Social activist, poet Tom Nattell dies

By RICK KARLIN, Staff writer, Times Union.

First published: Tuesday, February 1, 2005

ALBANY -- Tom Nattell, a longtime social activist and one of the driving forces behind the Capital Region's poetry scene, died Monday after a battle with cancer.

Nattell was involved in numerous protests and causes ranging from the environment to social justice and world peace. He even led a 1960s takeover of the gymnasium at his alma mater, Albany High School. He helped block several proposed incinerators along the Hudson River, fought apartheid and worked for nuclear disarmament.

"It's a terrible loss for lots of different communities," said Judith Enck, policy adviser to Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and a veteran environmental activist.

Nattell, who worked for the state Health Department, also started Readings Against the End of the World, Open Mike Poetry Nights at QE2, People's Poetry Series and Community Poetry/Public Verse in city parks.

On Monday night, fellow poets gathered at Albany's Lark Tavern to remember Nattell with a tape recording of his performances, as well as poems of their own.

Ironically, the event was the first of what is planned as monthly poetry readings at the Lark that were set up by Nattell, who remained active until his death despite an aggressive throat cancer.

"He would have wanted us to go on," said Mary Panza, a local poetry enthusiast. "What we're doing is smiling and laughing and crying," she said.

He leaves behind two children, Noah and Leah, and longtime partner Mary Anne Winslow.

Funeral arrangements are being made by McVeigh Funeral Home.

A poetic farewell to Tom Nattell

By GREG HAYMES, Staff writer, Times Union

First published: Wednesday, February 2, 2005

ALBANY -- There were political poems, environmental poems, revolutionary poems. Poems about peace and about poetry itself.

There were poems by Tom Nattell, and poems about Tom Nattell.

More than two dozen Capital Region poets and musicians performed at Tess' Lark Tavern on Monday evening for what was planned as the first installment of "Poets Speak Loud," a new monthly series of open-mike nights.

Nattell, the 52-year-old undisputed dean of the Albany poetry scene, was slated to be the featured artist at the event. But after a long battle with cancer, he passed away at his home Monday morning, and the reading was transformed into a word-drenched wake, and a standing-room-only celebration of Nattell's belief in the power of poetry to build community.

Nattell, also a social and political activist, had hosted a monthly open-mike night for poets at the now-defunct QE2 nightclub in Albany for 10 years. He also hosted annual "Readings Against the End of the World," as well as events for Poets Action Against AIDS.

In short, Nattell served as a friend and mentor to to nearly everyone in the region who has stood in front of a microphone to pour out their verse.

"This night was all about Tom Nattell, and it still is," said poet Mary Panza, who co-hosted the festivities with Thom Francis. "We are here to mourn his passing and celebrate his life."

The evening began with a recording of Nattell reading several of his own poems, including "Frank Zappa Memorial Barbecue," which includes the line "Frank Zappa is dead, but his music spins on."

Dan Wilcox, Don Levy, Cheryl Rice, Tess Lecuyer, R.M. Engelhardt, Emily Gonzalez and other poets paid homage. Singer-songwriters Steve Candlen, Kate McKrell and Times Union contributor Michael Eck offered musical tributes. Caroline Johnston, better known as MotherJudge, delivered a powerful a cappella rendition of "Amazing Grace," while performance artist Nicole Peyrafitte accompanied herself with sleigh bells as she praised Nattell's inspiring dedication and grace.

Throughout the evening, an empty beer pitcher was passed around, filling up with $1, $5 and $10 bills. The proceeds were donated to the Tom Nattell Peace Poetry Prize, an annual $200 award to an Albany High School student for a poem that fosters a sense of social responsibility.

Pierre Joris read eulogies from poets who were unable to attend, including award-winning poet Anne Waldman. "Tom was a great light on the scene," she wrote. " ... May his vision rekindle activist hearts everywhere."

Nattell's son, Noah, read one of his father's poems, and Nattell's longtime companion Mary Anne Winslow read the final entry from Nattell's journal, which he wrote on Sunday: "Short or tall/Flowers are wonderful."

After the readings had ended, Wilcox led a parade of three dozen into Washington Park, stopping at its statue of the Scottish poet Robert Burns. It was the spot where Nattell had hosted the "Poets in the Park" reading series each July since 1989.

In the cold winter night, Peyrafitte kicked off her shoes and climbed barefoot up the statue, adorning Burns' bronze head with a green beret similar to the one that Nattell frequently wore. She placed a bouquet of white roses in the statue's arms.

As the crowd cheered, Peyrafitte climbed down and lit a candle at the foot of the statue.