YouTube - Originals: Gil Scott-Heron 3/6
Gil Scott-Heron, poet and musician, is the "Godfather of the Spoken Word." Hailed as the "Black" Bob Dylan, Gil came of age during the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s. Poignant, relevant, and authentic, Gil's work has been marginalized from the mainstream, yet he has been a tremendous influence on the Hip Hop generation and other African American poets. Attached is part of a documentary examining the highs and lows of his life and career. One of his most famous works, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised."
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
YouTube - Alice Coltrane in Bombay
YouTube - Alice Coltrane in Bombay
Alice Coltrane charted her own path musically and spiritually. Through devotion and selfless giving, she embodied the path of a true devotee. I am grateful to have encountered her spirit and teachings through the power of the Divine Sound. The indication of the presence of the Divine is the joy embodied in the person that radiates it. That joy was found in the person of Alice Coltrane. Om Shanti
Alice Coltrane charted her own path musically and spiritually. Through devotion and selfless giving, she embodied the path of a true devotee. I am grateful to have encountered her spirit and teachings through the power of the Divine Sound. The indication of the presence of the Divine is the joy embodied in the person that radiates it. That joy was found in the person of Alice Coltrane. Om Shanti
Sunday, January 24, 2010
YouTube - Miles davis et John Coltrane - So what
YouTube - Miles davis et John Coltrane - So what
I read the Autobiography of Miles Davis when I was seventeen years old. It changed my life. I had never read anything so frank if not crude, so insightful if not revelatory. I had never encountered someone, either in real time or imagined time vis a vis literature that was brutally honest to a fault. He was unflinching in his vision, as a person and musician. He was someone I was both fascinated with, as well as intimidated by given my own inexperience with life.
Twenty years later, I am still scared of Miles. I am afraid that I will be too over reliant on his perspective, too reluctant to share my own understanding of life. I struggle to embrace the courage that I so easily identify with in Miles. Yet, if I have learned anything from Miles, my trepidation would be the opposite of what he sought in himself and elicited in others. He encouraged people to be as real, to be themselves, as he was even if it was not pleasant or nice.
The willingness to be himself, is perhaps, one of his greater legacies. I suppose the greatest lesson I learned from Miles was the value in being myself. Perhaps, it's taken me twenty years to trust what I have to say.
I read the Autobiography of Miles Davis when I was seventeen years old. It changed my life. I had never read anything so frank if not crude, so insightful if not revelatory. I had never encountered someone, either in real time or imagined time vis a vis literature that was brutally honest to a fault. He was unflinching in his vision, as a person and musician. He was someone I was both fascinated with, as well as intimidated by given my own inexperience with life.
Twenty years later, I am still scared of Miles. I am afraid that I will be too over reliant on his perspective, too reluctant to share my own understanding of life. I struggle to embrace the courage that I so easily identify with in Miles. Yet, if I have learned anything from Miles, my trepidation would be the opposite of what he sought in himself and elicited in others. He encouraged people to be as real, to be themselves, as he was even if it was not pleasant or nice.
The willingness to be himself, is perhaps, one of his greater legacies. I suppose the greatest lesson I learned from Miles was the value in being myself. Perhaps, it's taken me twenty years to trust what I have to say.
YouTube - John Coltrane Quartet - On Green Dolphin Street - 1960
YouTube - John Coltrane Quartet - On Green Dolphin Street - 1960
I have been infatuated with the music of John Coltrane for close to fifteen years. I first encountered his music in the context of sacred worship of praise and devotion. For a brief moment, I was a member of the St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church in San Francisco, CA. I spent many of Sundays intoxicated by the musical vision of Coltrane.
While I cannot say that I have always understood the spirituality so evident in his masterpiece, "A Love Supreme," or the music that followed, I most recently have come to understand it as the painstaking faithfulness of a man devoted to the ecstasy of God. Every single note of his music matched with every inpouring and outpouring of breath was dedicated to the realization of God.
He courageously proclaimed that all paths lead to God, the Ultimate Source. He chose, or rather was claimed, by the path of vibration, the power of sound. Into that sound I was baptised many years ago. I am grateful that I have been confirmed, as well as continuing to ascend the musical landscapes of a spiritual heights that by myself I could not reach where it not for the direction of St. John Will-I-Am Coltrane. I humbly offer a glimpse of the 'Trane.
I have been infatuated with the music of John Coltrane for close to fifteen years. I first encountered his music in the context of sacred worship of praise and devotion. For a brief moment, I was a member of the St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church in San Francisco, CA. I spent many of Sundays intoxicated by the musical vision of Coltrane.
While I cannot say that I have always understood the spirituality so evident in his masterpiece, "A Love Supreme," or the music that followed, I most recently have come to understand it as the painstaking faithfulness of a man devoted to the ecstasy of God. Every single note of his music matched with every inpouring and outpouring of breath was dedicated to the realization of God.
He courageously proclaimed that all paths lead to God, the Ultimate Source. He chose, or rather was claimed, by the path of vibration, the power of sound. Into that sound I was baptised many years ago. I am grateful that I have been confirmed, as well as continuing to ascend the musical landscapes of a spiritual heights that by myself I could not reach where it not for the direction of St. John Will-I-Am Coltrane. I humbly offer a glimpse of the 'Trane.
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