A review by spectracommunist
Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg

5.0

It's so nostalgic that it gets better and better

Howl
What a magnificent piece! Dedicated to Carl Solomon, whom he met in an asylum. It perfectly describes the death of the American dream as the citizens of late capitalism and how it demands fakeness in an individual, which leads to the birth of underground for the beat generation artists, and the proses revolve around freedom, sex, violence, and spiritualism. I especially love how Ginsberg jumps from places to places in the lines as a stream of consciousness and it literally feels like a trip. I found this segment from James Franco's movie with the same name:
Howl Animated
I don't think any interpretation of this work should be spoon-fed like that, but still, it's beautiful.

A Supermarket in California
Here, Ginsberg talks about Walt Whitman in his elder days as a supermarket owner, he observes how America has shifted to greed and the dream is dying in front of his eyes. Ginsberg even juxtaposes the conditions of the Beat artists with Whitman.

America
This one's so fucking funny! A parody of hypocrites. Believe me, this could be your favourite one. Hear it yourself:
Ginsberg recites America

Sunflower Sutra
A Sutra is a wise saying in Hindu and Buddhist scripts. Here, Ginsberg describes him and Kerouac sitting at the banks of a lake and has a vision of a blooming Sunflower: like the birth of a revolution or some ideology that's dwelling on the pure hearts of humankind.

Transcription of Organ Music
Ginsberg was influenced by his friend Kerouac on reverberating his works with jazz beats and pop music of 50's:
Recital with beats