“Yesterday Was A Good Day”

Yesterday was, in fact, a good day ( to paraphrase Ice Cube’s classic track). When I woke up yesterday (with a supposed day off for myself….) the prevailing thought was that I had so many life details to attend to. Was not motivated! My to-do list included paying bills, contacting attorneys, scheduling appointments, updating a myriad of passwords, completing personal documents and of course, cooking! But I really wanted to hold fast to the promise I made for this year: play my bass EVERY day. If only for half an hour I am gonna play every day for as long as I am able. It didn’t look to promising as the time just seemed so limited.

So, as I rolled out of bed, I decided to do something that I rarely do so early: check my email. I grabbed my phone and, after going through emails, I did something else that I rarely do that early: check notifications. Glad I did! Lo and behold, Nathan “the Great” East (bass player extraordinare) posted video of himself heading to his first recording session of the year. YES! I could stay woke for that.

After running through the aforementioned tasks I prepared for dinner hoping to find that all-too-allusive block of time for bass practice. As my son says grace a phone alert sounds off. Rule at my house: no phones at the dinner table. I realize it’s my phone. Reluctantly I retrieve it only because I’m anticipating returned messages. Facebook notification……..ok. Oh, ok! My friend Carl Anderson (multi-faceted working musician and fellow songwriter) is hosting a podcast with a new artist. That’s what I’m talking about. Local artists supporting each other! We need more of this.

Alright. 9pm. Missions accomplished. Everything done. After what seemed like five minutes I look at the clock and it’s 10pm! ALREADY? S$%T! So one more thing…. I take a box downstairs for my wife and finally get to “walk past” my guitar. How convenient……I pick it up and play unplugged for a few minutes. Discouraged because I didn’t have a larger block of time (4-6 hours is ideal for me) I head to bed after an hour or so. About 11:30pm I lie on the bed with phone in hand to check any recent emails. Another alert. Guess what? I have the priviledge of watching “Modern Master” Bassist Justin “Inspiration” Raines’ IG live post of him tracking in his home studio! Great time to be a musician.

Let me share a story: along with Tony Russell, Darell Freeman, Terrance Palmer and Maurice Fitzgerald, Justin Raines was one of the young players who originally inspired me to start playing bass again after I quit playing in the early 2000’s. Every chance I get to hear and see him play is a blessing and an inspiration. Fast forward to 2020. I had not even owned a bass for about ten years, let alone play one. Social media allows access to these great musicians and gives us “ordinary guys” a glimpse into their world. Sometimes life insulates us from the small blessings we are afforded. Sometimes we forget to acknowledge them.

Thank you Nathan East. Thank you Carl Anderson. Thank you Justin Raines.

For the information and inspiration, I am truly grateful.

Yes, yesterday was a good day.