Sense and Sensibility

ULTRA has come and gone, and though the tinnitus may still be keeping you company, it may be time to sit down and have a long talk with yourself. If I were you, I would light the fire, pull up a chair, don the slippers, brew the chamomile tea, and spin the record on the turntable with something a bit more soothing. Get safe. Get warm. Get soulful. 

First a question: what’s with the American fixation with grades, rankings, listage, etc.? Even though I myself succumbed as well at the end of last year, such trivial measuring is far beneath me. (though evidently, hypocrisy isn’t) Why can’t both McCartney and Lennon be the best Beatle? I have room in my head for Nancy Reagan, Laura Bush, and Hillary Clinton. Why imagine Magic, Bird, Jordan, and LeBron as competing? Van Gogh isn’t better than Picasso? 

With this in mind, the clip of Esperanza Spalding playing the electric bass after a cackling Jools Holland salivates upon introducing her, transports one back to the 70’s of Minnie Riperton, Billy Cobham, and Stanley Clarke despite his calling hers a sensational, new sound.  Shrimp colored kaftan flowing, old school Angela Davis afro blowing, Ms. Spalding may sound sensational, but reborn seems more accurate than new. This is fusion and fashion redux. Ms. Spalding: Shall I compare you to number 1? Thou art more lovely and more temperate, but who’s counting? 

Ms. Spalding’s videos and photos reveal a fine kind of shapeshifting. The video for Endangered Species has her funking in a sweet, black minidress, scarf and jewels bobbing along with the Weather Report groove. Tuniced and mini-skirted in a live clip from San Sebastian, Ms. Spalding kills I Know You Know, singing breezily and happily, as cool and free as the other side of a Brooklyn, boutique hotel pillow. She emotes; I nod my head and approve. Plus -- I love the natural do for the Levi-clad, European crowd. Legit, unpretentious cool. Later she caresses the upright bass, closes her eyes, and destroys Smile Like That. In still another incarnation, Ms. Spalding covers Stevie Wonder’s Overjoyed -- face made up, lipstick on, shiny designer dress fitted to the nines, necklace sparkling, and heels rising -- a glamorous rock star playing jazz at a formal, White House, East Room gathering. Little Fly, the moody, melodic piece I played while covering for Mark Hayes on WDNA last year adds a string trio to lyrical verses by William Blake. Had it not been for the damn Tire Kingdom ads and insufferable anti-Obamacare propaganda poisoning my YouTube experience, I could have listened and watched all morning.  

I will get my live chance on April 19th at the Arsht Center when Ms. Spalding brings it to Miami at 8:30. This is Live at the Knight breaking serious, soulful ground. The jazz cognoscenti, perhaps having nothing better to do than quibble about Ms. Spalding’s style and intentions, complain about how she will have to sell out to sell more, if she wants to become number 1. Call me wishy-washy, but I don’t want to get into the middle of this mess. That said, I hope she brings the European look to Miami so I don’t feel underdressed.

Talib Kweli: Idle Warship with RES at the Adrienne Arsht Center

There aren’t that many opportunities to use future perfect tense any more, but by the time you read this column, I will have seen Friday, October 19th’s Talib Kweli concert Live at the Knight at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County. 

 

I had hoped that I might have the chance to interview Kweli and RES, but his people and my people -- well you know how it goes. Gino Campodonico from the Arsht Center went out of his way -- deeply out of his way -- to arrange an interview with Kweli and collaborator RES from their new duo Idle Warship. Now I owe everyone an apology because my work and home life got in the way -- I missed the email AND the phone call.

“In Moment of Clarity “ from Jay-Z’s splendid Black Album, J-Hova says, "If skills sold, truth be told/I'd probably be, lyrically, Talib Kweli.” In Kweli’s track "Ghetto Show" from the Beautiful Struggle, Kweli responds by stating "If lyrics sold then truth be told/I'd probably be just as rich and famous as Jay Z." 

So I’m left to describe what I would have asked had I had the esteemed young brother on the line.

Me: Sorry I missed the call.

Kweli: I should hang up now.

Me: Sorry, sorry, sorry. You have been doing your thing for a while now? Is this what you expected? What is happening with lyrics these days? 

Kweli: Well, kids change. They love poems, Sesame Street, Big Bird, and get into poetry slams. On the other hand, texting, Twitter, and Facebook are not the most grammatically accurate platforms. 

Me: How much credit does your mother get for you being a good lyricist? She’s an English professor right? Your father also has the academic/university background right?

Kweli: Are you talking about my momma? Truthfully, I was raised properly. 

Me: You’ve worked with everyone and they with you. Jay Z, Nas, Mos Def, Common, KRS, the Roots, Kanye, Mary J. Blige, the Neptunes. What’s the vibe like with so many successful people? Who is the boss when the talented get together?

Kweli: Bruce Springsteen is the Boss. 

  

Me: In 2004, you recorded The Beautiful Struggle:  Does the struggle remain beautiful? Do the inspirations remain?

Kweli: The struggle remains a struggle for millions. It was beautiful for me so I want to remain optimistic.

  

Me: How does the Yankee hat go over in LA? Have you been converted? Does your family prefer California? 

Kweli: In New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there’s nothing you can’t do. But look at that mountain. Look at that tree. I love LA. 

Me: Talk to me about the MIA. Isn’t the Knight a gorgeous facility?

Kweli: Lebron, Crockett, Tubbs, Anna Kournikova, Dwyane Wade, Gloria Estefan, Pitbull, Ricky Martin, sun, sand, graffiti -- hundred thousand dollar cars, e’rybody got ‘em. The Knight is a blessing. I know we don’t nee another hero, but Adrienne Arsht is a hero.

That’s what I would have asked Talib Kweli had I not been a working man with responsibilities. So by the time you read this, hopefully, I will have enjoyed last Friday’s concert immensely. Future perfect tense lives!

Hopefully, there’s always next time for an interview. Given the Arsht’s fine upcoming schedule, I am going to beg Gino to schedule a moment way in advance with bassist Esperanza Spalding, scheduled to play on April 19, 2013. Then, I will be able to write in present tense.