Patience is a Virtue

It had been a year minus three days since we last played out, so we're still coming off of the high from Sunday of playing at the Open Mic that Jane Lovett (Redhead Band) so fabulously put together - Thank you again!!. We played Talk to God, Sugar in my Coffee and So. It was a fabulous sunny Sunday afternoon with much great musical talent and happy music lovers. It felt great to be out playing Live again and to be so well received!

There's a difference in how my brain processes a song that I wrote compared to one I'm singing from another artist. When I'm learning someone else's song, I have to teach myself how to sing it and every time I have to remember it. (One of my greatest fears is forgetting the lyrics during a performance, just blanking out - it's happened - I & I survived.) When it is my own song, there is often no thinking at all, it is just feeling and knowing - it comes right through me effortlessly, easy like Sunday morning.

Working on the backups for Debbie Grey tonight highlighted that for me. For Bob, it was really clear how it should sound and he was very patient about showing me over and over what notes I should sing until my brain could grasp it. It took me several tries to get my voice to 'go low' where it was supposed to go instead of following the harmony of the verse and 'going high'. Eventually I got it to where it needed to be. I was able to redirect my brain off of autopilot to create the R&B style response in a new tone, that adds dimension to the vocal line and sounds like what Bob was hearing. It's a process and one that I enjoy because it challenges me and forces me to do something that feels difficult at first but ultimately results in exploring and discovering new levels and limits.

Today I'm thankful for other musicians who are passionate about creating original music, who are patient & have fun with the process!