Poem: Hawke’s Bay in the 90s

A poem about seeing Ray Charles in Hawke’s Bay. In the 90s…

I saw Ray Charles when I was 17. It was
a very good start to the year. Although
the farmers on the hill did not like it much

when there wasn’t an encore. Someone
shouted, “Get back on stage you blind
black cunt” — and many people cheered.

I could see the limo heading down the
long driveway, out of the venue, and
though Brother Ray was tough enough

and must have endured so much more
than just that, I remember thinking,
“Drive. Just drive”, in fact, I heard myself

saying it out loud. The way he’d twisted
Eleanor Rigby into something brand new
was worth it all. I still think about that now.