Moments of Pure Magic...

So, yeah, that Beatles doc really sent me for a loop (see 3 last posts). Our band has had some very intense rehearsals for upcoming shows, and the dysfunction on display via Disney +, from one of the greatest bands ever, was quite disorienting.

Writing songs, bringing them to our band and working thru them with fabulous, totally-committed musicians is probably the most exciting, engaging and rewarding activities we can imagine. When we enter the rehearsal space, it's like entering a sacred circle of creativity. It is where we play, we have fun, we do the serious work.

We are creating a group energy that transcends any one member of the circle. The songs are just a vehicle, a structure we use as a platform to fly. There were a few moments in the doc where the players got lost in the song, especially when Billy Preston was at the keyboard, but it was certainly gob-smacking to see how much time was wasted and how little time was spent flying.

I am not saying our process is better than anyone else's. It is just the way we work, a method, a process that has developed organically over time. We do think we are on the right track. Maybe because we have successfully simplified our approach. We are also a small, independent band with a limited budget to get things done, and we just don't have the time and money to just fuck off.

We must do the work. We must continue to bring new material to the band. We must keep everyone engaged, and excited about practicing, fine-tuning songs, and playing out in the world. We need to be focused, disciplined, honorable, dedicated, and serious. And at the same time we need to play, to have fun, to keep things light and flexible.

If we do all of that, it gives us an opportunity to reach beyond ourselves, to create a unique group vibration, which we can use to transcend the moment, the rational, the logical, and the mundane, the normal day to day thing. Catching lightening in a bottle. Trying to be there for those moments of pure magic.