Music is my religion
-Jimi Hendrix
The days have been cold and windy as of late. I have been partial to summer, as opposed to winter, for as long as I can remember. It's no wonder that I do not look forward to too many activities outside of the comforts of my home during the winter months. However; when I learned of a certain concert coming to town from my wife I must admit that I was very much interested. Normally I shy away from events which accommodate large amounts of people, but to hear that Bobby Womack, The Isley Brothers and Frankie Beverly & Maze were coming to town caused me to set aside my personal idiosyncrasies. My wife does not share my proclivity to R & B music but my sister, Cynthia, was more than willing to attend the event with me. Preparations were quickly made. The venue was excellent. There was seating; as opposed to standing room only, and the booths inside the concert hallways provided foods such as Philly cheese steaks, burgers, chicken tenders and fries, popcorn and Nachos. The beverages were also a variety ranging from bottled water to beer and mixed drinks.
Before the program began there was the show of concert participants such as men who wore floor length fur coats with matching hats, women with glistening, skin-tight outfits, and couples who adorned themselves in matching outfits. Among the sea of 8,000 black and white faces was one common thread; joy and happiness. Everyone appeared to anxiously await the melodic machinations that were soon to occur that evening.
I will omit much so as to shorten this blog, but I will say that the plethora of emotions which flooded my soul from the singing of each of the acts were overwhelming. I saw my own father strut across the stage as Bobby Womack belted out such tunes as "Stop On By", "If You Think You're Lonely Now" and Harry Hippie". The Isley brothers presented the audience with every top ten hit from "Shout", "Who's That lady", "Atlantis", "Between The Sheets" and much, much more. To add to their show were a bevy of beautiful female dancers who made you feel worthy of such a great show. And finally, Frankie Beverly & Maze took their time and serenaded us with their timeless classics.
My sister and I did not need the aid of any alcoholic drink to cause us to enjoy the program. We needed to merely listen to the music and glance out across the arena and see the multitudes of people dancing in their seats and in the aisles to feel the enjoyment many were feeling along with us. My sister is a huge Maze fan and could not help but call me out to Cha-cha with her during on of their tunes. There was an aged couple who were sitting next to me that could not resist the lure of the smooth sounds of Maze and suddenly found themselves swing dancing in the aisle. And of course, someone initiated an Electric Slide dance which had me and my sister eagerly joining in with a host of other attendees. Between acts, the MC said "Somebody make some noise" and I was tickled with delight as my sister hollered out "noise". It was a time when I wished that all of my dearest friends and family could be there with me.
Both Bobby Womack, Frankie Beverly and Ron Isley spoke of friends who were no longer with us; Whitney Houston, Marvin Gay, Luther Vandross, and more; while simultaneously I remembered those in my own life such as my parents, early years with my siblings, childhood friends, military buddies and many others who were no longer here to enjoy and hear such historic music. I decided right then and there that I would enjoy this music for them; that I would be their eyes and ears, and that I would help the legacy continue on.
Life is indeed short. We must all strive to make every second count for something. I am thankful for being allowed to experience such history.
I love you all,
Dennis
No comments:
Post a Comment