Not Necessarily Mad

During the break of the normal Not Necessarily Mad Podcast recording schedule, Eric has a chance to sit down with Justin Berkley and Josh Barling, the horns from Flat Five Jazz and discuss their recent Kind of Blue Concert.

Eric and GB talk about the fun they have had pulling together a Season One of a podcast from an idea one day only seven months before. And just for fun they talk about the cartoons they got into once upon a time -- having a laugh over the interesting texture of culture inside the cartoons that entertained them and why. In the Mount Rushmore style -- they pick the four all-time leaders of their tv enjoyment -- plus one full movie feature that still grabs them. Comparing notes proves more fun than they expect… ! Stay tuned for Season Two and other stuff in between.

Years of driving come with stories of experiences of cars driven -- Eric and GB ltalk about this because, actually they never have discussed it before! From the favorite ride to the unsung praise of the ‘throw-away’ vehicle, they have an interesting combination of experience and adventure in car ownership.

When an artist or band releases a record that changes what you have known about them musically, it is exciting. Sometimes that excitement is enduring. Eric and GB compare the records that surprised them from an artist that they already knew of, and were anticipating, and where that surprise still lasts enjoyably today.

Sometimes a singer-songwriter gets lost in the success of one or two songs that everybody knows. Eric and GB talk about who they think gets lost or misunderstood as noteworthy outside the fanbase. They agree that often the hit everyone know is not a whole or true story about the artists’ talents at large. As usual, they have choices that surprise each other.

Fifty years has passed since the Beatles officially announced the end of their band in their final tumultuous year. The legacy of the Beatles still impacts the template of what it is to be in a band. The creative power to influence music and style, looms large in their end story alone. Eric and GB observe and discuss this milestone of a band that is interesting in the story of music… and the documentary in production that will show newly seem footage from that aging moment.

It started with a turn of phrase and turned into a fun conversation. G.B. remembers when he first observed Eric had such a wide range of musical interest and how that is a part of their friendship. Then they compare notes from Paris Jazz to 80s pop, from EMD to early hip hop from NYC— and of course Prince — and only begin to explore what is on the musically omnivorous menu.

G.B. has questions about the enduring appeal of Patsy Cline, and Eric has a very close perspective. While it is obvious she had something unique in her talent and story, the less obvious and lasting aspects of what made her unique are much closer to Eric’s world. The questions from G.B. are probably not far from the curiosity many folks might have about her.

Eric and G.B. compare notes on the simple joy of killing time with a favorite movie -- and the ones they put down the remote for. It turns out they have some they agree on, and not all of them are broad comedies. They name check some unfamiliar ones and plenty of ones you absolutely have seen yourself.

Eric has a wide range of thought on a big question, and G.B. unpacks it with him via a little Q&A. Yes, music performed live is undergoing change in 2020, and those changes are ongoing and hard to fully comprehend. What does music performance hold in the days and months ahead for us?

After reviewing a simple meme about what ‘bands you love because of your DAD…’, Eric and GB talk about how a childhood music imprint gets started. They know what stuck with them -- and where it came from and who… although they are surprised by some of the common connections.

Eric and GB talk about years of working for a living and some of the things they have taken with them after the job is over. From serving food to selling cars, from entertaining an audience to setting up a call center, they have tried out a lot of things. And they have a couple of laughs too about some of the things they took with them.

As distancing continues, shopping and community keeps evolving. Eric and GB talk about the mall as they have known it, and what is changing -- even in a devolution. Where will socialize in a common space and shop in real life if this indoor walking gallery fades away? The number of things changing are all hard to predict!

Eric and GB discuss the evolution of the music video as they have seen it evolve over time, and as the experience of the video keeps changing. They consider how it can become even greater than individual ingredients of a song and a strip of film, and how changes in live performance on small screens is changing along with it.

After some earlier conversation, Eric and GB come back together to discuss their evolving and respective take on Will Rogers as a phenomenon and a legacy. By virtue of time, technology and talent, Rogers was an American original and was perhaps the first multimedia influencer. They wonder about what might be forgotten, but still the form that is being fit in a digital world a century later.

Eric and welcomes Matt BIllings of Flat Five Jazz and also Dreamcatcher of Lynchburg to talk about the groove with the big-G that makes jazz a spiritual headspace. They share the pull that can bring jazz lovers into existence from the ‘wrong’ room, the connecting language of playing together, and the function of ritual-habit-ceremony as a disciplined creative and professional performer.

Eric and GB talk about their own songwriting process, particularly from their individual approaches and influences of language and music. This is the third of three parts going into their experience presently in approach to songwriting as a craft.

For The Love of Songwriting - part 2/3

For The Love of Songwriting - part 1/3

Eric and GB and their go to Quarantine snacks and the food they are ready to get back to. From sit-down dining to what they go rummage for FIRST in a snack attack onset, they compare notes on things they like to eat, and the things on their short list for the next chance they get.

Eric and GB decompress and compare notes --- life in the emerging CoronaVirus situation has changed their day-to-day. And they talk about it, including how it has changed their day-job lives and imagine what could be next. Most of all they keep each other spirits up as they check-in with each other.

Eric and GB connect as a part of podcast recording for the first time and invite you to join them and spend a few minutes with them. In a topic from IRL friendship they call How did I Get Here?”, they go back to the days before they knew each other… and they recall album art as a phenomena and an attraction to them in their younger years in the days of LP vinyl after the 60’s