I have been busy recently recording a number of Northern based poets. Rather than just recording their poems, I have, with the help of Ian Parks and Ed Reiss, been delving a little deeper. This has allowed us not only just to capture the poems, discuss form, influences etc but look at the stories behind the poetry. These recordings have often caught the funny and sad tales behind the poet’s life, and rather than romanticise the world of poets, show that poets are just normal people and have to cope with the same chaos we all have to cope with.
It was a delight to record Milner in February and June of 2009 and get an oversight of his life. He was frank, honest and shared many of his old and new poems with us. I do agree with many of things Milner has said in these two recordings. One of these things I want to pass on is what Milner said in the first recording, ‘I am not a poet, I just write poetry’. I wish a lot of new and established poets would take this on board rather than believing they have to buy into a lifestyle, the life of a tortured poet, the garret and the tempetuous relationships that they believe dog the life of poets. This is just life. Good poets note this. Bad poets buy into it. Milner Place is a man who writes fantastic poetry and it was an honour to record him and bloody good fun.
Andrew Oldham's Boneyard 