Are You Listening Enough?

Looking over the list of the top 100 CD’s in various categories and lamenting that neither All Wood and Doors nor Backstage at the Resurrection were even mentioned as an also ran, I realized that I knew less than twenty percent of the people on the lists, outside of the long famous.

It then occurred to me that I was remiss in my listening.   You learn and you grow by exposing yourself to as much music as you can.   And I was listening to nothing new.

This is an easy place in which to fall and difficult place to escape, as the music is comforting, soothing, no surprises and reminds us all of some wonderful moment in our lives.

There is another hurdle for the seasoned musician and that is one of the knowledge of the mastery of the instrument and the craft.   

If you’ve never heard really great playing or writing, then it is easier to become excited about some new band, but once you have listened to the greats and tried to emulate them and to grow, hearing a new band that’s been writing and playing for a year or three is not so exciting for that person.

As the producer of hundreds, if not thousands of sessions, I cannot help but begin to think about what is wrong with what I’m hearing and what should be done to make something better (by my lights, that is).

I am truly amazed at the lack of mastery of the guitar, as I hear over and over again, basic guitar playing from “artists”.   Singing that demonstrates no work on the part of the singer to learn their instrument and make the most of their gifts.

Make no mistake, an artist’s work is never done.   An artist is never as accomplished as they want to be; never at the place where they can rest.  

It is our duty and responsibility to continue to learn, practice and grow in every direction of our artistry; performance, composition, and mastery of these crafts.

We live in an age of disposable everythings and that includes music.    Not much from ten years ago is being played right now (though you can still hear the Beatles recordings and compositions on a daily basis no matter where you are).

We throw someone up the pop charts and two years later no one seems to care.   Media is looking to devour, over expose and dispose of the “next big thing” on an incessant basis.   You can’t let them decide your worth or validity.

But you can’t ignore them either.   Try to see and hear as much music as you can.   And try to listen without judgement, no matter how difficult that is for us, we must do it if we are to learn and to grow.

Comments

[Tom]

First, I would put All Wood and Doors and Backstage... (which I actually enjoyed more) up in my top 100 albums of the year. But I am guilty as charged in this post.
In the last two months I have found a column on the Morton Report which runs each Friday. Al Kooper puts out a list of 10 songs some new and some old with his comments. I have found this helps me expand my listening. It reminds me of old favorites and introduces me to some new favorites. It helps to remind of how much great music there is out there.