Secular Gospel (funk)

I damn near "got" the holy ghost last night at D'Angelo and the Vanguard's, "Second Coming" concert last night. No Bullshit. It's not often that an artist surpasses my highest expectations at a show. Please believe me when I tell you that I had nosebleed level expectations for this show and he still exceeded them. The show started around 10pm maybe...He kicked it off with "Ain't that easy", but he sure did make everything he did look and sound easy. Prince popped into my mind when he was strumming his bedazzled electric guitar during that funky ass cut. I mentioned this to my homie Chris and he was like "no disrespect to Prince, but D'Angelo  is better".....now, I ain't touching that statement and I have never seen the Purple one perform live, but hey....Chris went on to say that this must be what a Sly concert musta been like ......and I have to agree. I mean, I only have youtube to go by but damn, the funk is true.

( Photo courtesy of @gorillavsbear )

I was very happy to see that D'Angelo and his awesome band, The Vanguard, performed mostly cuts from his latest project Black Messiah. I am a big fan of Brown Sugar and the masterpiece Voodoo, but we are living in the NOW and NOW what's poppin is Black Messiah. When I heard the intro to "The Charade" I lost my shit. The song is very emotional to me especially considering the racial climate of our nation. I put my left fist up in solidarity. The Reverend D'Angelo took the crowd thru a call/response sequence while introducing "Brown Sugar", the men chanting, "I want some of your brown sugar" and the ladies singing the falsetto "Ohh Ohh Ohhhhhh, OH, OH". Shit took me to church and yes I realize what I just did there. Of course D himself was playing the organ, directing the beat......

( Photo courtesy of @gorillavsbear )

While I'm sitting here writing this I'm thinking that I could break down every cut he did in those two hours but lets just put it this way, he's the shit. His energy was off the charts and filled with love. My boi @thehomiejig mentioned that he felt a feeling of bliss from the evenings events. I felt the same thing and from the look on everyone's face around us we weren't the only people in the joint feeling that bliss. They did play some cuts from Voodoo as well, "left and right", "chicken grease" and I think I remember "Spanish Joint". All of them done with abundant joy and energy. We stayed for the first encore when he performed "Another Life". It seemed as tho the entire crowd was singing word for word with that joint. Bye the time the 2nd encore came around a certain member from our crew was feeling a bit, lets say....full....haha. It was time to go. I found out later that he performed a flawless rendition of "Untitled". Although I hate to miss anything D'Angelo performs it was okay that we skipped out on that one. Lazy "fans" might think that song defines D. I turn my back on that notion because almost every song I've ever heard from him is an absolute gem. We all know why that song/video blew up like it did but that's not what makes him one of the most electric and talented artists of our generation. Just go to one of his shows if you don't believe me. Find out for yourself....I guarantee you will thank me. One

( Photo courtesy of @gorillavsbear )

-tshurn

Sports Blessed.

Sorry Seahawks fans, not everyone can repeat as Superbowl Champs. The struggle is real, and the pain will linger. I cannot even imagine what it felt like when Wilson threw that pass - I imagine fans were like, "WTF! Noooooo! Why didn't they run the f*cking ball?!"

It's times like this you drink away your sorrows and reflect on how blessed you are as a football fan to have witnessed an amazing season. No? Too soon? Okay, well, allow me to express how blessed I am...

In my lifetime, I have been witness to 3 Dallas Cowboys Superbowl wins, 1 Dallas Mavericks Championship, and 1 Texas Longhorn National Championship. My sports fan resume is pretty much as good as it gets. But a fan is never satisfied. Some fans go a lifetime without their team or teams winning the big kahuna. That just sucks. That's a void in a fan's life...unfinished business. Some get so close...but close doesn't get you that feeling. The feeling of indescribable joy. The feeling that you just won everything that is important in life. In that moment, and sometimes several days after, nothing else matters. You're on top of the world.

The Cowboys were close this year. I know in my head it wasn't a catch...but in my heart, it was right there. We could have beat the Seahawks, maybe. The Mavericks have the players, but seem to be missing the chemistry this year. So much talent - they need to finish the second half of the season strong. And the Longhorns...well, I am being patient. The football team is rebuilding, and the basketball team needs to get their shit together.

It's a tough life for a sports fan. I only hope to one day experience the euphoric feeling again.


-bObD