As you know, it’s a funny old time at the moment. We’ve all been coping with it in different ways, and one thing I really love about the situation is seeing various communities pulling together through social media.
I’m lucky enough to belong to a couple of these communities, but for some reason, it’s the Leeds United community that I’ve been gravitating towards over the last couple of weeks. Probably something to do with the fact that football has been suspended indefinitely whilst we were top of the league, and whilst people’s lives and health are far more important, it’s still left us all with a gaping existential void…
Anyway, enough waffling. Back in the summer, Leeds United commissioned me to write a poem for their centenary kit launch. The poem was voiced by Ralph Ineson and went down a storm on social media. When the actual birthday itself came around in October, I released a modified version called ‘A Life of Wearing White‘.
Recently, I’ve been selling handwritten copies of the poem (which again have proven very popular), and following a suggestion from an old LUFC pal of mine, I’ve decided to issue it as an audio release.
The ‘A Life of Wearing White EP’ will be released in two halves – the first is available in all major stores now, with the second follows on 17 April. Each half contains three poems, capturing my experiences of growing up as a Leeds United fanatic.
I’m honoured to have a canvas by the Burley Banky as the artwork for the first half. I’m a huge fan of his work and was chuffed to bits when he agreed to paint it for me.
Also, I’ll be donating 50% of the profits to the Leeds Fans Food Bank. It goes without saying how vital their work is at the moment, and after The Square Ball lads’ 24-hour Football Manager marathon at the weekend raised over £6k, I feel inspired to try and do my bit.
The first half of the EP is available to buy on Bandcamp here. It’s also available to stream or download through all major digital providers including Spotify, Apple Music / iTunes, Amazon Music and Google Play.
Marching On Together!
Matt Abbott Poet 