Coffee Bar Ballade: Unpublished Poem by James K. Baxter

An unpublished poem by James K. Baxter Coffee Bbar Ballade, Typed and hand signed on paper, Late-1960s / Early-1970s, complete with letter of provenance from the vendor, 21.4 cmmm x 14 cm, James K. Baxter (1926-1972) is arguably New Zealand's greatest poet. He is certainly the most widely known and best-loved. By the time of his death in 1972, he was a household name, a fame that rested not just on his writing but on his political activism, particularly his bicultural commune at Jerusalem on the Whanganui river. His many books of poetry include his spectacular teenage debut, Beyond the palisade (1944), the trenchant social critique of pig Island Letters (1966), and the volumes of the Jerusalem era, Jerusalem Sonnets (1970) and Autumn Testament (1972). He was also an accomplished writer of light and occasional verse, of which 'Coffee bar Ballade' is an intriguing example, coffee shops played a vital role in the rise of a more sophisticated urban culture in the decades after World War II. Nowhere was this more apparent than in Wellington. Establishments such the Monde Marie, the French Maid, Suzy's and the Chez Paree reflected the influence of European refugee culture, as well as the aspirations of young local artists and bohemians. The Rendezvous, run by ray and Jean Harland at the bottom of Cable car Lane, was among these iconic meeting places. For Baxter, cafe culture had a particular significance. Baxter was a brilliant, compulsive talker. In his drinking days, the ideal place to find an audience was in pubs. But after he joined Alcoholics Anonymous in 1954, he turned instead to the cafes, According to Denise Harland, 'Coffee bar Ballade' was typed up on the premises and presented to ray and Jean as a gift. The poem marks a crossing point where Baxter's sobriety and incipient sense of social mission meets the proto-bohemian culture of post-War Wellington. Poetry for Baxter was a sociable thing, to write a poem as a personal gift made creative sense. And in a light-hearted way, this celebration of cafe life also affirms his political vision: his wish for a kinder, more inclusive New Zealand 'where types and tribes are manifold.', John Newton is a poet and cultural historian. His books include the double Rainbow: James K. Baxter, Ng ?ti Hau and the Jerusalem Commune (Vup 2009), and hard Frost: Structures of Feeling in New Zealand Literature 1908-1945 (Vup 2017).