FINDING THE PATH
Yogi Berra played catcher and coach for the New York Yankees. Strangely, Yogi was both a Yankee and a dear man. Yogi Berra was just average in so many ways. He did show us that an average guy can also be a winner. Yogi was an inspiration for all of us who habitually misspeak. My favorite of many quotes attributed to him is:
When you come to a fork in the road, take it.
I have lived a life based on this wise dictum of Yogi’s. There are many times that it seemed important to make a plan for my life for the security of my family. A plan that had a solid goal and a straight path to that goal. Some people are really good at staying on course. They have the ability to buckle up and lock on a well constructed set of blinders. No chance to see anything either side of the straight road that they have picked. My blinders have always fallen off when my head has jerked around to see what I was missing. Often I have discovered another goal to head towards. I have always carried with me on my journeys an envy of those who could stay on course.
THE FORKS IN THE ROAD
From your comfortable seat at the Dirty Dog you can look out over your delicious meal and watch a battle going on about which road to take. At some time one of the musicians will see a new path to take that only he can see. Jazz musicians by definition are adventurers. The great musicians take a chance and strike out into the unknown. Other great musicians join the ride and end up on the new route. If over the edge of your wine glass you notice what is happening, you get to share the adventure. From my vantage point I can witness the alertness of so many patrons when this happens. I will see many faces light up at the same time. We are blessed to live in a community that recognizes that changing direction can lead to something better.
The decision in life to live life on the go isn’t always dramatic. It can be a subtle change in one note or timing. It is just changing your routine. It can be a simple pause. Sometimes we can change by taking the straight road and just speeding up.
“Some people never play a song that they haven’t immaculately prepared, and when you play like that and think like that, then nothing magical can happen on stage. You have to learn to leave some room to let things happen. But that requires risk. And if you’re risk averse, you shouldn’t be doing this. You should be an accountant.’ Branford Marsalis
THIS WEEK AT THE DIRTY DOG
This week on Wednesday and Thursday we will be accompanying Ian Finkelstein and his young genius pals on their musical journeys . They will be followed on Friday and Saturday by Cyrille Aimée who will show us a completely different way to look at familiar songs. Beware of Cyrille drawing you into her web. She has a journey planned for you.
John Osler
For upcoming artists go to : http://www.dirtydogjazz.com\
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