The Power of Music

My BFF and I went to a concert Friday night. Rob Thomas, who is amazing and wonderful. You should go see him. But that is not what this is about. Well it is. And it isn't. Music is wonderful. It is soothing, energizing, uplifting, calming or can fire you up like nothing else. When you hear a song that "speaks" to you, there is nothing like that feeling. My BFF, P just went through an ugly break up. I will not detail it, suffice it to say she was treated horribly. We thought a night out was just what we needed. And Rob Thomas!  I mean who else would we see? We saw him with his band, Matchbox Twenty 3 times in one year. We were prepared for a night of singing and dancing in the aisle. Nope. He is doing a laid back tour. Acoustic. Slowed down versions of his songs. Quite a few of his songs both solo and with the group are about love and loss. Yeah, this was probably not our best choice. He was singing right to her, about her life at this moment. It was powerful. We cried. We sang. We drank. In some way it was healing. We also had a secondary form of entertainment. There was a lady behind us who was singing. Of course we all were. Except she was singing a beat or 2 behind. Not singing harmony behind. Just off beat. A lot off. On every song. Maybe we were wrong to laugh. We did laugh. She actually was helpful. Now we had a distraction from the power of the music. Just a little break in the seriousness. I wish I had the talent to speak to people in that way. To write something that makes someone feel. Even if their feeling is not the same as you had intended. I know that when Rob, yes I call him Rob cause we are friends like that now. When Rob was talking about the stories behind the music and lyrics and it was not the same that I had gotten from it. I was moved in a different way. Not all songwriters have this ability. There is a spot in the world for silly pop music, we all need to cut loose and just be silly sometimes. But those deep meaning lyrics that just get right into you, touch your very center, your soul if you will, those are the best. Sometimes the music itself touches you. I enjoy hearing people talk about what a song says to them. So many different experiences from one song, one lyric. How amazing its that?! I have never been a big fan of poetry. Never really enjoyed reading it in school. Can't write it at all. But today it was pointed out to me that songs and music ARE poetry. How did I not see that before? Perhaps I should give poetry another try. Tomorrow I will get in my car and I will turn on the radio. I will listen to poetry set to music. Or some silly pop song to get me car dancing. Either way it will be an entertaining ride to work.