The Buk Reading To Hear
mostlybroken | Vancouver, WA USA | 08/31/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is Buk reading on his famous trip back to Germany in 1978. Although the reading is not very long, Buk & the audience are attentive (save for the occasional heckler - yes, even in Germany). He reads the poems likes he really means them instead of collecting a paycheck. The remaining 4 tracks are outtakes from the 1969 home alone sessions which produced the "70 Minutes In Hell" CD."
An odd mix
08/31/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Even for Bukowski, the merging of a 1978 live reading in Hamburg with a 1969 home recording is an odd, somewhat incongruent mix. The live reading portion shows a poet at home with his audience, comfortable in his reading. Although not the riotous exhibition of the "Hostage" CD, Bukowski and his listeners engage in humorous banter throughout. "Haven't you gone home to your mother yet?" the poet asks one audience member. "She has a little bottle of milk for you warmed up." When the audience members try to converse, Buk chastises them with, "I did not pay to come see you." For the most part the poetry is standard Buk, full of ironies and tragedies, examing the misery of the human condition as he sees it. There are "men without," jobs and the problem of having too much money. All is done to the complete delight of the audience, and Buk aknowledges that in closing with "Das ist alles. Danke schon." The 1969 reading, with monotonic intoxication in his delivery, consists of three poems and the absurdly dark "A Short Story." This ending piece about multiple murder and insanity is a hard contrast to the live portion of the CD which came off on a fairly high note. But it's all pure Charles Bukowski, and his evolving character can be compared over the decade-long span. Bukowski ends with "See you later." I hope so on another CD, Mr. B. Auf wiedersehen!"
Track Listings (23) - Disc #1