[shackin'up]

Finally, I had to tickle him first, but he answered my questions!

shackinupnl :
Hi Richard, Ofcourse you can't answer every question, but something puzzles me. You answer questions about who did it with who in FM, if S&L ever talked about children, hair on asses and so forth. ( ofcourse also on very interesting topics). Recently I asked two questions: one about what your addition would have been soundwise on LB's latest three soloalbums, and how you would describe Lindsey's artistic vision that you refer to regularly. But no answers, until now.. Why? They're about art!

His answer:

Now this is a great example of good criticism & I accept it. I will take your comments into consideration & make changes if necessary. I have been surprised to see the ratio of human interest questions vs the high art & technical ones I expected. Perhaps in trying to answer back in proportion to the questions asked, I have gone overboard in my balance. I must admit, it has been fun to get a little more light & not so serious all the time, although I have covered a lot more of the artistic questions earlier & throughout this blog. There is a lot to read & see here, so it is understandable if you have not read it all & feel that way because of my recent focus on the human interest side. However, you deserve to have your question answered & I will try to provide more balance in the future.

First off, it’s almost impossible for me to know what his latest three albums would have sounded like with my influence, without me being there to react to his creative moves. So much for me is done without a plan and relies on the Zen of the moment. Having said that, I probably would have had a more inviting affect on the commercially minded Punters, adding my signature pop sound that I share with Lindsey when we worked together. In other words, I would have probably artistically screwed it up for the sake, at an attempt for radio play & commercial success.

As far as describing Lindsey’s artistic vision, why don’t you ask me a hard question? How about solid artistic rage funneled in to a single musical part, a passion for finding the right solution to a perplexing problem, keeping a song from reaching it’s full potential, a way of seeing things from the top of a creative mountain, when others see only from a repetitive, formula laden valley. The feeling that his next great musical moment is just around the corner & that you are witnessing a great moment in the continuum of music history. Or just hanging with a friend that always inspires you to be a better self than you ever could have imagined on your own. Simply put, the ability to look into a musically empty space from the future, drawing on the wisdom of the past & weaving a tapestry of musical notes, into a song of the present.

Hope this comes close to answering your question & thank you for your constructive criticism. All of us working together will make this blog worth reading, that’s the beauty of it.
….r