'Chrysalis' series Sunday & Rockwood Music Hall livestream Wednesday!
Hey Hartlist,
How is your week going? (There are still 'weeks' right?) Ok business first then chat.
TWO livestreams coming up
1) 'Songs from the Chrysalis 11: JOY' on Sunday 5/24 4PM EST; a slightly shorter show this week
tune in HERE or HERE
2) a full length EVENING show WEDNESDAY 8PM 5/27 on the Rockwood Music Hall's livestream HERE or HERE
...So, yeah. Joy.
"What need have I for this/ what need have I for that/ I am dancing at the feet of my lord/ all is bliss all is bliss"
-mahavishnu orchestra
The above is the title of ONE song on a jazz fusion album that my college bandmate used to leave lying around our apartment to show people we were Fancy. It is also my favorite description of Joy that I personally have ever read. Not because of any religious connotation ( "the feet of my lord" for me has been a stage, a rehearsal room, a forest, a restaurant ...) but because of that feeling of I have everything I need, this is awesome, this moment is Enough.
It is a state of being, I am happy to say, that I have felt often in my life. It is not a state of being that has resulted in my writing too many great songs.
What is that about?? It's a cliche universally acknowledged at this point that songwriters are way more frequently inspired by heartbreak than, say, a really good sandwich. And that so many of the songs we LOVE are also dark. AND that so often, an artists' "happier" songs are not among their "better" ones. I mean.. right?
Here's a link to last week's livestream for anyone who missed it; the one in which I take on some Jethro Tull. 'Thick as a Brick' sounds pretty happy, but then again, who knows what he's talking about.
When I feel pain, I often turn to my guitar. When I feel joy... well, by then I'm usually playing the song I wrote about feeling bad, and it feels great. That's how it works, right?
This week on instagram I asked people to tell me about songs they consider both "happy" and "good". I'm excited to go through the list. Feel free to share more! Maybe this week's cover will come from that research. And maybe it will get me to do likewise and then play it for you.
I'll start by making a sandwich.
See you out there,
RH