Inspiration

It begins with a note, a phrase -
A cloud of wishful nothing

Lines from a song I wrote years ago that will not be appearing in this collection. They roughly describe the spark of inspiration that eventually leads to composing a song. And actually, if you substitute for the words “note” and “phrase” you could apply these lines to just about any other creative act - writing a novel, building a house, conceiving a child, whatever. The idea is that something great begins with a single step. The finished product is a result of taking many, many subsequent steps. But first comes the idea, the drive, the inspiration.

The term “inspiration” dates to the 14th century and derives in part from spirare - “to breathe.” In its current usage the word may mean, among other things, “stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity.” It may also refer to “the act of drawing in, especially the inhalation of air into the lungs.”

The first is what we think of when we talk about art. Rodin was inspired to sculpt The Thinker, Hemingway to write The Sun Also Rises, Mingus to compose Goodbye Porkpie Hat, and so on. This type of inspiration seems, in many ways, foreign to “regular folks” like us (partly because we focus on the finished product rather than the steps that led to it, but that’s a story for another day).

But the second is something everyone understands. Like Rodin, Hemingway, and Mingus once did, we all inhale air into our lungs. Sounds obvious, but the point is, these great masters of art were living, breathing human beings like the rest of us. And they found their artistic inspiration by living and breathing. We engage in these same behaviors, so why can’t we find artistic inspiration in a similar manner?

I think we can.

Inspiration comes from living. It is literally everywhere, unavoidable. If you pay attention, you are pretty well guaranteed to find it. And once you do and the drive kicks in, take that “cloud of wishful nothing” and run with it. Actually, walk deliberately and with determination, one step at a time.

But that also is a story for another day.

On this day…

• 2006: Tab: Guitar Solo for Del Shannon’s “Runaway” — Several years ago my band Chin Waggers started playing this classic by Del Shannon. I couldn’t find any tab for [...]
• 2005: Equipment — Items that will be used:

  Tascam PocketStudio 5 digital 4-track recorder
  Gibson Les Paul Studio electric guitar
  Shure SM-58 vocal mic

  Items that may [...]