Most of my blogging today will not be positive or uplifting. Unfortunately, it will be about ugly events and ugly minds, filled with racism and hatred.
But before I post any of that, I would like to pay my respects to Joe Cocker, the amazing, unique singer who, yesterday died of lung cancer at the age of 70.
There is a famous anecdote about a seemingly nondescript event which took place on July 18th, 1953. An 18 year old boy walked into Sun Records\’ recording studies in Memphis, Tennessee to record two songs (at a cost of $3.25). Before starting, the woman in charge, Marion Keisler, asked him who he sang like. His answer? “I don\’t sing like nobody”.
That 18 year old boy was Elvis Presley. And while his grammar may have been lacking, his self-description was spot-on. Young Mr. Presley wasn\’t bragging, he was just trying to be honest.
I suspect that anyone who heard Joe Cocker might have pictured him saying the same thing about himself. You listened to two or three phrases and knew he was different. Completely different.
Cocker did not sing songs, he told stories. His style, if the word even fits, was not some commercially prepared formula, it was straight from the gut.
For someone like me, who came from a musical family (my mother was an amazing musician who played with orchestras and small groups for most of her life – right into her late 80\’s), my tastes never ran to rock \’n roll – I was (and still am) a jazz/show music and classical kind of guy. But Joe Cocker was a major exception. Too bad drugs and who knows what else often derailed his career.
Let me leave you with one of my favorite Cocker songs – a silly, simple one that I doubt is on many people\’s favorite lists – called “That\’s Your Business”. I like the words (the ones that are intelligible), love the seeming spontaneity, and…well, listen to it yourself and maybe you\’ll agree.
May Joe Cocker rest in peace….or rock for eternity.
