Best Bandstand Poems
It was there, just by chance, we were caught unprepared
Staring, surprised, into eyes of the past
I'd been watching the ducks as they circled the pond
It seems that the hands on a clock sweeping time
had circled around and like the ducks, without end
Today, on this bench, lost men will linger,
while waiting for nothing, and no place to go
Once we had claimed this 'our' place to hold hands,
planning a future that never began
Children we were with the world at command
I'm glad we aren't talking in circles, .. like then
Other children are playing in the rust afternoon,
zippered up tight, against winter wind
Talking of children..you tell me there's two
You show me a photo,…then, I share a few
I am all out of bread, as the sun starts to fade
taking away all the stains of the day
East of the bandstand shadows grow long,
falling in corners like memories do
We've learned to know twilight can be bittersweet
And taste what dim recall has only allowed
Goodbyes are said, and you then, kiss my cheek, ..
then you turn and you wave, as you are crossing the street
Left wondering now, where those lost men will go,
it worries my brow, what lost men will eat
A shadow of you, is still left in the park, …
of us holding hands, as it starts to get dark
I leave a few dollars here, on our bench
Checking my watch,… I will leave no regrets
________________________________________________________________
When Love Reckons For A Second Time Contest
Sponsor Nayda Ivette Negron
When I'm blue and need something to make me smile
I can turn on my forty fives and listen for a while
Jimmy Gilmer sang about a Sugar Shack
Holding hands, walking down that railroad track
Then I let the music take me back.
Take me back to a time when love was new
Take me back to a time when skies were blue
When we could catch that falling star
Make love in the back seat of my car
Music, oh sweet music, take me back
Doo-wop memories touched my soul
Mixed with the early days of rock and roll
I close my eyes and through the haze
I see sunshine and better days
Music take me back to those times again.
There was Bandstand on TV in black and white
Radio on 'til you fell asleep at night
There were dances at the school
And swimming in the community pool
Music take me back, let me remember when.
Did we believe those days would forever last
Were things so much better in the past
I dream of days when a movie
Meant kissing in the balcony
Music take me back, let my heart roam.
It seems like a thousand years ago
We found true love and watched it grow
I know this is where my heart belongs
When I listen to those songs
Music take me back, please take me home.
A rose named Brighton
For your funeral flowers
A stunning golden yellow hue
The place you were born Son
But now sadly gone Son
This yellow rose so perfect
I pray my Son you see it too
A year has gone by
Your family and I
here to celebrate your life
your son ~ your daughter ~ your mum ~ your wife
We take a short walk
to the Bandstand
looking to the sea beyond
For our gift to you
is the Brighton rose
A symbol of our love
But oh my Son
you had other ideas
Was it you ~ were you having some fun
For the rose kept returning
Despite the tide turning
And kept ending up on the beach in the sun
Several times
your dear son
threw it back in the sea
but each time it returned
did you send it back for me
With love in our hearts we shed a few tears
When all of a sudden a small child appears
Clutched in her hand a pink fishing net
Wondering what she would catch
And before we could stop her
your rose she doth net
As we sensed her excitement
skipping over the stones
our mouths were wide open ~ our eyes they met
She was showing her mother your rose in her net
Your wife at this point
She dashed to retrieve
saying …
‘The rose was for my husband
we had put it in the sea
So I would be very grateful
if you return the rose to me’
Her mother she was mortified
and handed back your rose
and once again your yellow rose
floated in a wintery sea
though still returned again and again
and that is when you spoke to me
‘Mum please don't you see
I am cold
I am wet
take me home I plea
Do not leave me in the sea’
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
The yellow rose I dried
and tears of joy I cried
now in a vase
here next to me
your Brighton Rose
now here forever
just for me
to see…
Written 17th November 2020
Contest ALL YOURS (JAN 24)
Sponsor Brian Strand
N/A
Jack was sitting poker faced
With bullets backed by bitches.
Neal hunched at the wheel
Puttin everyone in stitches.
He was braggin 'bout
This nurse he'd screwed,
While drivin through Nebraska.
Said that when she came,
She honked the horn,
And Neal just barely
Missed a truck
And then he asked her
If she'd like to cum like that
All the way to CalifornY?
See a redhead in a uniform
Will always make you horny.
With her hair net and her white
Shoes and a name tag and a hat,
She drove like Andy Granatelli
And knew how to fix a flat!
And Jack was at the bottom
Of his second 2020.
Neal was yellin out the window
Tryin to buy some beannies
From a Lincoln, full of Mexicans
Whose left rear tire blew
And the son's of bitches
Prit near ran us off the road!
Well the nurse had
Spilled the Manischewitz
All up and down her dress,
Then she lit the map on fire
And Neal just had to guess.
Should we try to find
A bootleg route
Or a fillin station open?
The nurse was dumping
Out her purse looking for a kiss.
Jack was out of cigarettes,
When we crossed the yellow line.
The gas pumps looked
Like tombstones from then on.
It felt lonelier than a parking lot
When the last car pulls away.
And the moonlight dressed
The double breasted foot hills
In the mirror, weaving out
A negligee and black brassiere.
The mercury was running hot
And we were almost out a gas,
Just then Florence Nightingale
Dropped her draws and stuck
Her fat ass out the window
To a Wilson Picket tune
And she shouted "get a load of this! "
And give the finger to the moon.
Counting one eyed jacks
And whistlin Dixie in the car,
Neal was doin least a hundred
When we saw a shootin star.
Florence wished that Neal
Would hold her 'stead of chewin his cigar.
Jack was noddin out and dreamin
That he was in a bar,
With Charlie Parker on the bandstand
And not a worry in the world,
And a glass of beer in one hand
And his arm around a girl.
And Neal was singin to the nurse
Underneath a Harken moon
And somehow you could tell
We'd be in CalifornY pretty soon.
Over by the corner the bandstand plays on
next to the cotton candy wagon and the clown
Its a circus act full of people and acrobats
and tallish men on walking wooden stilts
One tiny red balloon dots the sky as I espy
juggling acts leading to the garden path
it ain't over until the fat lady sings
so I better not dally, I need a glass ring
Fire eaters and sweet ladies that stretch
ventriloquists with two sided mouths
magicians that stage with props, and coins
cats on tight ropes, hawkers and escapists
Silver hoops and fast delivery guys
life is changing right before our very eyes
Give me the candy but don't tell me lies
of course I want the red balloon, untie!
February 12, 2023
Sponsor Anthony Biaanco
Contest Name Balloons
I am Farrah Fawcett,
Poster on the wall.
I am a rotary phone,
When I made a call.
I am, Boss,
it’s the plane, The plane.
I am Pablo Escobar,
And his cocaine.
I am Queen with
Freddy Mercury Live.
I am the Bee Gees,
Talking that Jive.
I am vinyl, 8-tracks,
cassettes and CDs.
I am, make love not war,
And Hippies.
I am where is the beef?
Don't squeeze the Charmin.
I am Cheech and Chong
and George Carlin.
I am SNL when it
Was funny.
I am Happy Days,
And a Playboy bunny.
I am M.A.S.H. and
A metal Lunch-box.
I am clackers, tang,
And a Pet-rock.
I am American Bandstand,
Peace signs, and the twist.
I am pay-phones, pagers,
and stick-shifts.
I am, conjunction junction,
What's your function?
I am Patty Hearst and
Her abduction.
Turbo1904
Post-hippie and pre-disco kids were we,
not clearly fitting one sole category.
Girls dressed formal for our biggest dance.
No short-shorts or those fab bell-bottom pants.
Exploring options at each fashion store,
we girls picked gowns whose length was to the floor.
Guys dressed up formal too; perhaps they’d rent
tuxedos that they wore to the event.
Some local band would play; their lead would sing
an upbeat tune for us like “Wild Thing.”
We danced free form, for we were not about
a single style of dance; we just rocked out!
No Bandstand moves for us; we did just fine.
No Salsa, Swing or dancing in a line.
I think the guys preferred the music slow.
Then into their slow dancing mode they’d go.
Around our dates we draped our arms. Our feet
seemed barely moving from one spot; a treat!
A treat indeed – though soft the songs might be,
hearts raced as partners danced romantically.
To “Have You Seen Her,” “If,” and “Maggie May”
we let our bodies sensuously sway.
The threat of Viet Nam was nearly gone.
To “Riders in the Storm” we blissfully danced on.
March 9, 2020
“Kim Rodrigues’ DWM Contest”
The Whole World In His Band
God wants the whole world in His band
Brothers and sisters of the land
Followers singing His commands
Connecting through heaven’s broadband.
Sing in praise all ye that do stand
On the Lord’s glorious bandstand
Sing how it is, holding God's hand
Lord and conductor of the band.
Children come along, clap your hands
To beat of drums and baby grands
With skips and hops dance to the band
For God so loves His precious lambs.
All Birds and creatures of the land
Join with us too, it's your homeland
Sea creatures from depths of sea-land
Swell the choirs of the Lord’s mainland.
The Lord takes hold of one's right hand
He's the saviour of those hearts fanned
By faithful members of the band
That lead us to the promised land.
Altogether now hand in hand
God wants the whole world in His band.
5th May 2021
Can you hear the pitter patter
Of the rain on my roof?
Can you hear the water splatter,
And the dog that goes 'woof'?
Can you hear that auto go by?
And the bike that zooms through?
Can you hear the thirsty land sigh,
As it laps the rain, dew?
Hearken! The tinkle of a laugh!
The rustle of a leaf,
The quiet mooing of the calf,
The weeping willow's grief;
Can you hear the crunch of the land,
When the lorry crushes?
Hearken to honking horns' bandstand,
As the traffic rushes;
Hearken! A baby crying far!
Music playing nearby!
How wonderful all these sounds are!
How do they gratify!
Keeping it real this
morning, writing of the 60’s --
Bandstand, cookies-and-cream,
hot-dogs and home-runs --
M&M Boys, swinging for the crown!
No brow-burner~ a basic poem
without the fancy footwork of Astaire
and Rogers; no dangling metaphors
Like Hand-jive with knives, sanguinary
Greaser-floors --
Poetry is not written to be read
More like, lived to be written --
And then by those natures so inclined
who survive, in verse form to the rest
of us unwashed, spoon-fed.
American Bandstand, Aqua Velva Ads, Aretha Franklin, and, the Andy Griffith Show
Black lights, Bewitched, bean bag chairs, beads, Batman and the Beatles
Cleopatra, Corvairs, Corvettes, Chevelles, Captain Kangaroo, Civil Rights Movement
Dionne Warwick, Derek and the Dominoes, Dennis the Menace, and Dodge Dart.
Ed Sullivan’s Amateur Hour, Elvis Presley, the Edsel, and new expressions emerge.
Fiddler on the Roof , Flower Power painted vans, Free love, Fiber optic lights,
Giget, Green Acres, Glen Campbell, Gun Smoke, Go-Go Boots, “Go with the flow!”
Hello Dolly, Have Gun Will Travel,and the Hippie Movement begin...“Hang Ten”
Imperial (the car), I dream of Jeanie, and new phrases “In your face” crop up.
JFK youngest U.S. President, and Jackie Kennedy stylish First Lady,
Kennedy was assassinated and the nation mourned the loss of their young leader.
Lamborghini 350 GT, Lava Lamps, Lady and the Tramp, Lost in Space, Lassie
Mousekateers, mini-skirts, mobiles, macramé plant hangars, Mash, The Monkeys,
Nissan Skyline GT-R, Nash Metropolitan, and Nestles’ Nestle were signs of the times.
Ordinary people seek peace during the years of war and social change of the 60s.
Pillsbury Doughboy, Petticoat Junction,and Peter, Paul, and Mary, placate.
Queen for the Day TV show, bring a fantasy escape during radically changing times.
Rabbit ear antennas for TV shows: Route 66, and Rowan and Martin’s Laugh- In.
Sherri Lewis and Lamb Chop, Shake and Bake, and the sexual revolution start.
Twist to The Four Tops, The Flintstones,The Adam’s Family, The Twilight Zone.
“Up your nose with a rubber hose” and similar expressions are the times’ lingo.
Valley of the Dolls, Volkswagon Karmann Ghia, and Vanilla Fudge, gain popularity.
Wonderful World of Disney, Vietnam War, protests, and “Groovy” words crop up.
Xenoglossia emerges; “Make love, not war,” “Far out,” “Catch you on the flip-side.”
Yonderly Vietnam Veterans return home to social unrest without a hero’s honor.
Zanadu dances around in the minds of the partakers; religion is legal, not marijuana.
Copyright March 7, 2015
Written for Poetry Soup Member Contest: The Decades
Sponsor: Kelly Deschler
They called him Jumper
He preferred Prancer
When he was happy he would prance
Giant circles of joy
And the dizziness
Too many beers and staggers
For 365 days waiting times 4
He would dress himself outlandishly
Feathers and painting his face
He loved the Mamba and espresso
Dancing to the beat and the heat
But February 29th he could leap and pride
Gyrating crazily leaping from space to space
Time warp again
Disco fever
Never tiring
It only happens once every 4 years
Leap frog when he was a child
Monty Python taught him how to leap from tree to tree
He did the Lumberjack
His jeans had done the Hop on Bandstand
He had bell bottom genes
While in South America he did the Anaconda
Bunny Hop with children as he walked
Loved the song Fandango
While hunting his horse taught him the Foxtrot
Auntie Mame be proud
His favorite was Leaping
Once every 4 years
Just bored so I typed nonsense
I think I must be seeing things
Before me stand the four of kings,
They shuffle when the Bishop brings
Annette upon nine raven wings
And Beanie rides a sea serpent
And wonders where the yellow went;
I go to pay the next day’s rent,
Where have they taken my new tent?
The bandstand kids look like Dick Clark,
Turn on the lights, I’m in the dark,
I’m standing in Grand Central Park,
A worm has caught a purple lark
And Kookie has run out of combs
So rents out rooms in old maid’s homes,
He has B.O. where ere he roams
So buys some spray and sells his tomes,
To your friend Ralph, yes you know who,
The one who should be in a zoo;
He sells used cars upon the tube
To each and every simple boob
And if he gives you stomach ache
Then Alkaseltzer’s what you take
And Bufferin too if you’re a rake,
Thus hath the Johnny Carson spake
Do I need a cigarette?
A camel says before me yet
‘yes, Luckys is the brand to get,
Be a he man, don’t you fret’
‘there must be worser ways to die
So buy brand X, give it a try’;
Just then another bird walks up
And asks me what I feed my pup
Then puts a nickel in my cup
And tells me I am full of crup
Of where I am, I’m unaware;
Why are the people all so square?
Who is standing over there?
He says he’s here to take my fare
But I’m not going anywhere,
Besides I feel my pockets bare
‘Well then I guess you must have paid’
At this I start to get afraid,
I think my mind will start to fade,
Then Hogen’s Heros make a raid,
Upon my sensibilities
And now it’s clear why each eye sees
So many people climbing trees;
It aint because of hungry fleas
As Tarzan swings upon a rope
I find I start to give up hope;
Jack Webb has started smoking dope
So now the crooks no longer mope
And Perry Mason kicks a judge
But finds the law will never budge
Unless big business gives a nudge
To Popeye selling ice cream fudge
At this I really have to rush
To our old john so I can flush
So far away this vacant mush
Before my teeth I start to brush
Then Josephine comes to my view
And says ‘I want to talk to you
Have you scrubbed your sink anew?
Your mop I think needs some shampoo’
I said ‘I think you are the plumber
And no one else was ever dumber
You’ve put me on another bummer’
My feelings start to get much number
continued in part 2>
We stroll the wharf by morning dew
and watch the tall ships passing through
as sunrise paints the ocean blue
in golden hue, in golden hue.
We wander down toward the shore,
to bask in mist while we explore
the crescent beach, the ocean floor
as seagulls soar, as seagulls soar.
We roam the township's cheerful streets,
past rainbow homes and bandstand beats.
Then in the shops, we snack on treats
and rest our feet, and rest our feet.
The sun deserts us all too soon
to make room for the silver moon,
and all the while, the ocean's tunes
enchant the dunes, enchant the dunes.
For Kim's "Monotetra" contest
*See "About This Poem"
Soothing hush of dusks's dimming
silver glow, softly whispers sweet adieu
to the day.
Tall, lanky tulips take a bow, proud
of brightly hued gowns on Spring's
fashion runway.
As we walk hand in hand to the
park bandstand, string quartet applauds
moon's arrival.
Each lyrical note, as our beloved
hearts float, sing to the stars
for survival.
Under moon's dusky glow, silky breezes blow,
sending Springtime lovers
off to Mars.
On a night such as this, only
a lover's passionate kiss
will hush the stars.
Poetry Contest submission: How to Make the Stars Hush