Thank YOU, thank YOU, thank YOU. Hello Again! Welcome to another wonderful collaboration between East Side Story and The Post. Let me be the first to officially, whole-heartedly welcome you to the recap and recording of the 85th epic edition of East Side Storytellin’! Like the 84, I repeat … 84, previous shows East Side Story has put together, we all decided to take a break from our busy schedules all over town in order to sit back and relax and get everyone cultured up just right in the form of a Nashville writer reading from original prose, followed by an amazing local musician performing and talking about their original music, and then a round-up creative conversation with all featured guests of this event to talk about their individual journeys and personal ties to Nashville. Without further ado, fulfilling the entertainment portion of your day, this is the recap and recording of East Side Storytellin’ 85. Let us begin, again.
You may not know this but our first featured artist of this show is Black Batman. I’m not kidding, but let’s keep that secret … or not. He is also a 2014 graduate of Eureka College where he studied creative writing and biology pre-med. Recipient of the Ronald W. Reagan Fellowship, he had a brief stint as an oncological researcher at the legendary Tuskegee University, but decided to put his med school goals on hold in order to follow his heart … and his passion for creative writing and poetry specifically. He is not only a member at the Porch Writers’ Collective, he’s also the head facilitator of their Poetry Book Club. He typically spends most days working, writing, reading, and prepping his grad-school applications and his post grad self. A world traveling poet and professional, we are honored and ecstatic to finally introduce this man to the East Side Storytellin’ family. Please give your attention and a big round of applause for the likes of Joshua Moore.
Joshua took to the mic without any pages to read from. He wore his original words on his heart and his heart on the sleeves of his traditional attire. His clothes, his words, his tone, and his stories were all beautiful. It’s not every day when Tom Eizonas is sitting next to me and mentions that this writer really has a wonderful speaking talent, but it happened on this night. It’s true. You’ll hear Joshua’s voice and smooth delivery in the recording below, but it had me thinking of how to describe his reading experience while I was listening in the front row. The best way I could come up to describe it was that he had a voice of a dream. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not speaking in cliches and saying Joshua’s voice is dreamy and leaving it at that. What I am saying is that the smooth delivery and depth of emotion and personal stories involved within the layers of Joshua’s poems are like what I imagine traveling through dreams would be like. I may be rambling, but take a listen below and let me know how you would describe the reading.
Joshua prefaced each of his five poems with detailed accounts of where they came from and what he believed inspired him to write them. The first couple were about family, history, and society. None of them were happy or cheery, but all were very insightful into how this artist views and connects the world.
Before leaving the stage, Joshua talked a little bit about his work with The Porch and also about his fun with poetry on demand. Again, I’ll let him explain himself in the recording, but I thought everything he shared, inside and out of his creative writing, was simply amazing. They way he presented his material and the material itself, is something quite extraordinary to experience and behold. I suggest you read more of his stuff and make it a point to hear it read live as frequently as possible.
Our featured musician, like everyone we’ve had on this show before, is a very talented singer/songwriter. Unlike everyone else who has been on the show before him, he was born in Greenwood, South Carolina and raised in Marietta, Georgia. He believes that a song is more important than the singer and the audience is the judge, jury, and executioner who decide a song’s fate. Let’s pardon this guy and give his music a real chance to be fully appreciated and loved, shall we? I was tremendously honored and humbled to introduce the one and only Jon Latham.
Jon jumped right into his ballad about a classmate in 5th grade named Katie Rutledge. What sounded like a short story of an introduction turned into a killer tune that reflected just how cool the combination of love and love loss and rock ‘n roll can be. But that kind of embodies what Jon Latham is about. He mentioned at one point that his songs resemble books by Nicholas Sparks – meaning every Nicholas Sparks book is a Nicholas Sparks book. But, although Jon is a fan of Mr. Sparks’ work, I don’t think I’m alone in being a huge fan of Jon and thinking he is much better than the former mentioned. I know, at the very least, that Darrin Bradbury would think so because he has been parading around town for quite some time declaring Jon Latham the greatest songwriter in Nashville today. I wouldn’t object.
Jon’s stories before and during the songs perfectly matched the tone of Joshua’s poetry, in my mind. Jon made cultural references to other song titles and performances he has been lucky to experience and transformed them into something new and fresh and songs that felt like they were instant hits and yet old classics at the same time. My personal favorites were when he made the comment about “that was audience participation” and also the Billy Ocean reference. There is not enough references for Billy Ocean these days.
But seriously, Jon eventually did get the audience to participate with his final song, singing together and chanting in rhythm as if we were in the middle of Ascend Amphitheater singing along with The Lumineers. Beyond Jon talking about his experiences of trials and tribulations with his past in love in regards to bad dating and bad health, the golden ticket with Jon is the bright light of humanity that shines through from his endurance, honesty, and ability to transform any shitty experience (i.e.- cheating death in the hospital and dreaming of an ex-girlfriend singing Bob Dylan that turns out to be his dad playing Bob Dylan tunes beside his bed when he finally wakes up) into brilliant music and stories we can all relate to and deeply appreciate. Point being, he walks the walk, talks the talk, and sings the truth like few I’ve encountered.
Before I let these two great artists leave the stage, I had them articulate a little more about what makes them tick with their creativity and their creative journeys and friends and family within Nashville. I particularly loved Jon’s quote about how now he feels more like Nashville has become his home when he’s away even more than his original hometown. Again, I can’t object to that because it is the same for me in a lot of ways and I have many people like Joshua and Jon to thank for said feeling. Both of these guys will continue to make an indelible mark on Nashville’s creative scene for many years to come, but I am beyond thankful I had the chance to see them do their thing at the same bat time and the same bat channel. Take a listen below and check it out for yourself.
So here it is, the edited version of East Side Storytellin’ 85, featuring the poems of Joshua Moore and the songs of Jon Latham at The Post on Tuesday, June 21st, 2016. Prepare to have your mind, body, and soul blown away and put back together again better than ever. Trust me. You’re welcome. Enjoy the ride:
Before I say goodbye for this round of fun, I’d like to give a big round of thanks for Joshua and Jon for sharing their stories, talents, and time with us.
You can listen to more of Jon’s music here – www.reverbnation.com/jonlatham
You can listen to this show, edited, soon, alongside the previous shows too, on our website, www.eastsidestorytn.com, at our In Our Own WordsTab – see here – www.eastsidestorytn.com/in-our-own-words
I’ll keep the gratitude going for Tom Eizonas, my lovely wife and most talented artist in Emily Harper Beard (efharper), and everyone that came out live to support the show … and to everyone who has helped continue to spread the word and support the show online afterwards.
I’d also like to show much love to Clay Brunton for the beautiful artwork online to promote the show.
Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to give one last shout out to Tonya and Chris for making The Post so welcoming and positively life-changing for the East Nashville community at large.
Our next show will be
East Side Storytellin’ 86
Tuesday, July 5th
at The Post (1701 Fatherland Street) at 7pm
reading- Lagnajita Mukhopadhyay (www.facebook.com/lagnajitam)
singing- Matt Walberg (thelivingsituation.com)
That said- that’s all for East Side Storytellin’ 85 and another fabulous event at The Post with East Side Story at the helm. Thanks for coming out and sharing the good word and giving some love to all of these great Nashville artists and our creative ideas. Please remember to be nice to one another out there.
much love,
mE
