Illusions
of grandeur
Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win
glorious triumphs, even though checkered with failure, than to take rank with
those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in
the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat. -Theodore Roosevelt
A friend of mine the other day was telling me about how their last practice
session went. Fantastically he exclaimed that they could be doing shows in no
time. “We have what it takes,” he said. “I went to a show last week and all I
could think about is how that will be us soon.” I nodded, having only heard
them play a little, and encouraged the enthusiasm to continue.
As a musician, that is an easy thing to do when you go and see a show. You watch
as the guitarist moves and plays with ease, as the drummer hits that jazzy
high-hat trick, and as the vocalist winks at all the pretty girls in summer
T’s. It looks as if it all comes naturally (as it does with you as well, you
internalize). I wouldn’t have it any other way.
The successes and failures of bands before us give us the anticipation of
something yet to come. It may be great, it may be terrible. But it gives us
reason to continue writing songs (although your reason I’m sure is as complex
as mine).
Whether our thoughts of grandeur are driven by that kid that beat us up on the
playground, or that girl/boy that we thought we loved, we keep moving forward
in the same beat, syncopating our lives to the sound that drive us.
And so I say, nay, I encourage every musician out there to continue doing what
they are doing, for what ever reason that drives them. Whether it be dreams of
fame and fortune, or a stint at the local coffee house. Whether we hit it big,
or record songs in our basement. We will most likely fall along the way, we may
fail miserably, but we continue. Why?
Because it is far better to dare mighty things checkered with failure than to
place us with those that have never tried, or never know either success or
failure. Let us never
live in the grey twilight. That’s no life for a musician.