"I'm grateful I never had any encouragement[…] you look at the poets that got encouragement from their parents and they're all shit"
What kind of man could single handedly bridge the chasms between punk rock, stand up comedy and poetry and live to tell the tale? John Cooper Clarke, evidently. Incidentally, despite this feat of strength, also the skinniest man in showbusiness.
The poet laureate of punk writes observation and scathing one-liners ad nauseam, couched in hypnotic meter that turns the audience catatonic after the first verse of a passing listen.
If hearing "Chickentown" on the Sopranos gave pause, play this mini BBC documentary for the full picture. The profile offers a great overview of Clarke's distinct delivery, highlights some of his best pieces (Bits of my current favorite, You Never See a Nipple in the Daily Express features around 10:53), features talking heads from the U.K. hall of fame, and is rife with Clarke wisdom. "Children are the future, unless we stop them now".
Clarke's elaborate diss tracks are consistent favorites amongst England's erudite punks, while rough-and-tumble stand up comics and commentators prefer "Beasley Street". Teachers go for "I Wanna Be Yours". Clarke's words are working class, incredibly insighftul and really, really funny. Learn all about him in "Evidently… John Cooper Clarke".
