Hello All
As you may know we are off on Sabbatical this year. We are both going through big changes, and have wanted a lot of things about our artistic/professional/and private lives to change for some time. John and I will be meeting up in January 2010 to decide what our work together in the future will be, and we will post an item on all of our web sites telling you our plans as soon as we know. We will also send this to our mailing list. In the mean time I was reflecting the other day about all the things I am thankful for about what we have done as Nizlopi. And what came to me strongly are the high times of writing, rehearsing, feeling a song come, travelling with my friend/friends, and the very high times of playing gigs. I wrote this poem about that high place:

We knew from early on
From watching our heroes
That god helps musicians light fires in the darkness
Old fires and new fires that warm your very core
From an ancient beautiful place

When you are up there and the whole world is flowing through you
When everyone is connected and singing
John on fire with giving
The great chasm opening at your feet
Vertigo like Bono said

When you are giving your story to a room and a place and a time
And the stars seem to be glistening on the streets of the town:
The dreams we all have
The love of loving
The voice from the heart

And when you feel the courage to say what you most want to:
“I love you, we should be standing up for the poor, and for what we believe in”
When the whole river of soul is awash amongst you
Your friend, God, and the community of that place

And you then, spent from a life of giving
Are born away by the singing crowd to be kissed by beautiful women
Then you know you’re singing folk hip-hop.



Love Luke x