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Robert Creeley's oeuvre includes poems from as early as the '40s (and from his teaching days at Black Mountain College in the '50s), but on this CD the poet reads work written not long before this recording was made in 2000. Recorded in his home, the reading has a warm, intimate quality; the listener can savor the natural tone of his voice. Unlike Creeley's earlier work, which could be fragmentary and obscure, these poems feel whole and direct. This poet has often displayed a fondness for one- and two-syllable words as well as short poetic lines, and, indeed, much of this newer material is lean and spare. The passage of time and mortality are often the subjects here, but the poems are philosophical rather than morbid (although they can be tinged with a sort of tough melancholy). The album's longest piece is "Clemente's Images," a 25-part poem that reflects and responds to the artwork of Italian painter Francesco Clemente. It's a delight to hear these sculpted shards of language given breath by Creeley's voice. --Fred Cisterna