Punk Site Poetry With Cherry B: “Best Seat In The House”

Our punked up pumped up performance poet, who has been described as the The Punk Pam Ayersand The Cockney Cooper Clarke, has returned with her latest exclusive poem for The Punk Site, Best Seat In The House, that was inspired by the seeing The Damned on their current reunion tour. Cherry B straddles the Shakespeare themes of comedy and tragedy, teasing with laughter, then taunting those undesirables in society. One half of the unique Cherry & Peesh, who have embellished the punk ‘n folk scene with melodical tales and catchy tunes for the past five years, the duo also recently released an album, Dont Make It Easy On Yourself. Author, writer, poet, psychotherapist, professional swearer, dyspraxic and opinionated, words that define and illuminate qualities that feature within the personality of Cherry B.

Excitement looms, London traffic, Odeon into view

The Damned in lights, glaring bright, I remember you.

Chaos, noise, crowds, buses, cabs, lights,

Find a car park, find a toilet, find a pub, cider delights.

Barriers, metal, security, tickets, bag opened, nothing sly,

entrance is grand, familiar yet different, décor catching our eye.

Merch is mobbed, hefty prices, turn away, people watching,

Black is the colour, goths, punks, alternative, hair eye catching.

Bars galore, prices hidden, reusable plastic glass, extra £1,

Saw friends in the distance, saw friends recognised turn around.

The draw of the music, pulls through the doors, room not full yet.

Find toilet, clutch overpriced cider, seat identified and met

Access ticket, plus carer, so lucky, felt safe, worth booking,

Felt on show, privilege, people eyeing up the seats and looking.

TV smith appears on stage, moving fast, broken mic, carries on,

Crowd getting bigger, noise louder, Joining in with TVs song.

Lights up, look around, happy faces, T shirts worn and old,

Clutching handled pint pots, beer is far from cold.

Skids bigger crowd, Big Country riff, jokes and filth galore, 

Sing a long a punk anthem,  engaging performance, wanted more.

Lights are up again, swarming bodies, fill every crevice free,

Spot the tall ones, stopping short ones from being able to see.

Sweltering room, impatience, roadies hogging the space,

Hurry up! Reveal those drums, say the eyes on everyone’s face.

Here they come, we arch our necks, seats shudder with every beat,

It’s fucking loud, people surge and push, trampled feet.

Reusable plastic glasses are flung high, land on stage,

Beer soaken, Won’t get their £1 back, what an outrage!

Cover songs, fitted alongside originals, songs are well known,

Vanian dances the space, avoiding beers thrown.

Hello captain, chatty, talking to crowd, not band

Brian, playing his heart out, just manages to stand.

Thunder drums vibrate the room, Rat Scabies is here,

Feels familiar, original line up, old days, brings a tear.

Leave early, avoid crowds, quick exit no fuss

I didnt quite smash it up as I fell asleep in the minibus.

“A review of the Damned gig from Friday 28th at Hammersmith. I went with my friend Iain. I was trying to capture the mood and the energy of the night, in short sharp bursts. I’ve been busy with a solo mini tour, including staying with Phinky in Manchester. New music is being recorded with Peesh, it is something so different, using a reputable producer who is top in this genre. All will be revealed in the New Year. There are upcoming gigs with Headsticks and Steve Ignorant, then a mini tour with Rubella Ballet in December.”

Cherry B‘s collection of poetry and lyrics, Job Lot Of Rhymes, is now available via Flapjack Press. Job Lot Of Rhymes spans three decades of Cherry B’s performance work. Political, societal and inclusive, it is uncompromising and passionate punk ’n roll poetics firing from the belly of social conscience. Cherry B also appears on her monthly radio show on Totally Wired Radio, Poetry Is The New Rock ’N Roll, that offers an hour of lyric led, spoken versed, genre smashing, musical adventure into the exploration of hidden poetry, that is often camouflaged behind powerful rhythms and riffs. Named after one of their own songs, Cherry & Peesh will travel through the decades and diverse styles to discuss and dissect the meaning of rhyme as reflected by songwriters.