Customer Reviews

Blinking with Fists: Poems

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

It's hard to listen to the Smashing Pumpkins, and not be struck by former frontman Billy Corgan's unique writing -- often his songs sounded like poetry set to music. Now he really is a poet. "Blinking With Fists," his first book of poetry, is a stunning, wrenching look at Corgan's ever-expanding talents.

Corgan was known for plumbing the depths of his own feelings in his songs. Now he does the same for his poetry. His poems are gritty and jagged, but they shine through as examinations of his emotions: his loves, losses, loneliness, past regrets, and sometimes his hopes. He makes you feel thoughtful, isolated, on a dark street where dogs are barking, and the world seems to be winding down.

Billy Corgan rose to prominence during the grunge era of Nirvana in the early nineties, as frontman/writer/vocalist of the Smashing Pumpkins. Later, he was the frontman of the sadly short-lived Zwan. But with "Blinking With Fists," (and the novel Corgan is reportedly working on), he shows that he's not just a musician. He gets to take the evocative, eerie writing that he did in the Smashing Pumpkins and Zwan, and turn that writing into something purer.

What's even better, free-form poetry allows Corgan to be less restricted in his writing. In "Blinking," he doesn't have to form his poetry so that it will fit with music. But it still is very lyrical and beautiful, full of strange images and melancholy atmosphere. It takes a little while to really sink in -- but boy, is it worth it when it does.

Billy Corgan has apparently left his band days behind him. But his debut publication, "Blinking With Fists," is a breathtaking collection of poetry that bodes well for his solo career. Highly recommended.

It's painful to say anything less than glowing things about this book, since I'm a major fan of the music Corgan and the other members of Smashing Pumpkins released, but I always also knew that when you got right down to it, much of what sounded so great as part of a song, made little real sense when read devoid of music. (For instance, "1979" one of the finest songs of the 90's, what do those words truly mean if you analyze them?) That's most of the problem here. I kept thinking how set to music much of Corgan's free verse would have taken wing, but on its own...it was lacking: even empty. There are some good pieces here in Blinking with Fists but I hope Billy concentrates more on music in the future, since that's where his talent--genius I'll go so far as to say--really lies. Sorry, Billy.

I have been a big Billy/Smashing Pumpkins fan for years. I always considered him a lyrical genius.
When I received this book, I read through most of it and then put it on my shelf where it has remained.
I am extremely disappointed in this book. What happened to his brilliance and the profound words? What happened to evoking emotion in the reader(listener)?
I recommend you check this book out at the library before purchasing it. I love Billy but this book is not good.

I found Mr. Corgan's words to be evocative and compelling. I read his poetry book a few times, as you gain more and see the many layers and dimensions to the construction of his words when you are able to go over a book a few times. The first poem in the book, called "The Poetry of My Heart", sets the tone for what appears to be a very personal and deeply moving work of literature by Mr. Corgan. I highly recommend it.

This is a beautiful first book from Billy Corgan. I did not know what to expect when reading it, but as I went through the pages and let the poems sink in, I found it to be written straight from the heart. The subject matter is complex and can be interpreted at great depth. The enjoyment comes from taking your own meaning from the ideas that Billy presents here. I wish that all readers will take the time to pick up this book, whether you are a fan of Billy Corgan or not. As an artist and a visionary, Billy brings great beauty and intuition to his art and invites us to look deeper than what we are used to seeing and feeling.

I would like to know how many of these "poems" Billy Corgan submitted to literary quarterlies over the years? How many of them have been previously published? How many rejection notes did he receive? Actually, I'm pretty sure the answer to all of these questions is "none." Corgan used to have a way with song lyrics; they were not the most brilliant lyrics, but more often than not, they worked well with the music he made. "I used to be a little boy, so old in my shoes" is not a brilliant line. But in the context of "Disarm," it's a nice little nugget of mid-'90s alternarock juxtaposition. Somewhere after Adore, however, everything went wrong in Corgan's brain. His head swelled to the size of the universe and so did his narcissistic God complex. This book only proves what his detractors have been saying for years. It's an atrocity of literarture and should never have seen the light of day. Someone needs to start telling Billy Corgan "no" before he does further damage to his already diminished artistic reputation. Blinking With Fists is recommended only for masochistic fans too blind in their devotion to give this book the critical bashing it so clearly deserves.

Many reviewers tend to claim that this is not poetry. Well, that depends on your own definition of poetry. Its true that most of the poems in the book are just streams of consciousness and emotions, but then again most poetry is that way. Most of the poems, however, are not very pleasant to the ears. A twixt a twine is only poem i thought was really good in the whole book and that is why i only rated the book two stars. Its just not that great of a poetry book especially for those that read a lot of great poetry and then compare it to Corgans. Corgan is one of the most talented songwriters out there but fails on this attempt at words without music. However, the positives of the book is that it lets one see inside the soul of a rock legend, but then again so does most of the Pumpkins music. Overall this book i think was written for the author more than for the reader and for that it probably succeeded in letting corgan voice some of his inner demons that maybe he couldn't release in music. Anyway its only for the die hard Corgan fans out there and will probably spend its time on a shelf tucked away after the initial read or look through.

A long-time fan of all of Corgan's endeavors, I have looked forward with great anticipation to this poetry book. After receiving it and devoting a full day to assimilating it, I have come to the conclusion that he needs to stick with his day job. I personally could have chosen 128 words from the dictionary and titled them "bunch of words." But could I have had it published? No, I don't think so. In spite of what I've seen from other reviewers, I do not feel that these poems relayed the imagination and the color that is so rampant in Corgan's music. So Billy, I love you, but stick with your day job.

Like most others, Corgan is the one who made me start writing songs, he's a musical God to me. But, I read this book twice today and there are oly 3-4 poems worth telling people about. They are nowhere near the poetry he wrote for the album Siamese Dream, read some of those lyrics and you'll see what great poetry is all about. Get back to your roots, Billy.

I also had this book autographed, so that's another reason to keep it safe. If this book would've come from an everyday Joe off the street, people would laugh at it. Stick to playing and writing music. Thanks for the great tunes, Billy !
Here is poetry, the song Mayonaise:

Fool enough to almost be it
Cool enough to not quite see it
Doomed
Pick you pockets full of sorrow
And run away with me tomorrow
June

We'll try and ease the pain
But somehow we'll feel the same
Well no one knows
Where our secrets go

I send a heart to all my dearies
When your life is so so dreary
Dream
I'm rummored to the straight and narrow
While the harlots of my perils
Scream

And I fail
But when I can, I will
Try to understand
That when I can, I will

Mother weep the years I'm missing
All our time can't be given
Back
Shut my mouth and strike the demons
That cursed you and your reasons
Out of hand and out of season
Out of love and out of feeling so
Bad

When I can, I will
Words defy the plans
When I can, I will

Fool enough to almost be it
And fool enough to not quite see it
And old enough to always feel this
Always old, I'll always feel this

No more promise no more sorrow
No longer will I follow
Can anybody hear me
I just want to be me
When I can, I will
Try to understand
That when I can, I will

How can you put your feelings into words without loosing any of their power on the way. He can he always could. Deep as he is he gives a bit of himself with every word he writes with every note he plays. Billy thank you for being perfect as you are and for letting us into your world every day of your life.