I Almost Lost My Mind

Musicians have always understood Brother Aristotle’s comment that the whole is greater than the sum of its part. After all, that’s what musicians always try to do when they sit down in a circle to play: to make something bigger than all of them put together. And the secret to the magic in music is a simple one: Just listen to each other. Here’s an example from a recent Flood rehearsal. Listen to how right from the start, Paul Callicoat’s bass is putting down a heartbeat-like rhythm that beautifully reflects the mood of the lyrics. Then midway through, listen to how Veezy Coffman’s sax solo builds on the simple, solemn mood that Sam St. Clair outlines with his harmonica two choruses earlier. Oh, and then toward the end of the tune, hear how for his mandolin solo, Paul Martin beautifully continues the lines that Doug Chaffin has been laying down in the fills he’s playing on his guitar between the lines of the vocals. Yes, listen closely and you’ll hear there’s much more to this story than just the lyrics Charlie and Michelle are singing.