Sunday, January 24, 2010

Some Randomness RE: Am. Gymnos

1. I wrote the first one in the collection, "Houston," first.

2. I've written a couple more after sealing the collection. After the first time we sealed it, I wrote "Nashville" and "Buffalo," and those two ended up getting included.

3. Thirty American states are represented, plus D.C. California has three, and Missouri, New York, and Minnesota have two each.

4. I wrote the "Minneapolis Gymno" while actually listening to Satie, but others came from other musics. "Sandusky" comes straight out of the song by the same name on Uncle Tupelo's March 12 album.

5. Some come from other stuff. I dedicated "Greenbrier" to Blake Butler because I wrote it from a line in one of his lists of 50.

6. "Seattle" was the first one published, in SmokeLong. Among the last to be published elsewhere will be "Mississippi River," in Hobart. That's one of me and Molly's faves.

7. Fourteen of them are set in places I've never seen. That number feels low.

8. I wrote "West Palm Beach" from a photo on Flickr and from the great first song on the Will Oldham Gulf Shores ep.

2 comments:

BLAKE BUTLER said...

can't wait to get this, really excited, and gleeful for it.

Scott Garson said...

B--that's so good to hear! thankathank....