Ebony Pearl

Ebony Pearl

written by: Mike Ricketts

He stands, black and proud in my memory,
Deep,
Dark skinned,
exuding deep thought
about human rights, and mankind’s plight.
An Icon,
Soul man
Hot Buttered soul man,
no cause for black exploitation ringing through his mind.

Not to be Shafted,
but to immortalize Shaft, –
rhythmic horns robustly ringing through the tracks,
symbolising a recurring, rejoicing voice of what it’s like to be black,
proud, and maximally right about who we are.

Can You be a Soul Man:
black, white, or in between?
Long live his biblical name and may his views be clear.

The African King,
The Black Soul Saint
who found strength in his belief in literacy,
and its power for his troubled race.

Keep this, Memphis,
Let me see, Tennessee,
build a monument in acknowledgment
to the cosmic rays
of Isaac Hayes.

• About
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Mike Ricketts

Singer, song writer, presenter, actor and poet. Born in February 1957, the son of immigrant parents from Jamaica. Grew up in Wembley and had a love of the art from a very early age. Our house was filled with music and in particular the poetry of the Jamaican calypsonians and others from the West Indies. It was this that encouraged me into the performing art, first learning the piano and then the guitar to us as vehicles for my songwriting and putting poetry to music. Now I am focusing my work on childhood memories and putting those together in a book of poems centred around experiences in the UK while growing up with a West Indian background.

Latest posts by Mike Ricketts (see all)

• There’s Nothing Wrong with Feeling Good - February 6, 2023
• Ebony Pearl - August 18, 2022