I Am . . . A Pure Soul - Day 161 - Daily Haiku - and The Six Degrees of Steven Wilson, part 1

I am . . . a pure soul
I am . . . a being of light
I am . . . a teacher

It is interesting to me that, even though I have been told from a young age that I am a teacher, and even though it is now quite clear that this is what my parents and grandparents were preparing me for from the beginning, the fact remains that I pushed against it for decades.

And, to a large extent, continue to do so.

So why do we do this?

Why is it that, when faced with our soul's true calling, that so many of us say, "No, not me, that can't be meant for me, I don't have what it takes," or words and feelings to that effect?

How is that so many of us, while aware that we have talents and gifts that make teaching a reasonable progression, if not the only logical choice, still attempt to sidestep the inevitable, denying the gifts that we could be offering to others, even when we might, in fact, be the best ones to bring them to the table?

If you think I have all the answers, guess again. I am an educated savant, an amateur in guru's clothing, another Cosmic Toddler trying to make my own spiritual way, and to throw off my own doubt of my known, and clearly proven, abilities.

The fact that I've already helped many people is, evidently, not enough proof for my Ego. It wants more.

What does it want? I have no idea. Blood, perhaps, or possibly merely some indefinable something more. Ego is, after all, pretty much by definition, never satisfied.

We are our own worst critics.

What I do know is that I am fired up by the ONE project, by the idea of artists from all over the world banding together once again, in order to create an album-length piece of music to heal ourselves and this amazing planet we live on.

I also know that, having been exposed to music first by my parents, both of whom were trained musicians, having been listening to, singing and playing music for decades, and having written dozens of songs just since I started writing music again in 2007, following Marek's introducing me to the music of Steven Wilson and those in his direct sphere of influence, I already have a body of work that can serve as a jumping-off point.

One of the most obvious candidates is my song "Prayer for the Gulf of Mexico," written and recorded not long after the Deep Horizon debacle, which if nothing else, gives a good indication as to the level of my commitment to the marine environment.

Please note that this is an a capella recording of me singing into my laptop, and thus while clear, it is not the most pristine sound quality, complete with my lovely Bear boy shaking his collar in the background at one point, and my voice being slightly muffled at another.

I will do my best to upgrade the sound file in the near future.

I'm also including the lyrics, for those who are interested, as I know it's sometimes difficult to make out all of the words, especially during the muffled section, and particularly for those for whom English is a second language.

Please note that the lyrics are not a 100% match to the sound file, as my songs, like those of many songwriters, continue to evolve, and differ slightly from one performance to the next.

Lyrics:

Prayer for the Gulf of Mexico

Tall sails in a clear blue sky
on a turquoise sea in the sunrise
Tall sails in a clear blue sky
on a turquoise sea in the sunrise

I've sailed upon your waters
I've walked along your shore
Your frigate birds and dolphins
always leave me wanting more

As baby turtles make their way
to the gauntlet of the sea
my heart expands into your depths
and leaves me feeling free
Thinking of tall sails in a deep blue sky
on an emerald sea in the sunshine
Tall sails in a deep blue sky
on an emerald sea in the sunshine

I've fished along your coastline
I've dived upon your reefs
The life I've witnessed in you
goes almost beyond belief
The sunken barge and the Sherman tanks
with the grouper standing guard
seem every bit as fragile
as the dreams I seek toward

Dreaming of tall sails in a sapphire sky
on a confused sea in the twilight
Tall sails in a sapphire sky
on a confused sea in the twilight

The Dead Zone in the northern Gulf
caused by runoff and by greed
seem tragic gifts of a humankind
too complacent, too in need
The seas are not our dumping ground
we must learn from our mistakes
and clean up our collective acts
then do whatever it takes

Still I see tall sails in a darkening sky
on a choppy sea in the sunset
Tall sails in a darkening sky
on a choppy sea in the sunset

Big Oil and Big Chemical
make the rules and hide their crimes
with Washington complicit to
find new ways to steal our dimes
BP can't be your epitaph
long ago we should have learned
Prince William Sound still tainted ground
her sea ducks have not returned

Now I see tall sails in a stormy sky
on the breaking waves in the downpour
Tall sails in a stormy sky
on the breaking waves in the downpour

At risk is the Gulf food web
it's already compromised
crab larvae contains dispersants
deaths can only be surmised
I can't believe we'll lose you
I cannot accept you gone
look far past Deep Horizon
now's the calm before the storm

I dread to see tall sails in a hurricane
with a mushroom cloud at horizon
Tall sails in a hurricane
with a mushroom cloud at horizon

I'm as American as I can be
I was born on native soil
I value whales over Washington
and wildlife over oil
come join me in a better dream
let our minds work now as one
I can see vibrant oceans teem with life
as all humans live as one

And I see tall sails in a clearing sky
where the dolphins play all around us
tall sails in a starlit sky
on a sparkling sea here forever

11 August 2010

Okay, I just spent the past half hour or so recording my first podcast to go with this post . . . only to discover that I completely forgot to switch the input to mic, and still had Audacity set to stereo mix.

For those unfamiliar with recording programs, in plain English, I recorded a nice, relaxing interlude of silence. Nothing like ending a great recording session with the realization that you missed it all, every bit of it, and have to do it all over again from scratch.

Nah, I'm not tired. ;-)

On the other hand, that realization made me laugh out loud, hard.

So yeah, If anyone's looking for perfection, I ain't it. ;-)

On the other hand, thanks to my parents, my friends and my own interests, I have amassed a great deal of knowledge over the years, and a big part of why I'm on Steemit is that it's time for me to start passing that knowledge on.

And one area where I do have a fair amount of knowledge is regarding music, as both of my parents were professionally trained pianists, and I've been singing, playing and writing music since I was a kid. Marek's dad was also a musician, and he has played for many years as well. And we have a large number of musician friends and acquaintances.

So for all the beginning and prospective musicians and artists out there, I can tell you one thing without hesitation, regardless of your genre or preferences:

I strongly recommend that you become familiar with British musician, songwriter and producer Steven Wilson, and the wealth of musical knowledge and talent within his direct sphere of influence, which is immense, and can provide you with a first class musical education unto itself.

And that is in no way an exaggeration.

In particular, pay attention to the music that Wilson himself listens to and recommends, as well as to those artists with whom he has worked and collaborated, and I guarantee that you will find a great deal of music to like, and likely a great deal of inspiration for your own music in the process.

I know I did. Marek said I was obsessed. Indeed, and in many ways, I still am.

The above photo, which is a decent photo of Steven Wilson and a fairly terrible photo of me, wearing my T-shirt from Porcupine Tree's "Fear of a Blank Planet" concert tour a few years earlier, was taken at a signing event at the New York film premiere of his road film "Insurgentes," directed by his long-time collaborator, photographer and videographer Lasse Hoile. Marek took the photo using my Canon camera.

The film follows Wilson all over the world, as he toured with Porcupine Tree; as he performed a one-off concert as Bass Communion, his solo electronic music project; and as he recorded his first solo album, also entitled "Insurgentes," which took him, among other places, on his first visit to Mexico. A highlight of the film is his performance of the title song, accompanying himself on the piano, in an absolutely magnificent Mexican cathedral.

The sound quality of the film, like all of Wilson's recordings, is second to none.

The night itself was quite strange for me; for reasons that will soon become obvious.

I had looked forward to meeting Wilson for years by this time, and we had bought the tickets for this premiere, and the Porcupine Tree concert at Radio City Music Hall three days following it, several months earlier.

And I had preordered two copies of the "Insurgentes" film premiere; one for myself, and one as a birthday present for my sister Carol, which were due to arrive a few days after my return to Florida.

Unfortunately, she never received her birthday present from me. The film premiere was held on 21 September 2010, on the day which would have been Carol's 55th birthday, just over a month after I wrote and recorded "Prayer for the Gulf of Mexico."

Carol had died nine days previously.

I will continue this post tomorrow.

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