Charles Bukowski and Michael McLure
Charles Bukowski and Michael McLure
Together Charles Bukowski and Michael McLure represented a truly fascinating, raw era of American literature.
They performed a joint reading recorded on November 24, 1975, at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. The performance highlighted intense tension and contrasting energies between the two counterculture icons.
During the performance McClure read from Jaguar Skies and performed his famous "Gargoyle" poem, featuring guttural, animalistic growls. Bukowski cut his performance short, openly demanded his payment, and walked off the stage.
Bukowski's writing is raw, comedic, and confrontational—frequently drinking, arguing with the crowd, and insulting the academic setting. He used short, direct sentences and completely avoided flowery or academic language.
Bukowski focused on alcoholism, human squalor, and the gritty, unglamorous realities of lower-class American life and dead-end jobs.
A "dirty realist" outsider tied to the underground press, he remained completely detached from traditional literary circles.
McClure, on the other hand, was a core pillar of the Beat Generation and San Francisco Renaissance. He focused on "mammalism" and animal consciousness, writing with raw, unfiltered honesty about bodily existence.
He performed at The Band's legendary 1976 farewell concert, The Last Waltz, reading from Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales.
In his later years, McClure toured and recorded collaborative spoken-word albums with The Doors' keyboardist Ray Manzarek.
Sources: Wiki, The Poet
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