Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

“No Matter What Sign You Are,”4th Supreme
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
16 Jan 2019
🖨️ Print Article
the supremes
The Supremes

Mary was mysterious,
but the best dancer
Diana, the magnetic,
cooing romancer—
But, here’s a secret I know:
cats like me dug Miss Flo—
And the 4th Supreme’s ‘fro!

The 4th Supreme came
Singing tones ‘tween
Douglass and Carmen McRae—
Malcolm X and Lady Day

The 4th Supreme came
Singing “Stop In The Name Of Love!”
by way of Brandeis/Bombing-ham—
hitting Dynamite Hill high notes

The 4th Supreme came
Singing “Reflections”
in silver bracelets, on a
Newsweek cover captioned:
“Red, Black and Wanted!”

Hoover hated her harmonies with millions…
But I heard, “Set me free, why don’t you, babe?”
Rocking me to “ …Try Something New:”
Dialectics…

 

The 4th Supreme came
Singing, “I Hear A Symphony—”
“No Matter What Sign You Are,”
in ’08—but I
forgive her and comrades
and friends for singing flat
Madison Avenue smash hits: “Yes,
we can and bottle Jim Jones Juice;”
“regime Change you can believe in—”
delivering “Nothing But Heartaches” to
Honduras, Libya, Syria, Mother Africa…

© 2018. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.
Raymond Nat Turner, our poet in residence, is an accomplished performing artist. You can find much more of his work at http://upsurgejazz.com.

poetry

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


More Stories


  • The Cradle News Desk
    Yemen vows ‘no security’ for Saudi Arabia after major missile, drone attack
    16 Sep 2026
    The Yemeni attack involved dozens of ballistic missiles and drones, targeting sites from which Saudi warplanes took off to strike Yemen.
  • Berthony Dupont
    What Is Happening to the Haitian Left?
    16 Sep 2026
    Responsibility for Haiti's deteriorating conditions does not rest on the Haitian masses. A population does not rise up spontaneously but depends on political movements and organizations to build it.
  • Gary Wilson
    Germany’s war drive feeds the far right in Saxony-Anhalt
    16 Sep 2026
    The AfD's landslide in Saxony-Anhalt reflects real working-class anger at the war and the arms buildup, but the party redirects that anger toward migrants and leaves the capitalist system that caused…
  • Brett Wilkins
    ‘Nothing Short of Torture’: Critics Decry Abuse Affirmed by DHS Alligator Alcatraz Probe
    16 Sep 2026
    “DHS needs to be dismantled and held accountable for this complete inhumanity,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal.
  • BAR Radio
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio September 11, 2026
    11 Sep 2026
    In this week’s segment, we discuss the 55th anniversary and legacy of the 1971 Attica prison revolt. But we begin with the history of W.E.B. Du Bois and his struggle against the domestic repression…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us