Paul McCartney Explains Blackbird
his understanding of the roles and functions of music in Black American culture, the legacy of black aspirations for freedom in the United States, and his intent to follow the “creative urge.”
Leonard Brown • John Coltrane and Black America's Quest for Freedom: Spirituality and the Music
he not only demonstrated the greatest mastery of jazz phrasing of any musician of his generation but literally invented countless syncopated phrases still used by improvisers all over the world.
Ted Gioia • How to Listen to Jazz
In his wonderful book, Anything You Want, Derek Sivers shares the following story of learning to sing from a great coach named Warren Senders: For each lesson, I’d bring in one song I was trying to improve. First, I’d sing it for him as written. Then he’d say, “OK—now do it up an octave.” “Uh... up an octave? But I can’t sing that high!” “I don’t c
... See moreDevin Hunt • The Workshop Survival Guide: How to design and teach educational workshops that work every time
Sonny said, “If music is in your heart, you can’t do anything wrong.”
John F. Szwed • Space Is the Place: The Lives and Times of Sun Ra
Every bird has a different song, but every song is an expression of the same life force.