A Great Day In Harlem Poem by Bryan Corbett

August 12th,1958,10: 00 a.m.
17 East 126 Street
between 5th and Madison
in Harlem

most of the Jazz greats were there
standing on the stoop of a brownstone
patiently waiting for Art Kane
to snap his picture for Esquire

notably absent from the photo,
but clearly still there in spirit:
Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong,
Duke Ellington, John Coltrane,
Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald
but, what do you want?
it was 10 in the morning, after all,
and most of those crazy cats
played well into the wee-hours
of that very morning

Count Basie grew tired
and took a seat on the curb
next to a dozen children
the boy in the window
kept yelling at his brother
who was sitting
on the curb by The Count
while another kid on the curb
kept playing with Basie's hat
two of the other boys
had just been scuffling
when Mr. Kane finally
threw up his hands
and snapped this
amazing moment in time

and if you listen to any album
by any of the Jazz greats
pictured in this photograph
I promise you will be whisked away
on a symphony of sweet, blue notes
back to that very day
back to that very morning
back to that very moment