great series, too, if you are local.’ Ric is one of those old friends, even though we’ve not met that often.
Pages:
Poetry Upstairs at the Melville reading 25th June 2024 (set list)
