There were a number of aspects of the story “Sonny’s
Blues” that I definitely identified with, and I very much enjoyed the story and
some of the realms of human experience that were touched. As a musician myself,
I have always been amazed by other musicians of all kinds: jazz, blues, rock,
classical, bluegrass, fusion, you name it! And I do find it interesting that it
seems as if the subject of drug use in the realm of music is never that far off
when venturing into conversation about it. It seems as if the justification for
the use of drugs in music, by a lot of musicians anyway, is that it can help to
get the mind off its normal pattern of behavior; its normal way of thinking.
You can begin to approach the music in many ways you had never even thought of
before, whether it’s just something a lot simpler than you normally play or
something with way over the top energy.
Here's a video that briefly explores the influence of drugs on some of music's more popular figures:
Unfortunately, so many musicians have
died due to complications of drug use and it really does paint a picture of
struggling artists coping with their own uncertainty by getting high and escaping
from having to think about life and all of its troubles. As a person who has
dealt with heroin addiction in my own family, I can say from seeing it first-hand
that it is a nasty addiction that can tear at you for years and years even
after “kicking it.” I have to say, reading this story was really pulling at a
lot of emotions for me. I definitely identified with it, and I definitely
identify with not having really a picture perfect life that has been mostly
bright and shiny; there have been a lot of dark moments. Perhaps that is why I’m
particularly fond of the blues (one of my favorite musicians, Jimi Hendrix, was
a psychedelic pioneer of blues rock), and I can recognize the pain, suffering,
and experience that it takes to really create something that can move people. I feel like the story was almost implying that some suffering is necessary in order to make emotional music, and I came to that conclusion because of Sonny's statement "I won't die trying not to suffer. At least, not any faster than anybody else." (Booth 95) Sonny's brother wants more than anything to keep him from suffering, but it's almost as if Sonny recognizes that the suffering is what got him to where he was at in the first place. I would tend to agree that without some difficult life experiences it would be pretty difficult to truly play and feel blues songs. Here's a link to a blues song that I've always really enjoyed:
Works Cited
Booth, Alison, and Kelly Mays, ed. The Norton Introduction To Literature. 10th ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2011. 75-101. Print.
Do not watch if you are easily offended: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMIsJM4IfUY. That being said, if you would like a humorous conversation of about drugs and music, that comedian should make you smile (he is one of my favorites).
ReplyDeleteI love music. I have to have it constantly around me, or I begin to get agitated. I do not play it though, for I am an impatient fool, and I don't spend the time to learn anything.
I do, however, find myself a semi-scholar of music post 1950, and collecting is my real strength. This being said, I don't believe the history of modern music and drugs can be separated. The culture did change, but the ideas about music altered so suddenly that a reactionary culture can not be the sole cause (this being said, drugs could have been a major player in that altering climate). Lyrics started to become philosophical and meaningful. Concept albums rose. Musicians began to care what was flowing through their minds, and they wanted to see if they could share that with the world.
It is a dirty game, but it is one that I feel will always be played. Maybe the world is better for it. I am thankful for the music that exists, and I'll do nothing to halt its continual growth.