Rules of Civility #23 - "When you see a crime punished, you may be inwardly pleased, but always shew pity to the suffering offender."
Welcome to Tuesday!!!! You have been sent, or perhaps you dropped in on, a email and blog about popular music. If you are interested in rereading or catching up on a Musical Note that you missed, please go to tuesdaysmusicalnotes.blogspot.
What does a Jazz Rock band look like? An even better question would be, what would a Jazz Rock band look like in 1967? Would they hail from Chicago? Would their sound be more elemental and make the best use of earth, wind And fire? Would they still be on the spinning wheel of touring today? Would they make the musical world so very happy? While not all of the answers to these questions are yes, there would certainly be a lot of blood, sweat, tears that would go into making such a band.
When you think of bands with horns, you immediately think of Chicago and Earth, Wind, and Fire. Both bands are still touring to sell out crowds. Tuesday's Musical Notes has chronicled songs by both of these phenomenal bands (blog and email, September 2012 "Alive Again" by Chicago and to email recipients, January 2012 "September" by Earth, Wind, and Fire). These bands are noted for their horn sections, many of which have been the same for several years. We would be remiss to have a Musical Note that focuses on bands with horn sections, without at least mentioning the bands Ides of March, Lighthouse, and Chase, all from the same time period and featuring similar musical styles of the psychedelic age.
Then there is Blood, Sweat, and Tears. The group derived its name from Johnny Cash's 1963 album Blood, Sweat, and Tears. The original inception of the band was considered very counter-cultural for its time. With its intricate mix of Jazz and harder edged rock-n-roll, Blood, Sweat, and Tears would set a standard for bands with instruments that was different. They were more jazz oriented than Chicago or the Ides of March, but not as R&B as Earth, Wind, And Fire. Blood, Sweat, and Tears has recorded for 6 different record labels and over the course of their musical history, has had close to 150 different members tour and record as part of the band. It seems that there was more of a spinning door with this band than a spinning wheel. Perhaps that is why they haven't had the chart success of other '60s horn bands.
With the configuration of the group who sold the most singles, here is Blood, Sweat, and Tears, from their eponymous 1968 album, with "Spinning Wheel":
Blood, Sweat, and Tears - "Spinning Wheel"
Christian author John MacArthur wrote a book a few years back that detailed the lives of the disciples of Jesus. It was called 12 Ordinary Men. I highly recommend this book and its follow up, 12 Extraordinary Women. These books chronicle the lives of Biblical characters who while proving their humanity, served as the ultimate examples to us as we live our lives in the 21st century. As I read 12 Ordinary Men, I found characteristics with each of the disciples that resonated in my life. But one disciple stood out more than the others...Peter. I confess that in my daily walk in The Way, that I am more like Peter before he became the great leader of the church of Jerusalem. A very familiar example of his emotional impulsiveness is when he got a little in over his head. You can read the full story here:
Matthew 14:22-33 HCSB
Peter wasted no time and certainly did not think his decision through when asking Jesus if he could join him on the water. So many times when we hear this story it is in the context of Peter's not keeping his eyes on Jesus and allowing the distractions around him to lessen his faith. What an incredible lesson for us!!! But there is another lesson here...where were the other disciples? The were cowering in the boat with extreme fear. I'm told the storms that gather on the Sea of Galilee can be quite strong. The disciples would have had great reason to be afraid. Notice however, when Peter spotted Jesus...he got out of the boat...he left the merry-go-round...he departed the spinning wheel... At this moment Peter began a journey of faith in Jesus that would cause him to leave his routine and begin the extraordinary.
It is so easy for Christians to get in the routine of doing church. We attend, tithe, worship, and pray and when Sunday morning is over we might occasionally do it again Sunday night and Wednesday night. It becomes what we do regularly. Sometimes there is little difference between what we do as Christians and what we do at our jobs as employees. But we are called to so much more. Jesus also instructs in Matthew:
Matthew 5:15-17
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)Jesus is telling us here to be different, to be that peculiar person that draws attention to yourself so you can draw attention to HIM. It is easy to get on the carousel of our lives and get into the routine of doing the same thing over again....repeat and rinse so to speak. Albert Einstein is attributed with the saying that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Peter is an example of how to grab that brass ring and get off the spinning wheel of life. It takes great steps of faith and courage to do the miraculous. What miraculous things are waiting to be done through you? What would happen if "routine" church members would quit telling themselves that they didn't have time to lead a Sunday School group. What would happen if we quit believing the lie from the enemy that you weren't talented enough to assume leadership roles in your church? What would happen if church folks started engaging in their church instead of just going to their church. What would happen if church "members" stop going through the motions??.....
"Going Through The Motions" - Matthew West
Talkin' 'bout your troubles and you, you never learn, Ride a painted pony, let the spinnin' wheel turn....
'Til Tuesday,
Serving HIM by serving you,
Randy
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