Weekly Wish 3/21/11 - Ray Charles

I should skip it this week, I should rest up, tie up loose ends, not start anything new. I slept a lot this weekend - skipped a show I was supposed to go to, subbed out my church gig, postponed an arranging project.  I didn't really feel sick at all, just deep, deep, unreasonably bone-tired.  My tired bones are asking - demanding, actually - that I do a little less.  Just a leetle less. 

But I'm not getting a drumkit (at least not YET), and that is as much good sense as I can muster on this rainy Monday.  So:

I wish I could play the blues like Ray Charles.

The Means: "Hard Times" from The Genius Sings the Blues

He sings this with a band, so I'll have to find a singer to jam with, and I'll have to tweak the piano part a little bit to make up for the missing rhythm and horn section.  The main thing I'm going for is the piano fills though, so it isn't that big a deal. 

This song makes me think of my four guy friends from college, collectively called Arnold (long story).  Four music majors in one house: two cellists, two violinists, three of whom also played guitar.  Some of my best time at school was spent sitting on their front porch, drinking beer and listening to them jam out on the Beatles or Clapton. 

The thing about being a professional musician is that you really have to wanna play, even when you don't wanna play.  And listening to Ray Charles makes me wanna play.