Item #17 in my Kerouac bookshelf curation project is a 1999 CD titled, Jack Kerouac Reads On The Road. As liner notes author Douglas Brinkley states, "This album . . . is a nine-track showcase for the writer as romantic crooner, lonely vagabond, prose stylist, Tin Pan alley cut-up, hobo poet, and scat innovator. It's an unforgettable addition to Kerouac's aural oeuvre . . . ." Brinkley's liner notes are detailed and provide a wealth of information about the provenance of these recordings.
On this CD you'll hear Kerouac sing, scat, and read both prose and poetry with musical accompaniment. Don't let the title fool you -- there's really only one cut featuring Jack reading from his novel, On The Road: the piece published separately as "Jazz of the Beat Generation" in New World Writing in 1955.
Any Kerouac fan understands the importance of the sound of Jack's words, and no one can bring them to their auditory reality like Kerouac. As such, this is an essential item in any Kerouac fan's collection. Highly recommended.
Below is a picture of the top shelf of my Kerouac bookshelf showing the placement of this CD (13th item in the pile) on the day I started curating my collection. Next up: Kerouac's Last Dream by Ramblin' Jack Elliott (CD).
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The top of my Kerouac bookshelf
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