CORY REYNOLDS | DATE 9/22/2026

'John Giorno: The Performative Word' captures the radical spirit of an inimitable American figure

Featured image—of pioneering performance poets Anne Waldman, John Giorno and Allen Ginsberg with writer William Burroughs and artist John Cage, 1976—is a mechanical for one cover of The Dial-A-Poem Poets double LP Totally Corrupt (Giorno Poetry Systems Records; GPS008-009, 1976). It is reproduced from new release John Giorno: The Performative Word, the first monograph dedicated to the influential American figure who also counted art and activism among his passions. A beautifully designed object in and of itself, this monograph is an absolute must for any student of the intersection of art, Buddhism, the absolute right to free expression and the American counterculture. Original photograph is by Les Levine.