beauty in motion

I get a thrill in watching things move, especially if the movement involves coordinationg of multiple parties or objects.

One of the things I love watching is a beautiful pass in a ball game, but mostly in basketball or soccer (European football) game. When I watch basketball or soccer, I love watching that more than a beautiful shot. It is like watching a very complicated dance. Team members in coordination, all the while very aware of the opponents surrounding them. People slip, turn, bounce, run past and around each other then fire the ball in between, over, around, or even under their opponents who may also be another shifting constellation. I imagine the team members are connected by spider-web thin strands of light, every movement they may initiate or respond to triggers a team mate's movement. Sometimes a team, when they are really in flow, will follow up that breath-taking pass with a fabulous, spot-on shot into the net, the basket, the goal. Not always but sometimes everything they do just makes perfect sense in a lovely "world is in perfect motion" sort of way and the shot is true.

One of the most astounding passes I have ever seen in my life was at a University of Maryland basketball game against the University of Virginia. A Maryland ball player runs towards the basket. Two UVa players are in the process of converging in front of him to block his path. His team mate somehow appears behind the UVa players. The UMd ball handler shoots the ball in between the two UVa players straight into his team mate's hands. That guy immediate turns around and sinks the shot before the UVa guys have had a chance to fully turn around and deal with the situation. Beautiful.

That is not to say that sometimes a terrific shot doesn't take my breath away or linger in my memory with such pleasantness that it makes me warm. One such shot was in the European Cup by a Spanish player. He blew in between two on-coming defenders, lept over a third with the ball, then made a textbook shot straight into the net. Elation comes near to describing what I felt in seeing that.

Good old fashion minstrels

Every so often I hear an old John Mellencamp song (especially Jack and Diane), an old Billy Joel, or a Tom Petty song and am blown away by their songwriting abilities. They spin great stories that are knit together with effective and simple music. They are following the time honored tradition of the singing minstrel. I'm sure there are others too who fit into this category (one in particular is a friend of mine, Dave Alpert) but I can't think of them right now.

So this post is a request. I am looking for other singers who are also great storytellers. People who have a real gift for songwriting and storytelling- performers who are fabulous writers. Know of any? I noticed that the above writers sort of fit into a certain genre (male, white, acoustic rock and roll musicians). I am looking to branch out. Rap? Female? Electronica? Gregorian chants?