Steve Cannon

Steve Cannon (April 10, 1935 – July 7, 2019) was an American writer and the founder of the cultural organization A Gathering of the Tribes. He was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and moved to New York City in 1962.

Early life Cannon was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and moved to New York City in 1962.

Cannon, along with Joe Johnson and Ishmael Reed, began an independent publishing house that focused on multicultural literature in the 1970s called Reed, Cannon and Johnson. In 1973 he also collaborated with Reed to interview the first Black sci-fi writer, George S. Schuyler, for Yardbird II, Reed's own publication.

Cannon met artist David Hammons on a park bench in the 1970s and they became friends. The two collaborated on certain works, including Invisible Paintings, where Hammons traced Cannon's painting collection with pencil and then removed the physical works. Hammons once bottled Cannon's voice speaking poems. Cannon wrote poems about Hammons' work and made public appearances for him.

A Gathering of Tribes In 1990, Cannon was visiting the Nuyorican Poet's Cafe with Hammons when he was inspired to create A Gathering of the Tribes first as a literary magazine to document the vibrant culture that was happening on the Lower East Side. The first issue was published with less than 1000 copies in 1991 on a Xerox machine. The collective also hosted a gallery and performance space where numerous exhibitions and concerts have taken place, supporting and inspiring many notable artists and musicians such as the Sun Ra Arkestra (1995), David Henderson, Chavisa Woods, John Farris, Bob Holman, Ishmael Reed, Billy Bang, Diane Burns, Max Blagg, and David Hammons.

One of Cannon's exhibitions at Tribes Gallery that he titled Exquisite Poop was inspired by his relationship with visual art as a blind person. A painter included in the exhibition would describe a piece to participating writers, who would then describe the painting for a different painter who would in turn paint it.

Tribes magazine began publishing online and Cannon published an anthology in hard copy in 2017.

Cannon was memorialized at three events following his death. First there was a tribute reading organized by Bob Holman and Chavisa Woods at the Bowery Poetry Club the week after his death, at which many of his contemporaries, colleagues, and admirers offered remembrances. Among those who spoke and or performed were: Katherine Arnoldi, Janine Cirincione, Patricia Spears Jones, Valery Oisteanu, Penny Arcade, Ron Kolm, Nina Kuo, William Parker, and Daniel Carter, Cannon's sister Evelyn Cannon, his daughter Melanie Best, Nancy Mercado, Steve Dalachinsky, Mike Tyler, and Urayoán Noel, as well as Holman and Woods. For the second gathering held on September 6, 2019, at the Flamboyan Theater at the Clemente Arts for Art, A Gathering of the Tribes came together to offer a memorial program featuring poetry in music, including sendoffs from the Sun Ra Arkestra, Tracie Morris with Elliott Sharp and Graham Haynes, Anne Waldman, and Edwin Torres. Thirdly, a "Celebration of Life" was held by the Poetry Project at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on Sunday, November 3, 2019, which was preceded by a Jazz Funeral parade led by the Rebirth Jazz Band flown in from Cannon's hometown of New Orleans beginning at his longtime home at 285 East 3rd street to the place of celebration. Among those offering praise both in words and in music for Cannon at this event were Matthew Shipp, Paul Beatty, and Victor Hernandez Cruz.