I love music. Not in a deep academic way that causes me to analyze sounds, styles and what background a musician or singer stems from, but in a way that no matter what is happening, how I'm feeling, I can relate to a song as a way of marking my life and keeping time as a memoir of what I've experienced. Mary, my dearest and long standing friend holds a photographic memory...she can tell you what you said, where you said, what you wore and how you held your hand and lips while it was going on...she is amazing that way. I on the otherhand, can hardly remember jack squat but if you mention the music that was popular or that I was into at the time, I can get a vague to half-way clear picture of a recollection. There is some music meant for the ears, some that covers the skin, and some that just gets down in the soul of the ovaries as you're carrying it yourself. Ya know what I'm saying?
Yesterday was marked by a cd a friend gave me by Tuck and Patti entitled Dream. I really love every song on the cd but kept playing over and over the song The Voodoo Music. It is a great song for the ears. Today, it is a song by a group from Kentucky that I absolutely love love love! The group members are young and I believe met while in college at Western Kentucky Univ and though I do not know them personally, I confess to feeling very motherly, well maybe big sisterly, toward them but I am the mother of a 24 year old so any of them could be my sons.
They represent the Kentucky in its grass roots form, both rural and the urban pockets. They wed hip-hop with country superbly and in doing so capture the essence of the state. I've placed one of their songs, Po' Folks, with video on my Art Going Postal Blog. This song covers my skin and works its way down in me. The group is called Nappy Roots. My muscles are burning and aching today (will be seeing a rhuematologist soon) but I played this song and just felt revived in spite of the pain! While this song is playing, my chair dancing becomes a night at the house party or under the disco ball at the club surrounded by friends, family. I love music and dancing...they are really inseperable in my opinion...even listening to a good instrumental slow jam, I must at least wave my hand or shake my head to signify I'm being moved by it. Even at family gatherings, no matter how small, we danced. While writing this entry I'm thinking how children and young people don't dance as much. None of my 3 children really dance...not practicing for hours on end the way they can watch tv or play computer games...not dancing enough to work up to a pouring sweat...not calling one another over to work out the moves on the newest dance yet to hit the city so you can be all up in the first to be doing it...naw, they aren't really dancers.
Anyone out there watching Boondocks, the cartoon series for tv? I've always loved the comic strip and was anticipating the tv series and for about a week and a half I've been in discussion with folks about it. I'm loving it! I'm loving it because it makes me so uncomfortable in a way that causes me to think longer and be more open to discussing the issues with others. Aaron McGruder the creator and writer has such a way of being both provocative and humourous in a way that keeps his personal opinions at a distance but encourages the readers/viewers to keep discussing issues to reach their own views. But this too is about music because last Sunday's episode was about the trial of R. Kelly. I guess this is where I'm suppose to interject my personal feelings about it...well, they don't really go that deep, so be warned. I am not known to care for or to follow the sensational Hollywood details of an artist's life. I'd rather wait for the Oprah interview where she attempts to delve into the deeper consciousness of her interviewee (half-way serious, half-way snarky remark there)...but back to Kelly...I've never seen the alledged video...don't know if he peed on someone or not as part of his sexual escapades...I think he is emotionally immature as are most people who reach stardom at an early age, so anything is possible...but I do know that immoral people can do moral deeds and moral people can do immoral deeds...(see the movie Crash as an excellent illustration of this!) I know that the decisions I make for me and my expanse of territory are just that and if events turn where my decisions or yours should conflict to such a degree that legal intervention is needed then my life becomes game for the powers that be and I will suffer the consequences and rise and/or fall by the justice (or injustice) of it all. So be it for Kelly. Musically, I think he has genuis potential but I don't think he has always respected his potential or art. I'm not ready to destroy his music such as the writer Pearl Cleage did with her Miles Davis albums, (as much as I agreed with her for the reason, I gasped when I read that in one of her essays). I guess I would eliminate a lot of music and other art from my life if it depended on the artist living a mistake proof life or sharing my standards of morality. Thats all I'm saying.
Karen,
ReplyDeleteHave you heard a band from your hometown ofLouisville, Kentucky called "My Morning Jacket"?
Mary, I have never heard of them but I went to the website and listened to Wordless Chorus which I liked but wasn't crazy about the other song available. The description of Louisville in their bio was on target. I'm listening to a video interview of them talking about their music now. Have you seen them in concert? I see they are going to be here Nov. 23. Thanks for mentioning them.
ReplyDeleteSometimes the life of the artist does have a negative influence on my feelings about the work, but usually, I can say that although I might not like the man, the art still speaks to "the soul of the ovaries" as you say. Dylan Thomas' poetry does that, but I wouldn't have been able to tolerate the behavior of the man.
ReplyDeleteI'm really tired right now, but as usual, your post give me plenty of food for thought.
GIVES me plenty of food for thought - duh
ReplyDeleteI knwo about Nappy Roots and have one of their albums. Decent stuff.
ReplyDeleteAs for R., I was with the Boondocks on that one. My problem is that as a community, we are not holding our recording artists and athletes--the most visible role models whether they like it or not--accountable for the images and actions they put out there to the world. If it was just music, fine, but the lifestyles and misogyny that many portray are out of whack with the positivity that we more desperately need.
Elle, I think it even goes deeper than holding "role models" accountable...I think it speaks to a lack of discernment of what a role model is or isn't. I don't think wealth, talent, and exposure alone are enough to qualify. Also, for me personally, what makes this complicated area of life is that the understanding of how grace and redemption operate in our lives. There just can't be neat answers that apply in every situation the same way as much as I'd like for there to be because its comfortable and easy for me. Maybe I'm not saying what I want as clearly as I need to. Will continue to think about it though, thats for sure. But the line I've been repeating from Sunday's show is "sometimes my people vex me..." hehehe...I guess this should have been an email to you.
ReplyDeleteshould read "operate in our lives isn't always clear to me."
ReplyDeleteI'm in trouble now. I had promised myself I'd spend only x amt of time looking at blogs. But I "had" to check out the music. I agree about"Vodoo". I like the words to "Dream". Reminds me of the quote from Goethe that Anne shared this AM.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of NappyRoots until now. I really enjoyed the song! And the video was refreshing - didn't notice any scantily clad women.
ReplyDelete