Tag Archives: year: 1995

Stevie Wonder – Natural Wonder – Osaka, Japan (1995)

Perhaps one of my greatest achievements was being able to see a Stevie Wonder concert close to my birthday. It was 2007, I was in Pittsburgh, and at the top of my list of things to do before I leave this realm of existence was to my favourite singer live. I tell you, it was an experience I will never ever forget. The music was incredible, his musicianship never wavering despite his many seasons as a performer and musician. His interactions with the audience were at some points hilarious, but more often than not personal and incredibly moving. It was probably the most amazing live experience I’ve had in my short life.

So I can only imagine how the people of Osaka, Japan felt when they were in the presence of his greatness. The concert started bright, song “Dancing to the Rhythm” a beautifully upbeat piece about falling in step with the rhythm of love and adoration one experiences when falling in love for the first time. The concert continued to escalate in precise musicianship and exceptional emotion. His connection with his audience was felt in every member, singing along to his songs, shouting exhalations of praise and adulation. Then, probably the musical highlight of the show, his performance of “Ribbon in the Sky” sent the crowd into raucous fits of energy and love. The performance lasted for almost fifteen minutes, Stevie allowing the message and miracle of the song to take over his senses. It became purely a jam session, a free-form means of expression that completely moved me the first time I heard it.

As such, this concert ranks as one of the most transcendentally magnificent pieces of live music I’ve ever heard.

Part I

Part II

Collective Soul – The World I Know

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I don’t know what actually made me think about this video, but one day I was just going about my day, having your average existential “what’s the world all about” crisis. Suddenly, I found myself hearing the haunting bode instruments of Collective Soul and just HAD to watch this video again.

The 90s. I will never be able to get over the depth of the music of that decade. Even more profound was the use of imagery. I suppose because 1981 was technically the birth of music video, the desire to expand and elevate the medium was bustling with potential in the 90s. Thus we have videos such as that for Collective Soul’s “The World I Know.” The lyrics themselves speak to a desperation, a need to understand the world around you and find something beautiful in a place that’s so full of ugliness. The main character goes through his day, the mundane nature of it driving him insane, until he feels he has no choice but to just end it all. He literally steps on a ledge and looks down at the world below him: a festering pool of nobodies hopelessly aiming about in thier own imperfection and filthy desire to follow the pack. Then, a dove, a pure piece of nature’s innocence, perches on his hand without provocation. He finally sees that, yes, the world is full of mindless lemmings willing to amble along in their blindness. But the world also holds something beautiful and pure in its grasp, something worth living for.

This is truly one of the most touching videos borne from the rich creativity of the 90s.

Elegance & Grace – Jeff Buckley

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Can you accurately pinpoint the exact moment when everything you knew about life was shifted dramatically to the left? For me, it was the moment I heard the elegant chaos that was Jeff Buckley’s voice. Sincerely, the moment I heard the bend and twine of his lullaby over a syrupy love song called “Everybody Here Wants You”, I was no more good.

There’s so much to say about this man, so much to love and appreciate of his grandeur that words alone are sure to almost cheapen his exceptional talent. However, I’ll try my best to leave anything erroneous — meaning anything that’s not complete and utter adoration — away from this piece.

I, like so many, came to Buckley’s surreal magic after his death, ten years afterwards to be exact. I was all a quiver with the soul mastery of Lewis Taylor [1]. It was on his second album I heard the aforementioned song and thought, “Who exactly writes this stuff?” In my reverie over Taylor, I, of course, assumed that he was the penman of such unparalleled love. However, it would be an outing with some friends that allowed me the opportunity to hear the original artist behind the sugar and spice of “Everybody.”

When I heard the gritty pop of Buckley’s voice, I think my universe was tilted somewhere between off-kilter and spread-eagle. I had to know who he was. My first bit of research revealed another Buckley, one of equal beauty and vocal depth. From there, I was hit with a pain that I didn’t know existed in me — loss of someone that I’d never have the chance to know personally. It may seem a queer thing, being infatuated with someone whom you’ve never and will never meet. But that voice! That uncompromising artistry! How could it be taken from me before I even got the chance to taste it, fully absorb its scent and breadth?

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