When a beach boy dies, he’s a genius.
Leon Russell described Brian Wilson as a “genius.” Brian would go through a whole choir and sing everyone’s parts to them one right after another. He kept innovating and to this day, folks have a very difficult time figuring out stuff he did with vocals, and arrangements. There’s a lot one can learn from Brian Wilson. He passed away recently, but so did Sly Stone.
Sly Stone was a genius.
Sly invented arrangements, played lots of instruments. He had a terrific mind for music. Perhaps he was a somewhat disturbed genius, but if everyone gives Brian Wilson a pass on the disturbed part, we should extend it to Sly as well. I find myself bothered again this week by our white male interpretation of the word “genius.” I want to point out some geniuses that are not white male. They are still alive too. We have time to correct this.
Charu Suri is a genius if anyone is.
I have listened to Charu for years and played a show with her in New York. We are friends and she’s played a song on an album of ours. Her piano gave force of nature vibes. I got chills so bad I messed up on the second verse. All I could think about was her piano. She strikes it, and that is the word I mean. It snaps. It hit me like a gale force wind. Her compositions don’t remind me of anyone, rather a new music entirely. It is international, but it is also jazz. Not only are her skills exceptional, but she manages to muster the top dogs to play on her stuff. It sounds like fun. It’s also genius level music. If anyone in the history of music is a genius, Charu is right there with them. But she’s not the only one.
Esperanza Spalding, yep, genius.
Like bass? Like new jazz sounds that have old sound vibes? Like amazing skills and creative energy that won’t quit? How do you feel about learning? Are you into education? I would listen to Esperanza Spalding in that case. She’s like going to the school I always dreamed about. Today’s topic, how to kick ass at music brought to you by Esperanza Spalding.
First Aid Kit
What you have here is two feminist sisters who sing very pretty music. They have harmony by the pound and their lyrics fill me with urges to kick bigot ass. The genius here is I’m a guy. I am for the women though. Guys are simply not doing this kind of gutsy stuff in the music world that I have discovered yet. It’s not just genius with this band. It’s guts. They put anyone with a penis to shame in that department as far as music goes.
What are we doing here?
When we call someone “genius,” are we talking about a dude, maybe a white one? It’s been my experience when that word comes out, it says more about the person talking than the musician they are referring to. I do not approve and I won’t do that. We either acknowledge these other geniuses out there, or we ditch the word. It isn’t a word meant for white dudes. It’s a word meant for the folks who can do things we never could. Folks who are a joy to watch and listen to and admire their skills. Folks who teach revolutionary thought and advance society. Those aren’t just white guys. And I’m a white guy. If I can do it, you can too.
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My name is Kelly Kintner. I type here these days. I find I need to type, but I don’t need social media. This is kinda’ like a store along the information superhighway you can stop by when you like. I no longer drive. haha. Sadie is my dog. If she likes it, I release it. Her fault. Then I forget about it while making new stuff. My life pretty much.. I like pointing out ignorance as well. I mean, someone has to.