Amazon.comOver the years, poetry has transformed from literature to performance art. On In With the Out Crowd,Bob Holman, father of the poetry slam, fuses his spoken word with the music of Wayne Kramer (late of the MC5) and Bob Neuwirth (among others). The result is fascinating--the musicians add a palpable depth to some of Holman's works, while they are the impetuous for radical departures in others, such as "That's Why I Say Goodbye," which begins life as a flat-out rock & roll song. Holman's voice carries with it a certain seriousness throughout most of the album, and it's supported by Jenni (daughter of Maria) Muldaur's appealing vocals on "Goodbye." All perfectly fitting for a guy who once wrote, in The Death of Poetry, "Typewriters on parade!/ Walt'n'Emily rolling grave/ Nothing left save to save/ The Death of Poetry." --Randy Silver