the day chris whitley saved my life

the hardest part of being a seeker in the barren landscapes.....is how seldom you find it (beauty, truth, creation?), in it's true, most, rare, unrefined state. it is a gem like no other. there is nothing that provides a weary soul more security and comfort than finding these faint rays of light that cut through all the crap.

in back door conference rooms, and the bowels of major label employees, I'd heard stories of chris whitley. cause every musician and industry guy knows about chris whitley. he's that important. so important, he was too good for the masses of trl teased kids to know of. only music lovers know of chris whitley, cause what he made was what music is meant to be. he was a tremendous talent, with unfortunate habits, and this undeniably present soul that seemed to carry him through it all.
earlier this year i finally had the chance to witness this beauty. i bought the tickets early, and was giddy like I haven't been since I actually got giddy over music (teenage pop radio days). felt as if i was going to be able to breathe and swing and live for just a few moments with one of the greats. the few musicians who've made me understand what music truly is. most of those greats, have already passed before I was old enough to even know. so, seeing chris whitley felt almost like a golden ticket to the time machine. this would not happen again for some time. i knew this, and so did everyone else in the club.

the room was small, the crowd anxious and ready. our hero walked on stage, faint steps, slight movment. as he slumped down to his guitar, there was a hum, a consistent rhymic heart-beat that began before all other sound, and stayed consistent, symetric, and true for the rest of the night. that foot stomping. his body was begging for mercy and his foot just marched right along. the outward heartbeat of a man lost to the world, but found in a soul.

so now chris whitley has left us. this is the end of the possibilities of a wondrous pathway. and i'm reminded how in sound we become bigger than ourselves. within sound the entire world becomes immortal. we live forever, by giving beyond our own life. those words, and slides, and melodies will last as long as the surviving find them relevant to pass on. there becomes order in the unknown, beauty in the chaos, freedom in the possibilities.

he was one who gave to this process. to the turning of the muse, to the passing of hands and hearts. it's been a pleasure knowing you through the speakers and pulse. thank you, sir. you should rest well knowing that you'll never really leave us at all. we will all live on forever now.