every once in a while at my house we will sit around watching youtube videos of crazy drum solos.  now i do not particularly like insane, mind blowing, fast-paced, or  anything like that. i like a good solid beat.  no drum solo at all, if possible.

but one really can’t help watching these videos of tony royster jr killing everything in his path.

lately i have been listening to Otis Redding nonstop.  on the bus to get work done, in the kitchen doing dishes, and while playing around in my room with my new accidental pet rabbit.  just constant and unabashed Otis all the time.

if you read anything about Otis redding than you know that he got started at a very young age.  by the time he was 19 he was touring with Pinetoppers, and at age 21 he wrote and recorded one of rock n roll’s greatest ballads “these arms of mine.”  this man accomplished so much in his short life it is unbeleiveable.  many songs you still hear today were written by him; songs like “respect” made famous and “hard to handle” covered by both the greatful dead and the black crowes were both originally written by otis redding.

to accomplish as much as he did at such a young age baffels me.  i just do not understand it.  where does it come from? that spark of creativity, pocket, and charisma to become such a reknowned artist and musician that the post office issues a stamp with your face on it.

i do, however, see it in a lot of faces that come through TCS.  students who have that drive and that “little somethin’ else” find their way into our program and make me feel crappy about myself.  those kids will be the next otis redding.

sadly otis redding died in a plane wreck when he was 26.  but he owned the plane. at 26th. insane.

in other news, anyone else think its wierd that electronic arts used matt and kim’s song daylight for the sims 3 ad? i do.

i was going to add an otis redding song to this post, but now i’ve been listening to matt and kim for 30 minutes so i am going to force you to watch this video:

- larry