Anne Sexton and Her Kind sound recordings

Anne Sexton and Her Kind (1968-1971) was a literary rock ensemble featuring the poet Anne Sexton (as lead vocalist and lyricist) and core members Theodore Casher (flute), Bill Davies (keyboards), Steve Rizzo (guitar), and Robert "Bob" Clawson (band manager). During its four years of existence, the Massachusetts-based band performed at a range of concert halls and artistic venues in the Boston area and on campuses nationwide.

The band’s formation was catalyzed by an innovative poet-in-residence program that writer and educator Bob Clawson initiated at Wayland High School (Wayland, Massachusetts) in 1967. Through a grant from the Teachers and Writers Collaborative, Clawson was able to invite Sexton (that year's recipient of the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry) to co-teach his English class. Within months of launching this ambitious course, one of their students, a football player named Steve Rizzo, shared several musical settings of Sexton’s poems (including “Music Swims Back to Me,” “For Johnny Pole on the Forgotten Beach,” and “Ringing the Bells”) with his teachers. Sexton and Clawson were immediately struck by his arrangements and, together with fellow teacher and classically-trained pianist Bill Davies, they began to actively discuss the creation of a band.

By the spring of 1968, rehearsals were well underway, and additional band members were added. According to journalist Kelsey Osgood, the group was “rounded out by professional flautist Teddy Casher” and “a rotating cast" of drummers (Harvey Simons and Doug Senibaldi) and bass players (Mark Levinson and Hank Hankinson). The band’s repertoire featured Sexton’s poems set to a range of musical genres, including country, rock, bebop, jazz, spiritual hymns, and "protest folk music." By the summer of 1968, the ensemble had succeeded in creating a preliminary setlist.

Early rehearsals took place at Clawson’s home in Wayland, Massachusetts, with later rehearsals being held at Sexton’s house in nearby Weston. With the exception of “The Little Peasant” (which was set by Maxine Kumin’s son, Daniel), most melodies were written by Steve Rizzo and arranged by Ted Casher and Bill Davies, with a great deal of input from the rest of the band.

The first concert by Anne Sexton and Her Kind took place on July 25, 1968, at Eugene’s II—a Boston bar that served as a fundraiser for Eugene McCarthy’s presidential campaign. According to Clawson, the filmmaker Fred Wiseman was at that concert, as well as a representative from the DeCordova Museum, who asked them to perform for the DeCordova festival on September 20, 1968 (the band’s second concert).

In 1969, the same year that Love Poems was published and Mercy Street premiered, the band performed at St. Lawrence College (on March 13) and Jordan Hall/New England Conservatory (on May 24). The Memorial Day performance at Jordan Hall was billed as their “first Boston concert" and boasted an audience of a thousand. In April, the band made its first studio recording at the Fassett Recording Studio in Beacon Hill: this tape was used for radio spots and early publicity. A letter dated June 1969 and subsequent letters to Atlantic Records in 1970 indicate that the band was ultimately hoping to produce a record.

In 1970, the band performed at Albion College, the University of North Dakota, Fargo (May 6, two days after the Kent State massacre), Emmanuel Church/An Evening of Poetry for PAX (June 24), UMass Amherst (July 30?), and Boston University (Oct 17). A demo tape was assembled by Bob Clawson (with the assistance of audio engineer David Griesinger) in September 1970. The tape was adapted over the next two years, as new songs were added to their repertoire.

In 1971, the band performed at Springfield College (February 12), Boston University (March 22), and Emmanuel Wheelock College. Additional gigs were offered at Holy Cross College and at the Newport Jazz Festival but Clawson was compelled to turn them down at Sexton's request. Her Kind’s last performance took place at Elmira College (Elmira, NY) on December 6, 1971.

Due to the expense (and techological logistics) of making recordings during that period, not all of the band's performances were documented. However, thanks to Clawson's efforts, a significant number of concerts, rehearsals, and sudio sessions were recorded and preserved.

Comprehensive List of Band Members: All vocals were performed by Anne Sexton, with the exception of “From the Garden” (sung by Steve Rizzo, and later Hank Hankinson) and “Cripples and Other Stories” (sung by Ted Casher, Bob Clawson and Anne Sexton). Guitar: Steve Rizzo; Woodwinds (Flute and Clavinet): Ted Casher; Keyboards: Bill Davies; Bass: Mark Levinson and, later, Hank Hankinson (Hankinson replaced Levinson at some point in 1970); Percussion: Harvey Simons and, later, Doug Senibaldi (Senibaldi replaced Simon’s early in the band’s history); and Kazoo: Robert Clawson.