Punk Rock Is Cool for the End of the World: Poems and Notebooks of Ed Smith

by Ed Smith, David Trinidad (Editor)

In Punk Rock Is Cool for the End of the World, David Trinidad brings together a comprehensive selection of Ed Smith’s work: his published books; unpublished poems; excerpts from his extensive notebooks; photos and ephemera; and his timely “cry for civilization,” “Return to Lesbos”: put down that gun / stop electing Presidents.

Ed Smith blazed onto the Los Angeles poetry scene in the early 1980s from out of the hardcore punk scene. The charismatic, nerdy young man hit home with his funny/scary off- the- cuff- sounding poems, like “Fishing”: This is a good line. / This is a bad line. This is a fishing line.

Ed’s vibrant “gang” of writer and artist friends― among them Amy Gerstler, Dennis Cooper, Bob Flanagan, Mike Kelley, and David Trinidad― congregated at Beyond Baroque in Venice, on LA’s west side. They read and partied and per-formed together, and shared and published each others’ work.

Ed was more than bright and versatile: he worked as a math tutor, an animator, and a typesetter. In the mid- 1990s, he fell in love with Japanese artist Mio Shirai; they married and moved to New York City. Despite productive years and joyful times, Ed was plagued by mood disorders and drug problems, and at the age of forty- eight, he took his own life.

Ed Smith’s poems speak to living in an increasingly dehumanizing consumer society and corrupt political system. This “punk Dorothy Parker” is more relevant than ever for our ADD, technology- distracted times.

Genres: Poetry

400 pages, Paperback

Published June 11, 2019

About the author

Ed Smith (1957–2005) was a poet involved in the punk and alternative arts scenes in Los Angeles in the early 1980s.

According to editor David Trinidad, Ed Smith was "born in Queens, New York, in 1957; his family moved to Southern California in 1959. He grew up in Downey and attended Pomona College in Claremont for one academic year (1975-76). He then made his way to Los Angeles, Hollywood specifically, where he worked as a paralegal and for an independent record and video company, became involved in the punk rock lifestyle, then finally found his niche as a poet... Publishing poems...does not pay the rent, so Ed worked as a typesetter, a movie ad copywriter, and a math tutor at a private school. He moved to New York City in the late nineties, married artist Mio Shirai, and founded Creative Systems Architecture, Inc. (CSAI)" Toy Time Bombs: The Poems of Ed Smith

His books were Fantasyworld (1983) and Tim’s Bunnies (1988) both with Cold Calm Press. His poems appeared in Poetry Loves Poetry: An Anthology of Los Angeles Poets (Momentum Press, 1985), and in Rolling Stone, St. Mark’s Poetry Project Newsletter, Santa Monica Review and other publications.

Ed took his own life in 2005.

Reviews

[Tosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew Ed Smith, and my memory of him is long phone conversations when he lived in New York City. Beyond that, this is a great book of poems and diary-like writings. David Trinidad did a remarkable job in collecting all of his writings for this one-volume. It serves as a tribute to Ed, but more important exposes his excellent poems/writings to a larger reading audience. What seems simple is actually deeply complexed poetry. As a young poet at that time, and especially around Beyond Baroque, I went to his readings to enjoy, but also learn the craft of giving an excellent reading. Ed was a very profound reader of his works, and his writings are superb. Excellent collection.

[Jeff Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Today, I aspire to drunkenness
And to a long swim
Straight out from the shore
And tonight I’ll sleep
In the same fetal position
That I’m standing in now.
- Ed Smith

Wonderfully edited and designed book of Ed Smith's succinct poems -- his two rare chapbooks plus many uncollected works that are often even better than the previously published material. It ends with his notebooks which detail the exciting ferment of the L.A. poetry scene in the late 1970s/early 1980s.

[David Given Schwarm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. Absolutely amazing. The story of every Beyond Baroque Poet I meet 10 years after Ed. So good:

Henry Rollins is
a commercial
version of me

the poems are great, the journal is better--acid at Disneyland, bleeding, confusion, bus rides in LA, so much good stuff. The Blue Clues Wikipedia high light. The sadness and lost and utter insanity of the late period journal entries (and trip to China? WTF?!).

But also goals a glory and loving ink flowing on paper and anxiety about readings and meeting respected author and coming to love your circle and just oh so much goodness.

ES is amazing and this book captures a very important voice in American poetics. Highly recommended mostly to West Coast Poets. Gold.

[Dylan M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book off the library shelf thinking it might be good for me in between larger books I had been reading (fuck you The Stand). I think the biggest downfall of this book was my own lack of interest towards poetry. I enjoyed many of Smith’s poems / journal entries, but left the book on my shelf for months with only 10 pages left. I didn’t feel like reading poetry, but decided to finish it today because it is 5 months late to the library 😀

The last ten pages were beautiful tributes to Smith from friends. Worth my time.

[Michael Trigilio · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is utterly breathtaking. Ed Smith’s writing is transcendent, bonkers, heartbreaking, and so fucking funny. I feel indebted to David Trinidad for bringing Smith’s work back into print and leaving such a mark on my psyche.

[Ereck]

Smith skirts poetry and life in late capitalist society. Not much going on here, it seems. Or, as another reviewer notes, it’s breathtaking. Or, from Trinidad’s intro, “more relevant than ever.” This handsome book wrecks me.

[Ted · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aching and beautiful poetry. The perfect distillation of the bipolar temperament.

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ed Smith is a bad bitch with bad anxiety.

[Jessie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish i was this cool honestly, great shit, not much else like it in my head. I mean there is other stuff like it, but nothing that pulls things off so effortlessly and with such grace

[Chloe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Ed Smith, his poetry is extremely down to earth, employing frequent funny play-on-words and metaphors. It was such a treat to be able to read his entire anthology as his books are basically out of print. Plus with the addition of photographs and journal entries it paints a really warm and charming picture of the punk-poetry scene in LA in the early 80s. Very special.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another book where I think it's hard for me not to have loved it. There's just something about Ed Smith's poetry and writing style that just clicks in my brain- maybe it's the clear Brainard influence, I don't know.

Also, I discovered one of my favorite poems ever in this collection- and it's not by Ed Smith. It's actually Repose by Amy Gerstler. Particularly the second stanza:

If you kill yourself as you threatened
some spindly red thread will snap as
you make your 12th story leap of faith,
and dizzy passion enters fact. You
selfish bastard. You'd leave me here,
totally exposed, to kowtow to strangers
and kneel at the feet of unforgiving
brick buildings all along our street.
It's spring now s0 hush up. From the
top floor you can see a billion hapless
seedlings sprout. No need to prove you're
perishable when we'll be hip deep in
wild grass and alfalfa, if we wait. Then
we can wade through it, such a dry green sea.

[Charlie Caraccio · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're in the Venn diagram intersection of demographics that this book is aimed at, then it's a must-read. David Trinidad deserves a medal for bringing these works back into print.