Spare Ass Annie and Other Tales

by

William S. Burroughs

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I had become a fan of the sardonic humor, baroque visions and gross-out charm of William S. Burroughs by way of such stunning books as Interzone, Junky and Naked Lunch. When I bought Spare Ass Annie and Other Tales, I knew nothing of his collaborators on this spoken word album, the Disposable Heroes of Hiphopricy but one of my favorites authors on tape was enough for my money. I was pleased to discover that the Heroes, Michael Franti and Rono Tse, have the perfect sense of texture and cartoony whimsy to back up the legendary beatnik. The bouncy drum and bass of “Dr. Benway Operates,” “One God Universe” and the tense “Did I Ever Tell You About the Man That Taught His (...) to Talk?” spotlessly and cohesively convey Burroughs’ raspy words while parodies such as the swanky downtown jazz of “Mildred Pierce Reporting” (about police apathy during a gang rape), 50s television-commercial glitz of “Warning to Young Couples” (about jealous family dogs snatching newborns) and the choirs, festive sounds and use of traditional carols on “the Junky’s Christmas” show the Disposable Heroes’ keen understanding of the irony of the author’s crass magic realism. Fanti and Tse show sure talent, yet they never try to override Burroughs, always working behind the writer’s commanding, often hilarious words. The author searched through seven of his best books of strange expressions and offbeat satire for the readings and the Disposable Heroes of Hiphopricy bring those legendary writings into a new dimension on Spare Ass Annie. I am sure other Burroughs fans will certainly be pleased by the fine ways in which these extraordinary young talents enhance the innovative writer’s uncanny work.