The Greatest Harp

My pen is like a blues riff,
not always on the note

I bend within the moment,
new feelings reach for hope

A eulogy remastered,
the fire that he fed

The Mojo dancing with the Muse,
Marine Band his to wed

My words to stretch and vibrate,
a blind man theirs to read

They move in tribute off the page,
Sonny’s orphaned reeds

My hand they cease to follow,
as letters wail and slide

While deep in South Chicago
—the greatest harp just died

(Villanova Pennsylvania: June, 2017)
‘Tribute To Sonny Boy Williamson 1’