[New-Poetry] landis everson

[David Baratier]

I know that some of you posted about this earlier but wanted to give my take that originally appeared on another list.

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  I had not noticed any mention of Landis Eversons' death tho I think I received word of it late last Sunday so I am saying something. At first, his first book made me hopeful about his (new) publisher (only of books, not the journal) and their intent as well as expected quality for future collections. And he wrote some remarkable poems, ones that moved me at moments.
   
  I first learned of Everson in Fulcrum #2 where I appeared with him. While I was not impressed with the poems (from the 50's), the fact of Ben Mazer "finding him" before so many others who were, in my estimation, way too far in depth, immersed in the Berkeley Ren., ringtones and all, including friends and former students, THAT PART was impressive, the finding. What was more pronounced was the new material that subsequently followed, an amazing piece appeared in the The Sycamore Review (1 of 2), an awe inspiring chunk in APR, and there was another set in a location that leaves me at this moment. By the time the book came out I was actually excited, which says a lot for someone who is enamored of Blasers essays (see the recent UC collection), sceptical about Spicer (Collected), and only interested in small sections of Duncan (Bow, mainly).
   
  What a great poet Landis was, there was poem that in my memory,  which all of this is from, I think from SR, called Potatoes and Onions, correct me if I be wrong. The repetition was perfect, not too much Stein.  Just the perfect mix of Spicer's playfulness with Duncan's loft and Gilbert's "down to earthiness" to relegate this writing to the most important figures of the round table.
   
  When his first book surfaced I remembered that I had read him once in the stacks in some library I was invited to, in Ashbery's Locus Solus (sp?), a journal that was often fancy and flight driven in a way that was distasteful. The pub seemed like it was so locally driven that the gist of the moment, or "history," was absent in so many areas, so purposely removed. I hope I am being clear, and the notion of what I call "new-frenchism," totally derived from attempted translations (best example Tennis Court Oath from JA or Freely Espousing from Schuyler, both of which put them on the map in many ways but have not stood any sense of time from what I have learned from earlier Generations (tho Jimmy immediately escaped it)) a plateau which can be annoying in general, for being the primary tone of each collection.  Landis had an interesting "Romaness" to his stance, tactfully appealing but empty on the inscape, an angle of approach that abutted and refuted the new modernist
 approach of the period.  
   
  Anyway, to be brutal, from the "closest" to LE I know, I was told that Landis shot himself once in the head with a world war 2 service revolver. There is little else that has come to light, probably since he was an isolated person from what I know of the last five years, let alone earlier when he entirely disappeared. If somebody wishes to share their appreciation of his work, or knows more please tell, feel free to frontchannel, backchannel or give me a call. If not, buy the book, try it out, let me know--
   

       
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