This video segment from Poetry Everywhere features jazz musician Wynton Marsalis reading the poem "The Wild Old Wicked Man" written by his favorite poet William Butler Yeats. Yeats was the most respected of all Irish poets by the time he reached old age. Throughout his career he avoided the “low” subject matter of many other Irish poets, focusing on classical allusions and themes. But in his old age, he found a voice for the lowly thoughts and emotions inside himself—the Wild Old Wicked Man.

For a biography of the poet William Butler Yeats please visit the Poetry Foundation Web site.