This was my last post on my MySpace blog before I moved across to here. Thought I’d share it as a first post.
I don’t know if this ever happens to you, but…
I seem to spend too much time on focusing on things that are music-related, but are a distraction to the music itself. Whether it’s working on techniques, or programming gear, or reading about gear and other stuff on forums etc. It is all beneficial to an extent, don’t get me wrong, but sometimes I think you need to take a step back and realise what all this is about.
This afternoon I put on one of my favourite CDs of all time, V by Spock’s Beard. I’ve probably not listened to it in 6 months. There’s no exceptional guitar playing (Alan Morse is a unique player and gets some great sounds, but it’s not technically anything particularly special), the production isn’t world-class, but it’s just great music. Great songwriting, great arrangements, great vocal harmonies…
Isn’t this what we’re in danger of missing so often these days? It’s certainly true for me that I get so focussed on one path that I lose sight of the big picture. Gear is important (well, no… sound and playing is important, and the right gear facilitates that), technique is important, but overall, it’s about the music. I feel inspired to return that to my focus.
