HIVE – a Beat Poetic account of Busking in Paris in the ’90s

Here is my eulogy to my brother Niall who passed after a grueling fight with the big C. All his family and a close circle of friends gathered around his bed on Friday celebrating him as we hugged and kissed him and held his hand. We recited his poems and those of Blake and McGowan and we sang Jerusalem. It was really lovely and joyous we all felt he passed on full of love, affirmation and celebration. The piece above is an audio prose poem describing Niall busking and playing the bars of Paris on their national music day when we had 5 gigs in a row and Niall ended up on the platform of a huge sound system rapping Beaudelaire (en Francais!) to a huge crowd of global ravers of every stripe! As a true Beaudelairian poet, it was a stunning moment for him in an amazing day which encapsulates our touring days around Europe. R.I.P Bro! Xxxxxx

by Roddy McDevitt
Video montage: Claire Palmer