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Up Jump the Boogie
Poetry. African American Studies. Latino/Latina Studies. "Up jumps the boogie. That's almost all one needs to say. Murillo is headbreakingly brilliant. I didn't have a favorite poet for this year: Now I do. But with this kind of verve and intelligence and ferocity Murillo just might be a favorite for many years to come."—Junot Diaz"
The feel of now lives in John Murillo's UP JUMP THE BOOGIE, but it's tempered by bows to the tradition of soulful music and oral poetry. The lived dimensions embodied in this collection say that here's an earned street knowledge and a measured intellectual inquiry that dare to live side by side, in one unique voice. The pages of UP JUMP THE BOOGIE breathe and sing; the tributes and cultural nods are heartfelt, and in these honest poems no one gets off the hook."—Yusef Komunyakaa
The feel of now lives in John Murillo's UP JUMP THE BOOGIE, but it's tempered by bows to the tradition of soulful music and oral poetry. The lived dimensions embodied in this collection say that here's an earned street knowledge and a measured intellectual inquiry that dare to live side by side, in one unique voice. The pages of UP JUMP THE BOOGIE breathe and sing; the tributes and cultural nods are heartfelt, and in these honest poems no one gets off the hook."—Yusef Komunyakaa
- GenresPoetry
112 pages, Paperback
First published February 23, 2010
5 people are currently reading
157 people want to read
About the author
John Murillo
12 books25 followersJohn Murillo is the current Jay C.and Ruth Halls Poetry Fellow at the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing. A graduate of New York University's MFA program in creative writing, he has also received fellowships from the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts, Cave Canem, and the New York Times. He is a two-time Larry Neal Writers' Award winner and the inaugural Elma P. Stuckey Visiting Emerging Poet-in-Residence at Columbia College Chicago. His poetry has appeared in such publications as Callaloo, Court Green, Ploughshares, Ninth Letter, and the anthology Writing Self and Community: African-American Poetry After the Civil Rights Movement. UP JUMP THE BOOGIE is his first collection. (Amazon)
John Murillo is the author of the poetry collections Up Jump the Boogie (Cypher Books 2010) and Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry, forthcoming from Four Way Books in 2020. He is an assistant professor of English at Wesleyan University and teaches in the low-residency MFA program at Sierra Nevada College. Murillo lives in Brooklyn, New York. (Poets.org)
John Murillo is the author of the poetry collections Up Jump the Boogie (Cypher Books 2010) and Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry, forthcoming from Four Way Books in 2020. He is an assistant professor of English at Wesleyan University and teaches in the low-residency MFA program at Sierra Nevada College. Murillo lives in Brooklyn, New York. (Poets.org)
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
March 2, 2016
“…your smoke-tinged toasts, the gospel of the getting by, the left behind and fucked up.”
Back in the day, I had a class with John Murillo – A class on “duende” – something I’ve been studying since I inherited the Arsenic Lobster over 11 years ago. And nothing wails “duende” as assuredly as this section from “Reengages of Funk” :
The walls are sprayed in gospel: This is for
The ones who never made the magazines.
Between breakbeats and bad breaks, broken homes
And flat broke, caught but never crushed. The stars
We knew we were, who recognized the shine
Despite the shade. We renegade in rhyme,
In dance, on trains and walls. We renegade
In lecture halls, the yes, yes y’alls in suits,
Construction boots, and aprons. Out of work
Or nine to five, still renegade. Those laid
To rest, forgotten renegades, in dirt
Too soon with Kuriaki, Pun, and Pac—
I sing your names in praise, remember why
When we were twelve, we taught ourselves to fly.
The book is filled with strong narratives about family and community and is essentially a coming of age story – a coming to the page, actually – discovering that one is truly poet. Murillo is a poet with true “duende” – with funk and brilliance, with soul, with rhythm and raw edge. “Up Jump the Boogie” is a tribute to the dead – and a pilgrimage to what makes us passionate – what keeps us out of the dirt. This is a journey you need to take.
Back in the day, I had a class with John Murillo – A class on “duende” – something I’ve been studying since I inherited the Arsenic Lobster over 11 years ago. And nothing wails “duende” as assuredly as this section from “Reengages of Funk” :
The walls are sprayed in gospel: This is for
The ones who never made the magazines.
Between breakbeats and bad breaks, broken homes
And flat broke, caught but never crushed. The stars
We knew we were, who recognized the shine
Despite the shade. We renegade in rhyme,
In dance, on trains and walls. We renegade
In lecture halls, the yes, yes y’alls in suits,
Construction boots, and aprons. Out of work
Or nine to five, still renegade. Those laid
To rest, forgotten renegades, in dirt
Too soon with Kuriaki, Pun, and Pac—
I sing your names in praise, remember why
When we were twelve, we taught ourselves to fly.
The book is filled with strong narratives about family and community and is essentially a coming of age story – a coming to the page, actually – discovering that one is truly poet. Murillo is a poet with true “duende” – with funk and brilliance, with soul, with rhythm and raw edge. “Up Jump the Boogie” is a tribute to the dead – and a pilgrimage to what makes us passionate – what keeps us out of the dirt. This is a journey you need to take.
April 30, 2025
The dead miss out on summer.
August 31, 2010
If only I could get my hands on this book again so I can finish the last 3 or 4 poems... I borrowed the book from a friend and was mesmerized by murillo's musicality, his weaving in of soul music/Marvin Gaye, family, and the beautiful grit of urban landscape. i was captivated by one of the longer poems in the book (the title escapes me), where he merges the themes of his father, Etheridge Knight, and John Keats into a riveting literary exploration. when i get a chance to purchase the book, i'll start where i left off, but from what i recall, it was a very powerful read.
May 15, 2010
My write-up here:
http://www.barbarajanereyes.com/2010/...
http://www.barbarajanereyes.com/2010/...
December 18, 2010
Especially impressed by the play with form, both traditional and exigent.
August 31, 2012
john gave a talk about duende at bread loaf in 2011 that temporarily altered the space time continuum. :)
plus, his book is fabulous.
plus, his book is fabulous.
September 23, 2015
a love letter.
November 15, 2018
Fire. Thank you Espada for leading me here.
February 20, 2019
John Murillo is the straight up truth. Powerhouse poet, with another collection on the way soon.
August 15, 2021
I WAS SO taken with Murillo’s “Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Gunfire,” a sonnet sequence that appeared in Best American Poetry 2020, that I went online to look for his books. All I could find at the moment was this—since it was published in 2020, I figured it had to include the sequence. Turns out, though, this is a 2020 reprint of his first book, published in 2009. No harm done, though—this book turned out to be brilliant.
As in the sonnet sequence that pulled me in, Up Jump the Boogie combines deft handling of traditional forms—this book has three sestinas, and a refashioning of Pound’s “In a Station of the Metro”—with you-can-almost-taste-it evocations of the streets where and the culture in which Murillo grew up: Eazy E, George Clinton, the Leonard-Durán fight, kung fu movies, basketball on cement courts with chain-link nets. The perfect example of the book’s unique blend: a ghazal titled “Hustle.”
Up Jump the Boogie has a sequence of its own, “Flowers for Etheridge,” a tribute to a poetic father, Etheridge Knight, that includes parallel tributes to Murillo’s mentor, Larry Levis, to Levis’s tutelary figure John Keats, and to Murillo’s literal father. The whole sequence demonstrates what you sense throughout the book, that Murillo has mastered the tradition without being assimilated by it.
By the way, “Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Gunfire, of Three Men in Brooklyn” is in Murillo’s actual most recent book, Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry, which I ordered before I even finished this one.
As in the sonnet sequence that pulled me in, Up Jump the Boogie combines deft handling of traditional forms—this book has three sestinas, and a refashioning of Pound’s “In a Station of the Metro”—with you-can-almost-taste-it evocations of the streets where and the culture in which Murillo grew up: Eazy E, George Clinton, the Leonard-Durán fight, kung fu movies, basketball on cement courts with chain-link nets. The perfect example of the book’s unique blend: a ghazal titled “Hustle.”
Up Jump the Boogie has a sequence of its own, “Flowers for Etheridge,” a tribute to a poetic father, Etheridge Knight, that includes parallel tributes to Murillo’s mentor, Larry Levis, to Levis’s tutelary figure John Keats, and to Murillo’s literal father. The whole sequence demonstrates what you sense throughout the book, that Murillo has mastered the tradition without being assimilated by it.
By the way, “Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Gunfire, of Three Men in Brooklyn” is in Murillo’s actual most recent book, Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry, which I ordered before I even finished this one.
November 22, 2020
Very underwhelming. I first read Murillo in a poetry collection and was so captured by his reflections on nature, the function of memory, and nostalgic empathy that I bought this collection without a thought. Unfortunately this collection is tonally and thematically very different. Just not my cup of tea.
February 11, 2021
A multi-dimensional exploration of culture- family, music, art, soul- that is poignantly breathtaking. A must read.
August 22, 2022
if you are interested in sound or form or wordplay or line breaks, this book is a masterclass. jubilant and raw, visceral but playful. what you hope for when you open a book of poetry. new fave.
November 29, 2022
strange/interesting to see how he's evolved-- makes me want more winding poems because that's what he's great at. rain image in one poem is great tho- enjoyed
December 23, 2023
I don't share a lot of the same life experiences John Murillo has had, but he made me feel how his experiences felt.
March 18, 2024
Jump boogie the up
April 18, 2024
I really loved the poem "Dream Fragment with a Shot Clock and Whistles in it".
June 7, 2024
Enter the Dragon
March 3, 2025
beautiful, amazing, poignant and fresh
March 4, 2024
As a connoisseur of poetry, I've had the pleasure of delving into countless collections, but few have left me as spellbound as John Murillo's "Up Jump the Boogie." This five-star masterpiece is a testament to Murillo's undeniable talent and his ability to craft verse that transcends mere words, reaching deep into the soul of the reader.
One of the standout poems in this collection is "Stolen Starlight Lounge Sutra," a mesmerizing piece that showcases Murillo's mastery of language and form. Through the clever use of repetition, rhythm, and enjambment, Murillo creates a hauntingly beautiful melody that lingers long after the final stanza. The poem's impulse to sing of endurance within negative space is executed flawlessly, drawing readers into a world where every word is a note in a symphony of emotion.
What sets Murillo's poetry apart is his meticulous attention to detail. Almost every line holds an idea, a revelation waiting to be uncovered by the discerning reader. Each word is carefully chosen, each phrase meticulously crafted to evoke a specific emotion or thought. It's this level of craftsmanship that sets "Up Jump the Boogie" apart from other collections, elevating it to the realm of timeless art.
But perhaps the most valuable takeaway from Murillo's work is his innovative approach to poetic form. In "Up Jump the Boogie," he seamlessly combines elements of a cento with a bop or a musical groove, creating a unique fusion of form and function that is both captivating and thought-provoking. It's a testament to Murillo's creativity and willingness to push the boundaries of traditional poetry, resulting in a collection that feels fresh and exciting with each turn of the page.
In conclusion, "Up Jump the Boogie" is a tour de force of poetic brilliance that demands to be read and reread, savored and cherished. John Murillo's words have a way of burrowing into the deepest recesses of the mind, leaving an indelible mark on the reader's perception of imprisonment.
One of the standout poems in this collection is "Stolen Starlight Lounge Sutra," a mesmerizing piece that showcases Murillo's mastery of language and form. Through the clever use of repetition, rhythm, and enjambment, Murillo creates a hauntingly beautiful melody that lingers long after the final stanza. The poem's impulse to sing of endurance within negative space is executed flawlessly, drawing readers into a world where every word is a note in a symphony of emotion.
What sets Murillo's poetry apart is his meticulous attention to detail. Almost every line holds an idea, a revelation waiting to be uncovered by the discerning reader. Each word is carefully chosen, each phrase meticulously crafted to evoke a specific emotion or thought. It's this level of craftsmanship that sets "Up Jump the Boogie" apart from other collections, elevating it to the realm of timeless art.
But perhaps the most valuable takeaway from Murillo's work is his innovative approach to poetic form. In "Up Jump the Boogie," he seamlessly combines elements of a cento with a bop or a musical groove, creating a unique fusion of form and function that is both captivating and thought-provoking. It's a testament to Murillo's creativity and willingness to push the boundaries of traditional poetry, resulting in a collection that feels fresh and exciting with each turn of the page.
In conclusion, "Up Jump the Boogie" is a tour de force of poetic brilliance that demands to be read and reread, savored and cherished. John Murillo's words have a way of burrowing into the deepest recesses of the mind, leaving an indelible mark on the reader's perception of imprisonment.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews