My favorite scene from John Adams as they actually sign the Declaration. Done. Finished – ok lets do this! Not so much.. the quiet sinking feeling of “what the heck have we done?” The series showed expertly – they just decided to take on the world’s only Super Power – by themselves. And BARELY all together. Crafting something that the first Libertarians could all agree with – remember they had already left their homes in Europe to get away from something – and now working through days of debates. Oh – no air conditioning, no catering service, no block of rooms at The Hilton. The tensions between South Carolina and New York were present then too – but also the overwhelming concept that this was NOT working, and something needed to change… could this be it?? Can WE manage to do it?
In a meeting I was facilitating, the CFO came in to address a small group of “rebels” who were trying to change the university. After he left, we polled the group for what they heard – and there were 13 different versions of the command. There were 12 attendees. So multiply that times 5, and add some pressure of just trying to reinvent everything written about “men and governing” Yes, they had people steeped in John Locke, Rousseau, and Hobbs – but also were fiercely fired by the rule of a King that was clear that they were there to serve him… by God’s hand. And these men didn’t necessarily have “degrees” to get them into the room – most were “self-educated” – but incredibly well-read (see above philosophers -“Jacks to Open” if you play poker). People are still trying to figure out even what they said, much less what they did – and I would commend you to really read the Federalist Papers for “clarity” – the Owners Manual for America literally.
If you are familiar with Kansas, it undoubtedly is from Robby Steinhardt. His father was the director of Music History at the University of Kansas, and he started taking violin lessons at the age of 8. He was classically trained and even toured Europe as a youth playing with orchestras there. He became the concertmaster for his school orchestra before starting to fool around with rock bands in the area. He credits that with developing poor playing habits – leaning his head over so he could hear himself better with all the guitar amps and drums. But more distinctive was his massive head of hair – a Rasputin like a huge triangle at the front of the band. And like the concertmaster days, he often managed the relationships between the band and the crowd – the MC, spokesperson, moving the group of “introverts” to act together as one unit. As these lyrics say – “I’ve so much to say, and yet I cannot speak, Come and do my bidding now, for I have grown too weak”
This particular cut comes from the 3rd album and shows the band in full force. The classical elements of composition show up – with many familiar themes from Bach, changes in time signatures, and complex interplays between all the instruments. Listen particularly to the voice at the beginning – that Is Robby – singing the low part and low harmony throughout. The way things develop and bounce back and forth between the 2 guitars and the keyboard, you will find in other bands of this era – but with the addition of the violin they had a unique sound that caught on with….. Album Oriented Rock listeners. The emerging FM subculture that featured longer cuts, deeper and more expansive… because they didn’t have as many ads 😉 Truthfully they were trying to declare independence from the stranglehold that AM radio had on all of music. Even this cut was severed into 2 completely different songs – to try and fit a “shorter, more profitable”. The 70’s, in particular, saw a rise in the ability to liberate music from those that had controlled it since the first days of recording and selling someone else “art”.
The version I found on YouTube above is the original composition – which was not released this way on the album. It was broken into 2 pieces with titles that I believe work well as we think about managing America Mysteries and Mayhem – which I believe describes the precision with which Jefferson was able as a 25-year-old to take all of those discussions and political theories and craft something that would answer Elwood’s question from last week “When?” When will we allow liberty for men…. and women of course .. and people of color… and native Americans… but that will come later…. much later… or has it? Is this in fact the current discussion we are having again – how do we thread the needle again… or can we? Will we find enough common ground and language to reach for it again – another year, another milestone for Liberty… or…Knowledge and Reason, change like the season, a Jester’s Promenade… The Pinnacle?
