STANZAS FOR IRIS LEZAK by Jackson Mac Low

Something Else Press, 1971, First edition, 424 pp., 6 1/2" X 9 1/4", Hardcover with jacket and bellyband.

Fine in a Near fine jacket with a touch of fading to spine (please see photos)

"Mac Low has created a sort of cinema of words and word sequences, far more interesting than its obvious originality would suggest."

Influenced by his studies under John Cage at the New School, Jackson Mac Low approached writing Stanzas for Iris Lezak through a predetermined system of rules and methods. Over the course of six months in 1960, he composed an epic cycle of “parasemantic” poetry through the application of these methods to a variety of source materials, including Wittgenstein, Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis, and The National Enquirer. The resulting text displays connections to Dadaist collaged writings and William Burroughs’ disjointed narratives, but stands out with its musical repetitions and arrangements, acquiring the feel of a sustained linguistic performance.

Bellyband with John Cage quote.