Southside
Photo by Jen Burks
28-hours non-stop music & poetry

The Wanderer INSOMNIACATHON 2008

April 11th (10pm kickoff) & 12th (ends 2am)
The Rudyard Kipling
422 West Oak Street (near 4th)
Louisville, Kentucky usa

dedicated to Ken & Sheila Pyle & The Rudyard Kipling
all monies from ticket sales Gifted to
Ken & Sheila & The Rud, for 23 years Louisville's friendliest venue (The Mother Lodge) nurturing supporting local national international musicians poets dancers film theater groups



allstar lineup (including the following plus other surprise mystery guest performers, some to be announced soon):

Frank Messina (New York), Tyrone Cotton (Kentucky), Southside (Kentucky), Serpent Wisdom (Kentucky), Charlie Newman (Chicago), Tom House (Tennessee), W. Loran Smith (Kentucky), Susi Wood (Kentucky), Sarah Elizabeth (Kentucky), George Wallace (New York), Amy Cunningham (Ohio), Erin Keane (Kentucky), Brigid Kaelin (Kentucky), John Paul Wright (Kentucky, leading 4-hour drum circle, 4 to 8am), Shakespeare's Monkey (Indiana), Lars & The Garvey Tones (Indiana), John Mann (Kentucky), Arch (Kentucky), Christopher Felver (California) films (8am to 1pm saturday), Dean McClain (Kentucky), Andy Cook (Kentucky), Rob Zoschke (Wisconsin), Nickole Brown (Kentucky), Gui Stuart (Kentucky), Gidget Tincher (Kentucky), John Hagan (Kentucky), Jacob Boone (Kentucky), Danny Flanigan & Kelly Wilkinson (Kentucky), Elizabeth Jasper (Mississippi), Ben Waldridge (Mississippi), Danny O'Day's Circus Freak Show featuring The Great Baldini (Kentucky), Vampire Squid (Kentucky), Bu Hao Ting (Kentucky), Todd Autry (Kentucky), The Harlequins (Kentucky), Ron Whitehead (the wanderer), & many many more including mystery surprise guest performers!!!

$20 advance tickets go on sale saturday March 15th 10am earx-tacy, www.earx-tacy.com

stay tuned for more info

Jeremy Hogan and Jen Burks, official photographers
Jeremy Hogan and Isaiah Tichenor, official documentary filmmakers

Insomniacathon 2008 producer, Ron Whitehead
assistant producer, Andy Cook


Insomniacathon 2008 sponsored by Driskell Home Repair (www.driskellhomerepair.com), earx-tacy records (www.earx-tacy.com), Monkey Drive (www.monkeydrive.net), The Rudyard Kipling (www.therudyardkipling.com), and The Moving Mystery Theatre

Ron Whitehead is hillbilly vagabond wanderer poet

p.s. this is the 1st Insomniacathon Ron has produced in a decade. gonna be a blast (& his last. he's leaving town May 1st for 2-month 9-country Europe Tour & won't be back cept for occasional visit)!!! ask anybody who attended any of the many Insomniacathons he produced. see you there!!!
p.p.s. for more info email Ron, ron@tappingmyownphone.com or visit his official website, www.tappingmyownphone.com. also visit www.insomniacathon.org (the official online non-stop, since 2003, Insomniacathon). thanks!

- Insomniacathon - A Brief History -

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(my friend Duncan Barlow's new novel. i hope you order a copy today! thanks, Ron)

SUPER CELL ANEMIA

by duncan b. barlow

Afterbirth Books
P.O. Box 6068 • Lynnwood, WA. 98036-0068 • editor@afterbirthbooks.com
244 pages, trade paperback, $13.95
ISBN: 1-933929-16-2

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Afterbirth Books is proud to announce the release of Super Cell Anemia, a novel by duncan b. barlow. Meet Gilles, an “electric” character who must bite down on copper strips to keep from shocking himself. Spending your days trying to avoid spontaneous combustion is a tiring thing…

The book is distributed through Ingram and Baker & Taylor, and is also available from Amazon.com and directly from the publisher.

Super Cell Anemia is one of the new bizarro books from a growing underground genre that exists on the borders of absurdism, surrealism, dark fantasy, science fiction, horror, and magical realism. Afterbirth Books, a small press based in the Seattle area, has published over 15 books in this genre, and can be found at www.afterbirthbooks.com

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

duncan b. barlow has had fiction published around the world. He was a touring musician for over 10 years, and released more than 20 records. He earned his MFA in Writing and Poetics from Naropa Unversity, and a Ph. D. in English from the University of Denver. He lives with his cat, Monkey, in Denver, Colorado, where he writes fiction, teaches writing, and plays in the band d. biddle.

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FROM THE BACK COVER

"In Barlow's Cincinnati-gone-strange, a germ-obsessed electrified man finds himself at the mercy of a mutant cat man, an odd doctor, misguided policemen, and (perhaps worst of all) the terrors of dating. Unrelentingly bizarre and mysterious, unsettling in all the right ways, Super Cell Anemia is a strange and powerful debut." —Brian Evenson, author of The Open Curtain, The Wavering Knife: Stories, and Altmann's Tongue

"Prepare yourself, good reader, for you are about to have the great fortune of meeting Gilles, dreamer of dark and beautiful dreams, spinner of strange syntax, copper biter, spark shooter, cat chaser, tunnel explorer, vigilant neighbor and, most importantly, hero of this knockout novel. Go ahead, try it, see for yourself (the guy, like the book, is high-voltage)...shake his hand..." —Laird Hunt, author of The Impossibly, Indiana, Indiana (The Dark and Lovely Portions of the Night) and The Exquisite

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vagabond wanderer poet moving from apartment end february

hello family & friends!! i'm thankful to have been able finally to release my anger bout my divorce. Sarah and I spent much of saturday together. we have agreed to be friends for life. and i've agreed to be godfather to her children when she has them. we will still do an occasional show together. i have decided to not have anymore relationships. i still love Sarah too much. i have decided to spend rest of my life as vagabond wanderer poet sacred non-violent warrior sharing message of peace love understanding, via my poetry, with folks round world. i will dedicate the rest of my life to my creative works. i'm gonna move from my apartment (lived here 4 years. favorite place i've lived. but letting go.) end of february. giving my kids everything in apartment (it ain't much) cept for my clothes & my new titles which i'll continue to keep in print and sell till my dyin day.

i am blessed to have thousands of friends all over the world. i'll visit with all of you from time to time. any of you willing to let me crash for a few days at your place let me know. having grown up on a farm i believe firmly in bartering. it's how i've accomplished most of what i have. like Henry Miller in Paris i'll barter my company for temporary (a few days) place to crash while i'm wandering the world. we'll drink red wine smoke marijuana laugh read poems sing songs swim naked in the creek or the ocean. i'll stay in Louisville area till May 1st when i depart for 2-month 9-country Europe Tour. i'm presently raising money for $1,338 Eurail Pass. donations/contributions/financial gifts for the Tour are welcome. i'll keep my same phone number, 270 403 6941 and email and website. call or write anytime. sometime in february i'll get a p.o.box. i'll let you know what that address is soon as i get it. i am eternally grateful for your friendship and your love and i love every one of you. and all of you know i'll stop a bullet for you if i need to. with deep hearted Love
from your ancient friend and brother in the trenches of poetry of life
Ron


Ron Whitehead
1520 Cherokee Road #10
Louisville, Kentucky
40205

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hello folks!

when you get a chance do Ron Whitehead youtube search. some new videos up and bunch more on the way. also. this friday the 11th 7:15pm EDT i'll be doing interview phone conversation with Kate Klein, Music Director for KMUD, www.kmud.org, northern California's main radio station. check it out. in spring 2007 my I WILL NOT BOW DOWN cd was Number #1 on their Top 30 Chart. they're now playing my new I REFUSE & WALKING HOME cds. also. my brilliant new webmaster, Marcus Maraldo, is overhauling my website, www.tappingmyownphone.com. he's doing a fantastic job. getting it back on track. the site is presently receiving a minimum of 3,000 visits from over 70 countries per day. looks like that daily number will double by the end of january. so. the word is getting out. i'm back from shows in england california wisconsin north carolina. and i'm now booking non-stop 2008 gigs. if you want me to head your way let me know. Thanks!!!

Ron
kentucky

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Drink, Smoke, and Listen

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The Wanderer

Ron Whitehead Europe Tour
May 1st to June 30th, 2008
Iceland, The Netherlands, Belgium,
France, England, Scotland, Ireland,
Portugal, Italy, Greece
www.tappingmyownphone.com


"Ron Whitehead at Yosemite, The Wanderer Tour, usa 2007" photo by Christian Hansen

"I have long admired Ron Whitehead. He is crazy as nine loons, and his poetry is a dazzling mix of folk wisdom and pure mathematics." Hunter S. Thompson

"Ron Whitehead is one of my closest allies. He is a man of wisdom and tolerance. Ron and I debate over political issues, and sometimes he's even right. But, in the end, we're still friends. There is only one man I want to fight along my side in the trenches of life and his name is Ron Whitehead. He is one of the last warriors left in America." Frank Messina

"Ron Whitehead is already acknowledged by many of his Elders to be a Major Literary Figure and the epitome of the work ethic! Ron and I have collaborated, recorded and performed at major festivals and universities all over the USA and Europe. Ron Whitehead is an extraordinary motivator who inspires young people to pursue the highest standards, to work tirelessly and to celebrate the intellect by constant study of Classic Literature while remaining Creative. At 73, I continue to learn from him." David Amram

"Ron Whitehead is a one man Atlantic bridge." Theo Dorgan

"Ron Whitehead, out there in Kentucky, out there where the tall heroes used to grow, is sowing the dragon's teeth of new heroics." Lawrence Ferlinghetti

"Ron Whitehead is one of the most exciting poets in America. Poet and literary activist, he is one of the great poets of his generation." Douglas Brinkley

"Spoken word at its purest and most fulfilling. Ron Whitehead's combination of full drawl, magnolia sweet and Wendell Berry's Mad Farmer's blue hot rage, vitally fashions a new post in the American ear." Bob Holman

"Ron Whitehead is energetic Bodhisattvic poetic spirit! Happy to see and read so much poetry energy!" Allen Ginsberg

May 1st to June 30th travel itinerary for
The Wanderer
Ron Whitehead Europe Tour

roundtrip airfare Louisville, Kentucky to Amsterdam, The Netherlands

1st week May: Iceland (with Iceland musician Michael Pollock, Olafur Gunnarsson & others)
2nd week May: The Netherlands (w/ Dutch poet Jan Pankow & others)
3rd week May: Belgium (w/ Belgian poet/writer Didi de Paris & others), France
4th week May: Ireland (w/ Irish poet Sean Callahan & others including Poetry Ireland sponsored performance with Irish poet Theo Dorgan plus performance in Clonakilty at de Barras)
1st week June: Ireland (Sean Callahan and Ron will perform thruout Ireland)
2nd week June: Italy (in Venice w/ Italian poet/photographer Rinaldo Rasa and in southern Italy w/ Italian writer Annalisa Papaleo) 
3rd week June: Portugal (w/ Portuguese dancer IRIS and gypsy violinist Xavier, Dazkarieh percussionist Baltazar, and NYC poet Frank Messina)
4th week June: Greece (w/ Greek poet/dancer Zoe Artemis, and NYC poet Frank Messina)
 
Jen Burks, 22, will be official Wanderer Europe Tour photographer. Jen and Ron will produce a tour book which will be released in september 2008.

ron@tappingmyownphone.com
www.tappingmyownphone.com
270 403 6941

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goodbye 2007 hello 2008

what a year!!! non-stop Europe USA performances tours interviews festivals new releases and more. highlights include: Portugal Tour with Iris & Lucia Loureiro & Xavier Noel & Baltazar, Kentucky to California Wanderer Tour with Frank Messina(www.spokeface.com) & Tyrone Cotton (www.tyronecotton.com) & Sarah Elizabeth & Andy Cook & Christian Hansen, included in Christopher Felver's new BEAT book (Last Gasp Press), I WILL NOT BOW DOWN cd hit #1 on northern California's KMUD radio (www.kmud.org) Top 30 chart, "Tapping My Own Phone" won NYC's People's Choice Best Track Award, bit by juvenile delinquent squirrel, oldest son Nathanial graduated college, daughter-in-law Jessica graduated grad school, Rudyard Kipling Benefit Concert with Jim James and Carl Broemel of My Morning JAcket (we raised $7,000 for The Rud), met Chief Arvol Looking Horse Chief of The Lakota Dakota Nakota Great Sioux Nation and Bearer of The White Buffalo Sacred Pipe, met The Tibetan Oracle and his translator, went to Mets' game with Mets' Poet Laureate & longtime dear friend Frank Messina, new WALKING HOME cd with Frank Messina, Sarah Elizabeth and I regretfully divorced, new I REFUSE cd, new THE WANDERER book, performances at New York City's HOWL Festival, Kentucky Center for The Arts new book and cds release concert with Frank Messina Tyrone Cotton Sarah Elizabeth Andy Cook, included in David Amram's (www.davidamram.com) new UPBEAT: Nine Lives of A Musical Cat book (Paradigm Publishers), included in Tony Russell's COUNTRY MUSIC ORIGINALS: The Legends and The Lost book (Oxford University Press), performed at London England's International Poetry & Song Festival, new REFLECTIONS UPON THE 50th ANNIVERSARY of JACK KEROUAC's ON THE ROAD produced and edited with Robert M. Zoschke with 54 contributors from Europe & USA & Asia, California Wisconsin Tour with Rob Zoschke, check out Norbert Blei Robert M. Zoschke Ron Whitehead Wisconsin podcast @ http://www.doorpodshow.com/archives/56 (and hear Ron read,at end of podcast, his new "Searching for Jack Kerouac" poem), 12/28/07 Rudyard Kipling Southside (Shinerunners/Whitehead) show. 2007 was a life changing year filled with agony and ecstasy. I have no regrets, only gratitude for all that was is and will be.

I'm excited about 2008! many new projects are in the works. January 1st i'll be performing with Paul K at Air Devil's Inn Annual Townes Van Zandt Tribute. from May 1st to June 30th I'll be on a 9-country Europe Tour: Iceland The Netherlands Belgium France England Scotland Ireland Italy Portugal Greece. i'll be performing and staying with friends and fans. Frank Messina (i'm working on epic Messina/Whitehead road poem. Frank & I have toured world together for 15 years) Andy Cook & others will be joining me for some of the tour. you are all welcome to join me whenever you like. Jen Burks will be my official tour photographer. new Jen Burks bio and photo sections will be added to my site within the month. Jen & I will produce a Tour book which will include her Tour photos plus our Tour narratives. Jen is into underground hip hop culture, graffiti culture, homeless culture, creative culture. she'll be doing her own thing plus shooting my Tour the entire way. the book will combine her diverse shots from entire Tour plus both her Tour stories and poems and mine. our book will be released in September. in July Helina Berryman and I will journey to Arizona to do a Peyote Sacred Walk. also in July I'll be doing California shows with Dean McClain Rob Zoschke and others. Dean Rob & I will bring out a new Spoken Word & Music cd in October. Sarah and I will bring out a new Spoken Word & Music Christmas album in October. a long interview I did with William McKeen will be featured in his early summer to be released W.W. Norton book on Hunter S. Thompson. plus there is much more news on the way so stay tuned.

I thank each and every one of you for sharing my life my work. please keep me posted on all your happenings and i'll do same. 24/7 I send each of you good creative energies with love and hugs!!! your ancient friend
Ron
january 1, 2008
kentucky
aha

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NEW TITLES from Published in Heaven

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Ron Whitehead's new I REFUSE cd in Jordan Green's Top 10 Best CDs of 2007.

Jordan Green is News Editor for Greensboro, North Carolina's YES! Weekly, North Carolina's main alternative cultural weekly.

Ron Whitehead's I Refuse: First an admission: Ron Whitehead is an old friend and fellow poetic traveler (it's a long story). With that out of the way, I can honestly say that the alchemy of poetry and music on this disc is utterly transcendent. The title track is a manifesto of dissent that can be understood on several levels, both as political screed and as a cultural expression of wooly Kentucky cussedness. And the track's righteousness is matched by a cackling sense of humor: "I refuse to kiss anyone's ass, except Sarah's." Another track, "Riding With Rebel Jesus, the Wanderer," evokes a feeling of unbearable heartbreak, but also acceptance, the poem's pathos enhanced by the acoustic guitar playing and haunting singing of Whitehead's ex-wife Sarah Elizabeth, the electric guitar squall made by Will Ragland and the subtle percussion of Andy Cook. "Holed up in Oaxaca, we'd reached the end... of the line," the poem informs. "The government was against us; an army waited for us... outside."

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Ron's books, cds, and t-shirts are available in the new Gift Shop.

Book Ron Whitehead for 2008!
Booking, Purchases & more information:
email ron@tappingmyownphone.com



archives: 2007 Archives

copyright © 2008 Ron Whitehead