I just got through watching and listening to some YouTube videos. I just got it in my head I wanted to hear some great bass players. After about 30 minutes I just, closed my mouth and resumed breathing. I used to play a little bass so I have some strong attraction to that instrument. I heard Victor Wooten, some unfamiliar players, and the god the late Jaco Pastorius. In these players I saw and heard greatness. In math “greater than” means more than. Clearly that’s what these men are …they are more than the average bass player. They probably had a propensity for the instrument early on, but they certainly invested countless hours in perfecting their craft…and became more than the average player.
When I went to see Jaco in concert I knew I was in the presence of greatness. Not in a groupie kind of way, but in an almost reverential kind of way. Jaco was what I aspired to be. His talent made me go home and practice my bass more. When I saw Stanley Clarke, Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind and Fire, The Jackson Five I knew that they were “more than” me, not as people but as craftsmen. They put in the work to develop their talent and that talent blazed from the stage. Part of the allure of concerts back in the day was to see and hear things that I knew I couldn’t do…at least not yet.
These days concerts are more like dance recitals, because that’s usually the only thing actually happening live. Today’s music is filled with mediocrity. You can go in any karaoke spot and hear singers as good as most of the singers you hear on the radio, and that’s ashamed. Often they’re not even called singers, now they’re “artists”…and even that title overstates the case most of the time. What about musicians? Most young people think Chris Angel is a musician…(think about it). Music tracks are “beats” now, and producers are usually glorified Deejays.
I long for the day that music comes back into the “Music Business”. It would be great to see young boys and girls taking piano, guitar, and saxophone lessons. I long for the day when a singer says to the producer “Why would I need Auto-Tune?” I long for the day that singers sing because they would die if they didn’t. When a guitar player plays because he can’t not play. Music is the voice of God fixed to a melody and set to rhythm. I don’t know what that is they’re playing on the radio.
For the sake of profit, music has been critically injured and is on life support. Let’s make sure music doesn’t die. It is imperative that music be a part of every school curriculum. Us older folks should dust of those old 45’s and play them for our kids, and tell them our stories about the great concerts we saw and how we were affected and moved. If we really try we can save music and oh… how really worth it that would be.
So …What is great, really? It’s breathlessness, it’s wonder, it’s vision, it’s profound. If any old Tom, Dick, or Mary can do it, it ain’t great.
Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH
Check out the hottest Hip Hop and Rap Beats on the internet at: KLH Beats.com
