The Tea and The Jam
Weekly Newsletter - 7th April 2024
This newsletter marks almost exactly the three-month mark of me being on Substack, with “Black Dog” being posted on January 9th (“What Do I Want For Christmas?” was backdated to its original publication date over on
).
What a crazy fun three months this has been. Being able to share my poems with all of you and to have so many wonderful interactions on this platform has been a blessing. A huge thank-you to all you wonderful people who are reading my work, sharing it, and letting me know what it’s meant to you. I’ve got some wonderful things in the pipeline that you’ll be seeing soon. Here’s to the next three months being just as thrilling as the last three!
From Poets Present
I’m bucking the trend this week and *not* talking about something “From Poets Past”, instead covering two very different current poets’ works. The first of those being…
“Spring” - by Saffron Morter-Laing
This first poem graced my presence late on Easter Sunday - and it’s a wonderful one.
’s excellent poem, “Spring”, is not bound by the simplicity of its language in creating one of the most magical poems I’ve read recently. I’ll let its own tongue (“pink in the earth”), speak for itself: has been an incredible driving force in helping poetry to proliferate on Substack with her Poetic Library too, which seems to be taking on a life entirely of its own, and that has helped me find some excellent Substack poets. Feel free to reap the benefits of this project, or support its development below:
As it so happens, me now being on Substack for 3 months now makes me eligible for inclusion in the Poetic Library. So, if
happens to be reading this, we’ll perhaps see an entry for me in there sometime soon ; )“That’s Entertainment” - by Paul Weller
Yes, you read that right. Paul Weller, of The Jam, Style Council and solo fame.
I’m taking some liberties this week with this “From Poets Present” entry by talking about a musical artist - although I view songwriting as just one form of poetry. I had the pleasure of seeing Paul Weller live this week and felt called to include him in some way in this newsletter. I debated putting this in the “From Poets Past” section, but as the gentleman in question is still active, it only feels right to put it here.
Weller’s songs are packed with great lyrics, whether social commentary with The Jam or gradually seeing more personal reflections on life as he progressed. For this newsletter, I’ve included the humorous and excellently written observations of British council estate-esque life from The Jam’s “That’s Entertainment”. I’m particularly fond of the lines “Waking up at 6 A.M. on a cool warm morning / Opening the windows and breathing in petrol” and “Two lovers kissing amongst the scream of midnight / Two lovers missing the tranquillity of solitude”.
Here’s a live version with Weller and Noel Gallagher, of Oasis fame. Because why not.
A police car and a screaming siren Pneumatic drill and ripped-up concrete A baby wailing, a stray dog howling The screech of brakes and lamplight blinking That's entertainment That's entertainment A smash of glass and the rumble of boots An electric train and a ripped-up phone booth Paint-splattered walls and the cry of a tomcat Lights going out and a kick in the balls I say that's entertainment That's entertainment Days of speed and slow-time Mondays Pissing down with rain on a boring Wednesday Watching the news and not eating your tea A freezing cold flat with damp on the walls I say that's entertainment That's entertainment Waking up at 6 A.M. on a cool warm morning Opening the windows and breathing in petrol An amateur band rehearsing in a nearby yard Watching the telly and thinking 'bout your holidays That's entertainment That's entertainment Waking up from bad dreams and smoking cigarettes Cuddling a warm girl and smelling stale perfume A hot summer's day and sticky black tarmac Feeding ducks in the park and wishing you were far away That's entertainment That's entertainment Two lovers kissing amongst the scream of midnight Two lovers missing the tranquillity of solitude Getting a cab and travelling on buses Reading the graffiti about slashed-seat affairs I say that's entertainment That's entertainment
That’s Entertainment - Written by Paul Weller (as a member of The Jam)
From Me
New Poems
I wanted to do something a bit more light-hearted for this week in keeping with the idea of “April Fools”. I also thought it would be amusing to write about one of the few luxuries I enjoy indulging myself in - tea. Hence “There’s No Treat Like Herbal Tea” was born. Perhaps one to enjoy over a brew?
Make sure to keep an eye on my Notes tab, as I’ll be sharing additional poems there that are the product of NaPoWriMo, which
is graciously giving her time to bring to Substack. Go have a look at the post below to find out more:
This week also sees the release of my conversation with Nika of
, who is currently organising an exciting-looking one-day festival in Brecon, Wales. My Tribe members (paid subscribers) get access to the full episode, but free subscribers fear not - there is still a 10 minute segment from that interview that you can watch for free.
And Finally…
Thank you for continuing to follow my progress. If you want to support my work, there are numerous ways you can doing that, including:
Becoming a Tribe member (paid subscriber)
If you enjoy my poems, or are looking for poems on different subjects and of different natures, consider checking out my book, “Born Anew”, which you can find out more about below:
It's incredibly heartwarming to know you are here and believe in the work I'm doing, and I can't wait to be able to share more with you and the rest of the world soon.
With gratitude,
Tom
Thank you for the shout-out! I'm so glad you enjoyed my poem...Also, I am adding you to the Poetic Library this minute!