Having it all

We're working very hard on the small things for touring. The most important fact is that I cannot sing so I wish cats would stop asking me to do so. I am vocally challenged.

TOKYO

Getting ready for Tokyo. I'm forever thinking about what Miles Davis felt about the country. He felt that his sound was recognized instantly in Japan. I tend to agree with this assessment. I'm always tweeking and experimenting in the studio, yet on the road in America and the Europen countries I keep it close to the vest. The Japanese want to feel me and the Americans want to intellectualize this simple man and his works. LOL. So now it's to the woodshed.

Gratitude

Always at my center, my compass. I believe deeply that if you're blessed or connected to the universe in terms of talent, you are obliged to render it honestly. There's a process called gratitude. It leads not to utopia but it clarifies within. You realize it isn't about you and your licks and tricks. It's about your willingness to be a servant of the art.

Music A and R

The enticing thing about this term is that it implies a team concept. In other words complete strangers are purist. Your music is so unique and promising that said folks will devote their resources and energies to define you to the endless masses. Keep your focus on the downfall of the major labels. Antiquated paradigms brought them down. The financial trail guides their most noble intent. Now we're in a glut of indie traffic weaving through marketing is your own duty.

Good and free

I'm a person who deeply believes that without purpose music or any other art form is pointless. We've moved into an era in which the self glorification at any cost becomes the illusion of accomplishment. I've been fortunate to have done this since I was a teen. Ironically it's a fact that I really played music back then to get cash to party. I was too young for a union card and my contract was on notebook paper. I sense intervention from some divinity because I ended up meeting folks who shaped my view of this craft. Miles Davis told me most of what I needed. He said "Daryl. fuck it". I guess you can't possibly go wrong with such a specific aim. LOL. So as this year winds down, I'm grateful that the documentary and shows have given me a lot. I hope to meet so many new cats in 09. I get tons of e mail from strangers yet they feel familiar in the sense that we collectively agree on fuck it. DH