As the film Alive Inside so beautifully demonstrates, music can unlock treasure-troves of memory.
The vicissitudes of life transform us, and there are inevitably times when we feel like we’ve strayed off course.
Unlocking lost memories can right the ship.
Lately, I’ve been listening to albums that were seminal in my musical development. Very often, doing so re-connects me to certain feelings, dreams and memories I’d lost sight of.
The Pat Metheny Group’s Still Life (Talking) is one album that has had this effect on me.
It’s perfect in every way: the writing, the playing, the production (shout out to Steve Rodby), the cover art, and, most importantly, the story - told in a mere 42 minutes.
Like all of the Metheny Group’s best work, the listener is taken back to an archetypal dreamland of hope and romance.
Those feelings are what put me on the course of being a musician in the first place, and when I listen to an album like Still Life (Talking), the music somehow puts me back in touch with an inner voice - my “song”.
It’s one of the many great works of art that help me to find my center, the “me” in me.
In this New Year, here’s hoping you all can find a way to do the same, navigating the ebbs and flows of the coming year without losing sight of the “you” in you.
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July 2018
- Jul 27, 2018 The Butcher Shop Bass?? Jul 27, 2018
- Jul 13, 2018 Listening to Ourselves Jul 13, 2018
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June 2018
- Jun 29, 2018 The Jazz Path Jun 29, 2018
- Jun 22, 2018 Groove Rule of Thumb #3: Long and Fat Jun 22, 2018
- Jun 15, 2018 Groove Rule of Thumb #2 Jun 15, 2018
- Jun 8, 2018 Groove Rules of Thumb Jun 8, 2018
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May 2017
- May 19, 2017 Remain in Light May 19, 2017
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January 2016
- Jan 24, 2016 Tabula Rasa Jan 24, 2016
- Jan 2, 2016 The "You" in You Jan 2, 2016
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December 2015
- Dec 26, 2015 HOME: A Primer Dec 26, 2015