Clarence Clemons had a stroke. The Big Man. Saxophonist for Bruce Springsteen's E-Street band. Don't know how he's doing yet. Phoebe Snow died. At the age of 61. Exquisite voice. Had a monster hit way back called Poetry Man. Pinetop Perkins died recently at the age of 97. One of the original blues dudes. Played with Muddy Waters.
The world loses something special when people like this die, or when they suffer. It loses more. These are the people who make life tasty. They wake you up, perk you up and make you feel alive. Creative people.
There are other great ones, others who contribute to the world through sports, politics, philosophy, medicine. But the creative minds are the frosting on the cake.
When I come home all pissed off because I have to work for a living, I can dial up Springsteen on my IPod machine and I am singing, screaming right along with the E-Street band. I am one of them. And it makes me feel better. It would not be the same without the Big Man. LOVE his sax. He wails and vibrates understanding and emotion directly into your soul.
Phoebe could make me cry. Intense emotion ranging up through notes no human should be able to reach.
Pinetop. The blues, man. I live for the blues. Hard to believe some of these originals are still around. What the hell made a man like Pinetop believe he could make a living singing the blues in the very early 20th century? The man had balls.
You and me, we live a good life. We contribute in our own way. It's A Wonderful Life delivers an accurate message. I would never say the life of an average human means nothing. We live, we love, we touch people, we do the best we can. There are ripples spreading out from every one of us. People like Charlie Manson and Rush Limbaugh - these are people who waste space on this planet. We don't need them.
You and me, we are born, we get a job, have a couple of barbecues and a couple of kids, a couple of laughs and then we move on.
Creative folk CONTRIBUTE. They leave tasty stuff behind that will soothe, inspire and peaceify your soul forever. Or until republicans outlaw creativity.
I ponder this subject because Bob Dylan just turned 70. Blows my mind. Keith Richards, Mick, Sir Paul McCartney, Ringo, Gregg Allman, Muhammed Ali, Joe Namath, Dustin Hoffman, Al Pacino. I got a million of them. Not long before they leave this planet. I don't know how I will handle that. These are the people who had a direct influence on who I am. The way I think, the things I want, the way I dress, the songs I sing. These people gave these things to me and they don't even know me.
That's what I am talking about. Lady Gaga does not do a thing for me but I dug and still dig Elton John, so I really have no right to criticize, yes? Point is they are out there. Poets and writers and musicians and playwrights and actors, some athletes. Whoever it is that turns you on you have to dig them deep. They are a gift and they improve your life. Make it a little easier to negotiate. That is an amazing gift and one that not many can provide.
They all took huge chances. The odds are a trillion to one that you will make it as an entertainer, athlete or any type of creative person. Most of them had no safety net. No backup plan to fall back on, as our parents are always advising us to do. They believed in themselves and succeeded, they open up their souls and allow us to draw life from them. And don't give me this shit about how much money they make. First of all they deserve it. Secondly, listen to any true artist and you will understand that it is not about the money. They HAVE to do what they do because it is who they are. It's passion, raw, pure and beautiful.
I hurt when these people hurt. I die a little when one of them dies. I don't know any other way to put it. I'll slip into old man mode and tell you that I don't see people coming up to replace the people I love. Maybe an unfair comparison. My generation was one of kind. The world will never again see an uprising like that of the sixties. An entire generation rising up and fighting back and changing EVERYTHING. Those times resulted in fiercely creative people who had deep convictions and raging passions. It is probably unfair to expect that from any other generation.
I worry because as these people fade away we have idiot republicans in this country trying to regress back to the sixties. Encouraging stupidity, racism, violence and apathy. But I digress.
I hope Clarence bounces back to full, robust health. I hope he once again, very soon, wails on that magic sax.
We need the Big Man. We all need the Big Man.
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