feel the pain
inspiration from way back
If you know me, you know I love the blues - the simplicity and honesty of just telling it like it is, nothing complicated. You can feel the pain.
Sometimes I feel, sometimes I feel,
Like I've been tied to the whippin' post.
Tied to the whippin' post, tied to the whippin' post.
Good Lord, I feel like I'm dyin'– Gregg Allman
These words have always inspired me. The song is about pain felt over the way he’s treated by a woman though I’ve always felt a connection to the lyrics as they might relate to other kinds of pain in my own experience. They convey a certain intensity of pain, primally and clearly. Though written in the 1970s, they continue to inspire me just as my discovering Stevie Ray Vaughan in the 1990s does. Add a little Muddy Waters and B.B. King and shake well - I love the blues. You can feel the pain and when you’re lucky, you can feel the joy.
newfound inspiration
When I’m sitting around with just my guitar improvising, I find it easy to let out whatever pain or joy I’m feeling through the lyrics. Maybe that’s because I’m not recording when I’m alone. It doesn’t get shared. I wrote about my wonderful problem before. I need to get better at telling it like it is and sharing it.
A recent journal entry by Winnie Lim has rekindled my desire to get better at telling it like it is whether I’m writing blog posts or improvising music and lyrics. I’m so in awe of her ability to express herself freely. I can indeed feel the pain - both her pain and my own.
I’ve never mentioned it before. I live with chronic physical pain. Fortunately, it’s manageable. Not so much for emotional pain. But I’m working on that too and hope to share more with you soon. It’s never too late... until it is.
