Poetry. IS MUSIC—a major retrospective of an American original—gathers the best poems from John Taggart's fourteen volumes, ranging from early objectivist experiments and jazz-influenced improvisational pieces to longer breathtaking compositions regarded as underground masterpieces. There is a prayerful quality to Taggart's poetry, rooted in music—from medieval Christian traditions and soul to American punk rock. He is also heavily influenced by the visual arts, most notably in his classic "Slow Song for Mark Rothko," in which he did with words what Rothko did with paint and dye.

"John Taggart's poetry is not like music, it is music."—George Oppen

Author City: SHIPPENSBURG, PA USA

John Taggart is the author of fourteen books of poetry and two books of criticism. He was, for many years, a professor of English and director of the Interdisciplinary Arts Program at Shippensburg University. He lives near Shippensburg, Pennsylvania.

Reviews and Other Links
Hank Lazer @ Ron Slate's On the Seawall
Don Bogen @ Ron Slate's On the Seawall
Amelia Robertson @ SpeakWright
Poetry Foundation Stack Picks Best of 2010: Ilya Kaminsky
One of Anis Shivani's 17 Most Important Poetry Books of Fall 2010 @ The Huffington Post
P. Scott Cunningham @ Zoland Poetry