Whatever Happened to Tevin Campbell?

Tevin Campbell's debut single, "Tomorrow (A Better You, A Better Me)," topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop chart in June 1990 and was featured on Quincy Jones' Grammy Award-winning album "Back on the Block." Campbell was just 13 years old but he did not have to wait long for his next hit: "Round and Round," written and produced by Prince, reached number two on the Billboard R&B chart and number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Round and Round" was the first single from Campbell's 1991 debut album "T.E.V.I.N." and it was also featured on the soundtrack for Graffiti Bridge, the sequel to Purple Rain. The lyrics are playful, yet confident--quintessential Prince:

I say, nothing comes from dreamers but dreams
I say, sitting idle in our boat while everyone else is down the stream
Nothing comes from talkers but sound
We can talk all we want 2, but the world still goes around and round
Round and round
We go round and round and round
And what we're looking 4 still isn't found

Can u tell me when we gonna get 2 it
I'm tired of fooling around I said I wanna do it (go 4 it, get 2 it)
I learned my lesson young, I said if u want to have fun (go 4 it)
And when u win say, "I go 4 it" (go 4 it, get 2 it).

Campbell hit just the right notes with his delivery and showed off some smooth dance moves as well:

"T.E.V.I.N." contained two number one R&B singles: "Alone With You" and "Tell Me What You Want Me to Do":

Campbell's second album, "I'm Ready," came out in 1993 and achieved double platinum status, peaking at number five on the R&B chart. It included the title track "I'm Ready" (which peaked at number two on the R&B chart), "Always in My Heart" (which peaked at number three on the R&B chart), "Don't Say Goodbye Girl" and "Can We Talk" (which topped the R&B chart and is still Campbell's biggest hit):


Campbell released his third album, "Back to the World," in 1996. It did not crack the top 10 on the R&B chart and only yielded one top 20 R&B single--the title track, which peaked at number 16 and is Campbell's last top 20 appearance on the R&B chart.


Campbell's self-titled fourth album came out in 1999; he has not produced any albums since that time and he has largely been out of the public eye except for a few guest appearances on TV shows and some theater performances (first on Broadway and then in Australia) as Seawood J. Stubbs in the musical "Hairspray."

Whatever Happened to Dan Hartman?

Dan Hartman wrote "Free Ride," which became a Billboard Hot 100 top 20 hit for the Edgar Winter Group in 1972, but his first hit single as a solo performer was "Instant Replay," which reached the top spot on the U.S. Dance chart in 1978 and peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100. It is impossible to listen to this song without dancing or at least tapping your feet:


It is fashionable to make fun of disco music and the disco era but what is wrong with music that is upbeat--literally and figuratively--and full of joy? I loved listening to disco music when I was a little kid in the 1970s and I still love listening to it today.

Hartman again topped the U.S. Dance chart in 1980 with "Relight my Fire"; the extended version of the song includes the four minute intro titled "Vertigo":


Unrequited love is a recurring theme in Hartman's music; "It Hurts to Be in Love" reached number 48 on the U.S. Dance chart in 1982:




"It Hurts to Be in Love" was the title track of an album that had particular meaning to Hartman: "This music is closer to me because it has more romantic sensitivity than I've allowed myself to show in past productions. I'm really pouring it all out. I guess you could say there's more Dan Hartman in there than any other record I've done." Hartman wrote, produced, played and recorded the album in his home studio in Connecticut. Hartman felt that this working arrangement brought out his best: "My music is spontaneous and provides an outlet for emotional release and expression, while my studio allows me to write, arrange and record my own songs within that same space. The result is music that comes straight from my heart--I can capture more feeling that way."

Hartman added, "I'm absorbed by the elements of 1980's pop music. The new album shows how aware I've become, and how I think others have become as well, with the personal needs for love. People are happy in love, and people are hurt by love, and in that way it does talk about my personal life and feelings too."

Hartman wrote "I Can Dream About You" for the movie "Streets of Fire"; he did not perform the song in the movie but Hartman's version peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1984, thus becoming Hartman's only top 10 pop hit:


"We Are the Young," another single from the "I Can Dream About You" album, reached number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1984 and also became Hartman's third and final number one dance hit:



Although Hartman did not have any more hit singles as a performer, he had a very successful run in the 1980s and early 1990s as a songwriter/producer. He co-wrote "Living in America" with Charlie Midnight; James Brown won the 1987 Grammy Award for best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America," one of the the biggest U.S. pop hits of his career and his last top 40 song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (it peaked at number four).

Hartman died of a brain tumor in 1994. He was just 43 years old.

Whatever Happened to Terence Trent D'Arby?

Terence Trent D'Arby was a rising star in the late 1980s but even at the height of his commercial success he refused to conform to expectations and he did not curry favor with critics, fans or anyone else. In his Rolling Stone interview (published in the June 16, 1988 issue), D'Arby bristled at the idea of doing a conventional, bland question and answer session:

"We don't want to talk about sex, do we? Or about drugs or politics, right? We will talk about our record company, will we? In other words, we won't talk about anything that might possibly offend one person who won't go into the next Sam Goody's, or whatever store, and buy our record. So we wind up saying nothing.

I know there will be people who say 'How dare he say this,' who will want to slap me down, as if I don't have a right to speak my mind because I make records. For too long we've been fed the illusion of the rock artist as someone who only makes records--as someone who is merely an entertainer."

Abruptly a sad but obstinate look crosses D'Arby's face. "There are people who make me feel like I'm the most arrogant person to ever walk the face of the planet earth because I'm passionate. When I feel things, I feel them passionately. And, for better or worse, what makes me the artist that I am--and the artist that I want to be--is that passion.

If I let people take that way from me, I'm afraid that is going to be the mechanization of Terence Trent D'Arby. And I don't want that. I intend to resist that with everything I have."

Later in that interview, D'Arby declared, "People try to criticize artists for having an ego and arrogance. But if you want to get to the place where I want to get to, you better have some ego, mate, or you'll be crushed like a grapefruit seed. There's no way in the world you're going to be a Bob Dylan without having that insurmountable ego that tells you that you deserve to be there. There must be that insurmountable belief inside you that you deserve this attention. To be able to walk onstage in front of thousands of people, you better have an ego. Either that or you better run and hide right now." As Prince sang, "What makes a man wanna rule the world? (A double a double arrogance)."

D'Arby's debut album "Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D'Arby" sold several million copies, peaked at number four on the U.S. Billboard album chart and won a Grammy in 1988 for best male R&B vocal performance. The album's first single "If You Let Me Stay" reached 17th on the R&B chart and 68th on the Billboard Hot 100 and then the second single "Wishing Well" topped both charts:



"Dance Little Sister" made it to ninth on the R&B chart and 30th on the Hot 100, followed by "Sign Your Name," which peaked at second on the R&B chart and fourth on the Hot 100:



For the final track on the album, D'Arby covered the Motown classic "Who's Loving You":



With his catchy lyrics and raspy, soulful singing style, D'Arby seemed to be headed for stardom but instead his life took a different path. His 1989 follow-up album "Neither Fish Nor Flesh" was not a commercial success (it peaked at number 61 on the U.S. Billboard chart) and he did not release another album until 1993 ("Symphony or Damn"). He feuded with his label, Columbia Records, before eventually going to Java Records, for whom he completed one unreleased album. After INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence died, D'Arby replaced him during INXS' performance at the Opening Ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

D'Arby changed his name to Sananda Francesco Maitreya in 1995, though that did not officially become his legal name until 2001; here is an excerpt of his in depth explanation of the meaning of his new name (the spelling and punctuation are unchanged from the original text, except for the use of ellipses in place of portions of the explanation that are not quoted here):

Sananda Francesco Maitreya was born from the smouldering ashes of a former artists heart who had undergone severe trauma, lost his will and prayed devotedly to his creator to restore him to a new life. After much meditation, in 1995, at the age of 33, earth years, his prayers were answered and he was given a new consciousness. The name given to this consciousness was Sananda which means 'one who walks with light', Maitreya which means 'among the sons of God'. He presents his music as POST MILLENNIUM ROCK because he feels that it is more inclusive and representative of the vision his spirit inspires him to share...In describing his music he quotes from one of his idols, the great American Prophet and Poet Walt Whitman "Listen, I will be honest with you. I do not offer the old smooth prizes, but offer rough new prizes." His hobbies include whatever explains beauty and allows him to put more of it back into the world of wonders. 

Once upon a time, an artist, a fish, woke up to find himself in an era swimming in various kinds of music, the best of which touched him as a fish swimming in water feels everything that the water contains. He decided to take elements of all that moved him, wrap it around his vision and call it: 'POST MILLENNIUM ROCK' (PMR!)...Its purpose is to lead the listener back to the garden in their heart, to provoke the mind into seeing fresh new shapes in order to encourage fresh new visions and PMR has a preference (though no rules) for natural instrumentation played by living beings praising spirit and humanity through their chosen intruments. This particular fish heard the call of Sananda in 1995, at the age of 33. And he has been one of his voices since. He was also instructed to use the new music he would be given by Sananda not as a further barrier of separation, but as a call to community and shared values, because we are all one! 

Sananda

ps: 'throwing different shapes at your mind since time'

I like Sananda Maitreya's idea of "throwing different shapes at your mind." That describes who I try to be and what I strive to accomplish as a writer, as a chess teacher and just in general. Marvin Gaye said, "An artist, if he is truly an artist, is only interested in one thing and that is to wake up the minds of men, to have mankind and womankind realize that there is something greater than what we see on the surface."

Sananda Maitreya has committed himself to that kind of awakening, so even though he is not as commercially successful now as he was when he was known as Terence Trent D'Arby, if he has found peace and contentment then no one has the right to question the path that he has chosen; he is still expressing himself creatively through his music and that is much more important than seeking validation by appeasing fickle critics or by stacking up piles of cash.

Three Levels of Time: Anticipation, Memory and How The Soundtrack of a Life Evolves

"In passing from the past to the future, we pass from memory and reflection to observation and current practice and thence to anticipation and prediction. As usually conceived, this is a movement from the known to the unknown, from the probable to the possible, from the domain of necessity to the open realm of choice. But in fact these aspects of time and experience cannot be so neatly separated. Some part of the past is always becoming present in the future; and some part of the future is always present in the past. Instead of thinking of these three segments of time in serial order, we would do well to take the view of a mathematician like A. N. Whitehead and narrow the time band to a tenth of a second before and a tenth of a second after any present event. When one does this, one understands that the past, the present, and the future are in that living moment almost one; and, if our minds were only capable of holding these three elements together in consciousness over a wider span of time, we should deal with our problems in a more organic fashion, doing justice not merely to the succession of events but to their virtual coexistence through anticipation and memory."--Lewis Mumford (from the book Man's Role in Changing the Face of the Earth, as cited in the epigraph to Harold T. P. Hayes' book Three Levels of Time).

I first read Harold T. P. Hayes' Three Levels of Time when I was in high school; it was not an assigned text but rather a book that I read of my own volition--and it contained more insight than anything I ever encountered in a formal curriculum: the questions that Hayes asks about the origins of life and the future of the human race plus the insightful way that he deals with a variety of subjects ranging from physics to biology to ecology to philosophy are unforgettable. I love reading so much that it is difficult for me to single out just one book but--if pressed to do so--I usually cite Three Levels of Time as my favorite non-fiction book; the title refers to three interwoven stories: (1) the evolution of life on Earth (as described by various scientists interviewed by Hayes), (2) Hayes' travels around the world to interview these scientists and (3) the dramatic saga of John Vihtelic, a man who survived for more than two weeks after being trapped in his car following an accident. The bulk of the book contains Hayes' conversations with several fascinating and influential scientists, including Dr. Archie Carr, Dr. Otto Frankel, Dr. Garrett Hardin, Dr. Hugh Lamprey, Richard Leakey and Dr. Cyril Ponnamperuma; each chapter opens with a description of how the resourceful Vihtelic adapted to various challenges, so the reader gradually and simultaneously explores the evolution of life--an improbable story that took place on a global scale--while also learning about how one specific person triumphed against tremendous odds--an improbable story that took place in a ravine in Washington.

The way that Hayes' narrative seamlessly integrates so many different themes is similar to how Frank Herbert's classic novel Dune is simultaneously a bildungsroman about Paul Atreides, an allegorical tale about ecology/resource scarcity, a meditation on the nature of power/charismatic leadership and an action-packed thriller with unexpected plot twists. An attentive reader of Three Levels of Time learns a great deal about the human race's humble past, precarious present and uncertain future. It is perhaps not immediately apparent what Vihtelic's story has to do with the larger scientific and philosophical issues that Hayes addresses throughout the book but by the end the message is clear: the ingenuity and adaptability that Vihtelic demonstrated in a life-threatening situation is a small scale example of the ingenuity and adaptability that will be required for humanity to save itself and the planet. Hayes makes the reader comfortable with the sometimes complex subject matter by portraying himself as an earnest student on a journey of discovery as opposed to a pedant lecturing a class; while this is a shrewd narrative choice, I believe that Hayes understood a bit more than he suggested, much like the TV detective Columbo was two steps ahead of everyone else even though he acted like he was perpetually confused. Hayes asks entomologist Dr. Howard Ensign Evans a deceptively simple question: "Is the basic point of evolution the tendency of all organisms to move toward complexity?" Hayes self-deprecatingly describes Dr. Evans' response (p. 59): "He looks at me blankly, as though I had slept through the semester. 'The basic direction of evolution is toward adaptiveness to the environment at that particular time. No. It's not toward complexity.'" This exchange unfolds much like the way that a straight man sets up a comedian for the punch line; rather that making the reader feel uninformed, Hayes softens the blow at his own expense. The larger point is that even though human beings are very complex organisms compared to the single cell organisms that constituted the first life on Earth, the success or failure of the human race will ultimately be determined by its adaptability in the face of serious survival challenges; will humanity figure out how to feed the hungry, treat the sick, end war and live in harmony with the other life forms on Earth or will humanity become extinct like so many other species?

Three Levels of Time contains many great quotes, which is a tribute not only to the brilliance of the people who Hayes interviewed but also to Hayes' ability to ask the right questions at the right time; an interview is very much like a duet and a great answer is often the product of an insightful question. Here is what Dr. Frankel tells Hayes about humanity's future (p. 168): "This is a difficult world, and we really have stacked the cards so heavily against ourselves! Probably we have always done that, but now the system has become so complicated. In some ways maybe we'll muddle through. There is a quotation [E.F.] Schumacher has at the end of his book [Small is Beautiful]--that no problem is ever solved, but we find some way of dealing with it. Not solving it but just nibbling at it."

Dr. Hardin echoes the complexity theme (p. 180): "The basic concept of ecology is that the world is a vast, complicated, interconnected system. You can never do merely one thing, so whenever you do, you do a bunch of other things. This means that if you're concerned about the total effects of what you do, you carry out ahead of time a technology assessment--you try to predict the secondary, the tertiary effects of what you perform. You have to follow the philosophical principle of 'guilty until proven innocent.'"

Three Levels of Time instantly captured my interest with the intriguing Lewis Mumford epigraph cited above; it is not only true that our lives are delicately balanced between anticipation and memory but it is also true that our memories are constantly shaped and molded by subsequent events. Think about the soundtrack of your life, the songs that remind you of special times and/or strong emotions; your perspective about the various songs in that soundtrack evolves as new memories supplement older memories. I don't remember the first time that I heard Steely Dan's "Peg" but I know that I was very young, that it immediately became one of my favorite songs and that it has remained so ever since. Only later did I fully understand the technical mastery of the song, as detailed in this video:


The Making Of PEG by Steely Dan by righteouskarate

Prince often contrasts "real music by real musicians" with the artificial, lifeless, synthesized sounds that too many pop stars rely on now. One of the things that I most like about Prince and about Steely Dan is that they are craftsmen and perfectionists--but as a child I just enjoyed the catchy melody of "Peg" and the way that the voices and instruments are layered on top of each other. For some odd reason, a memory sticks out in my mind of "Peg" being used one time in the early 1980s on "Entertainment Tonight" as the background music when that day's celebrity birthdays were mentioned. I also remember trying to figure out exactly what the lyrics mean; what is a "pin shot" and what does the "favorite foreign movie" have to do with anything? All I grasped as a child is that the song seemed somehow simultaneously upbeat and wistful, perhaps suggesting that Peg had become a star but lost something during that process.

A new "Peg" memory formed when De La Soul sampled the "I know I'll love you better" refrain in their song "Eye Know":


Erika Klotz and I listened to the "Aja" CD during our tour of Troy, Michigan and "Peg" was one of the songs that played as we journeyed from the Lloyd A. Stage Nature Center to Barnes & Noble. Many memories and images now collide when I hear "Peg"--grooving to the song without understanding its meaning, learning more about Steely Dan and their attention to detail, hearing the De La Soul sample (which then brings to mind various memories of my high school and college years), the great "Making of 'Peg'" video and the newest memory: riding around Troy with my friend Erika (which reminds me of how much my mindset changed during the summer/fall of 2012). One song takes me on a whirlwind tour of my childhood, my young adult years and my current life; the song has always been the same, yet the ways that I perceive it (and myself) have changed over the years, as have my feelings about the various memories that flood to the surface the instant I hear those distinctive first few bars.

 "Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders is another song that elicits a wide range of memories:



I liked the song as an eight year old when it first hit the charts, so hearing it takes me back to being a second grader--which evokes a host of both personal memories and also memories of things that were happening in the world at that time, ranging from rooting passionately for the "Kardiac Kids" Cleveland Browns team to watching Walter Cronkite talk about the Iranian hostage crisis that dominated the news for more than a year (yes, I followed international politics as an eight year old). I remember Faye Grant covering "Brass in Pocket" during an episode of "Greatest American Hero," which was one of my favorite TV shows at that time (her version is overdubbed with something random on the show's DVDs because of licensing issues). Shortly before I traveled to Michigan, I heard "Brass in Pocket" while I was working out but this time it not only conjured up childhood memories: the lyric about "driving/Detroit leaning" had a special meaning, heightening my anticipation about my upcoming trip and the experiences I might have during that weekend.

Sometimes a single word can bring forth many memories; "Ostend" used to conjure images of early 20th century chess tournaments but now it also makes me think of Marvin Gaye--and Gaye can be connected back to Three Levels of Time through his song "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)," a powerful lament about some of the environmental issues Hayes explored:


Gaye's reference to mercury poisoning brings to mind David Seltzer's Prophecy, a novel that I read not long after I read Three Levels of Time--and the way that a train of thought can zip around from Ostend to Marvin Gaye to Harold Hayes to David Seltzer conjures up "Kull Wahad," a phrase from Dune that is translated as "I am profoundly stirred!" That phrase caught Erika's eye when I showed her the "Terminology of the Imperium" appendix in Dune, which brings everything back full circle to the memory of listening to "Peg" on the way to Barnes & Noble. Such connections between seemingly disparate memories and concepts are fascinating and add texture to one's life but, while it is fun to remember and reminisce, it is also important to savor the present moment as well:

When we're young, we dream about being old. We sit beneath trees and dream the days away. We dream about the future, about how much better it will be when we can drive, when we can get a job and spend money on whatever we want. We can't wait until our parents are no longer around to say we can't eat ice cream for dinner. We want to get out of our hometown. We want to look upon the whole world, mouth agape in ripe wonderment. But don't worry, we say, one day our lives will be so much better. One day, we tell ourselves in the shade of that tree, we will have freedom.
 
When we're old, we dream about being young. During our daily commute to work, we reminisce about the past. We look back on the days when we could afford to just dream the whole day away. As we idle in that traffic, our seatbelts slightly pinching our waist, we long for the days when our parents cooked us a hot, healthy meal every night. We miss when the cul-de-sac was the whole world, when the forest across the street was a dark, foreign land just begging to be explored. We want to look upon the world once again with mouth agape, filled with the raw wonderment of youth. What happened, we ask ourselves, our lives used to be so much simpler. What happened, we ponder in that hot car, we used to have so much freedom.

I wish that there were a time in our lives, maybe only a passing moment, when we are perfectly, fiercely content with the present; when we are looking neither backward nor forward nor inward; when we are just looking around.

The soundtrack of a life evolves as anticipation and memory combine to enrich familiar lyrics and melodies, but, even though it is exciting to think about the future and even though it can be enjoyable to reminisce about the past, it is important to be fully present in the present, to appreciate the good things in your life instead of thinking that the best has already happened or is yet to come.

Marvin Gaye's Artistry

"An artist, if he is truly an artist, is only interested in one thing and that is to wake up the minds of men, to have mankind and womankind realize that there is something greater than what we see on the surface."--Marvin Gaye, speaking in Richard Olivier's documentary "Marvin Gaye: Transit Ostend"

Marvin Gaye's timeless, soulful voice is a finely tuned instrument that is appreciated by music experts and casual fans alike; Julius Erving once declared, "To me, Marvin Gaye is the greatest singer ever. You know what I mean? You listen to Luther and all of these other great singers, but when Marvin comes on, I gotta stop! He moves me. I gotta stop and say, 'That's the man.' Now someone may come along and lay 10 or 20 tracks and get the job done. You know, one of the ages, a classic. But it's not Marvin, who is the standard for me."

This is Gaye's unforgettable rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner" prior to the 1983 NBA All-Star Game in Los Angeles (Erving scored 25 points and won MVP honors as his East team defeated the West, 132-123):

Marvin Gaye died by his father's hand on April 1, 1984--less than 14 months after that passionate performance and one day before his 45th birthday--but his music is eternally fresh and relevant. Gaye's career followed a twisting path dotted with shining successes and stunning setbacks. He started out with a do-wop quartet called the Marquees in the late 1950s before signing with Motown to do some session work. His first solo album, "The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye," came out in June 1961 but did not reach the charts. Gaye's first hit was the single "Stubborn Kind of Fellow," which made the Billboard Hot 100 and reached the Top 10 of the Billboard R&B chart. In 1965, Gaye had three Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 singles ("How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)," "I'll Be Doggone" and "Ain't That Peculiar." Gaye began singing duets with Tammi Terrell in 1967 and they released a string of hits, including "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Your Precious Love," "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By," the second and final chart-topping Billboard R&B single for the duo; whether or not Gaye and Terrell were lovers off stage, you believe that they were lovers after listening to them sing that song:




At the same time his partnership with Terrell produced those classic Motown hits, Gaye's solo career also took off: he had his first Billboard Hot 100 number one single in October 1968 with "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," a song that was later recognized by the Grammy Hall of Fame for "historical, artistic and significant" value.

A cancerous brain tumor killed Terrell in 1970 and her death devastated Gaye, plunging him into depression, but he emerged out of the darkness in 1971 to release the landmark "What's Going On" album, a tour de force both musically and culturally--Gaye's passionate cri de coeur against racism, war, poverty, drug abuse and other societal problems. Gaye openly defied Motown chief Berry Gordy, who wanted Gaye to stick to singing love songs--and the vindication of Gaye's view ultimately is not the commercial success of "What's Going On" (even though it was very successful commercially) but rather the enduring message it so eloquently expresses both lyrically and musically. The concept album opens with the title track--which reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard R&B chart--and includes two other singles that topped the Billboard R&B chart: "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" and "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)."

Martin Johnson summarized the album's greatness: "'What's Going On' is a deeply humanist work that acknowledges the desolation and turmoil but calls for a marshaling of human strengths to build a better tomorrow. That optimism amid grim circumstances is what has made the recording a timeless work" (November 25-26, 2006 edition of the Wall Street Journal). Alexander Solzhenitsyn's brilliant quote about art in general applies in this specific case as well: "A work of art contains its verification in itself: artificial, strained concepts do not withstand the test of being turned into images; they fall to pieces, turn out to be sickly and pale, convince no one. Works which draw on truth and present it to us in live and concentrated form grip us, compellingly involve us, and no one ever, not even ages hence, will come forth to refute them."

Gaye followed up "What's Going On" with two Billboard Hot 100 number one singles ("Let's Get it On" in 1973 and "Got to Give it Up" in 1977) but he suffered a series of personal and professional setbacks in the latter part of the 1970s. Gaye and his first wife Anna Gordy (Berry Gordy's sister) divorced in 1977; he then married married Janis Hunter, who delivered him two children before she and Gaye divorced. Tax problems and drug addiction also afflicted the tormented Gaye when he sojourned to Ostend, Belgium in early 1981 seeking tranquility and peace of mind. During a conversation in Belgium with David Ritz, Gaye expressed frustrations about his failed relationships with women and Ritz told Gaye that Gaye needed "sexual healing"--a close, loving relationship with a woman to heal Gaye's troubled soul. That phrase formed the basis for Gaye's last hit (the extent of Ritz' contribution has been disputed but Gaye's estate eventually settled a lawsuit with Ritz by granting Ritz partial songwriting credit); in 1982, "Sexual Healing" reached the top of the Billboard R&B chart, peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Gaye the first two Grammy Awards of his career. Gaye may never have found the healing that he sought but his daughter Nona offered an interesting take about love in the March 2002 issue of Esquire: "You know, we're allotted three soul mates in a lifetime. So don't give up hope when you think you found your soul mate and it doesn't work out. You get three. I don't know if you always find all three."

Here is an intimate look at Gaye's Belgian interlude, from the Richard Olivier film "Marvin Gaye: Transit Ostend":

As a chess player, the name Ostend always conjured up for me images of the famous tournaments held there in the early 20th century but now when I see or hear Ostend I think first of Marvin Gaye seeking refuge there before making one last ascent to the top of the music business. Without the brief Ostend respite we may never have received the gift of Gaye's "Star Spangled Banner" or the aching yearnings he expressed in "Sexual Healing"--and if Gaye had stayed in Ostend instead of returning to the United States maybe he would still be alive and would still be creating music like his contemporaries Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones and Bruce Springsteen. The way that Gaye played the piano with such unbridled joy (starting around the 9:00 mark of the video) is beautiful--and particularly poignant considering that those talented fingers would soon be silenced forever. You can also hear part of "What's Going On" starting around the 42:00 mark.

Despite his suffering and his torments, Gaye lived up to the artist's mantra that he stated in the opening moments of "Transit Ostend": "What's Going On" issued a clarion call to wake up the minds of "mankind and womankind" to societal ills that must be addressed in order for our species to survive; Gaye's brother had fought in Vietnam, Gaye had witnessed poverty, racism, suffering and ecological problems and his thoughts/feelings about all of those issues just poured out of him. Neither his depression about Tammi Terrell's death nor Berry Gordy's objections could contain Gaye's urgency to produce his masterpiece and that is the essence of great art: powerful thoughts/feelings that a genius does not merely want to express--he needs to express those sentiments creatively as much as he needs to breathe, to drink and to eat and he cannot survive without doing so.

Starfish and Coffee

"If you set your mind free, baby, maybe you'd understand."--Prince, "Starfish and Coffee"

I always liked Prince's "Starfish and Coffee" but only recently did I learn the full meaning behind this catchy and deceptively simple song. The song's Cynthia Rose character is based on a childhood friend of Susannah Melvoin's; Melvoin was not only a member of Prince's band Revolution but at one time she was engaged to Prince and she also reportedly inspired him to write the song "Nothing Compares to U" (which became a number one hit for Sinead O'Connor but never sounded better than when it was performed by Prince and Rosie Gaines). Prince and Melvoin co-wrote the "Starfish and Coffee" lyrics describing a girl who "always stood at the back of the line/A smile beneath her nose." Cynthia Rose had a favorite number (20), she wore different-colored socks and if you asked her what she had for breakfast she would reply, "Starfish and coffee/Maple syrup and jam/Butterscotch clouds, a tangerine/And a side order of ham." Most people know at least one person like Cynthia Rose, someone who proudly and unashamedly marches to the beat of a different drummer. The song lyrics encourage Cynthia Rose to be herself and not try to conform: "Go on, Cynthia, keep singin.’"

Prince videos can be difficult to find on the internet due to copyright restrictions but here is Prince performing a version of "Starfish and Coffee" on the Muppet Show in 1997:

"Earth Maze" Depicts "Unknown Potentialities Within Self and Nature"

After I played in the Second Annual Michigan Chess Festival, my friend Erika Klotz took a picture of me standing next to Derek Wernher's "Earth Maze" sculpture. I assumed that the inscription on the plaque next to the statue would be legible in the photo but later realized that this was not the case. However, after doing some research I found the complete text:

"EARTH MAZE"

The sculpture incorporates the circle or sphere as the symbol of unity of self as well as union between man and nature. The interior or maze portion of the sculpture is a network of interconnecting passages and spaces representative of unknown potentialities within self and nature. The opposing of smooth and rough surfaces, spherical and angular forms in the piece, are different ways of blending contradicting elements to express wholeness. "Earth Maze," which is eight feet in diameter and weighs over two tons, was created by Derek Wernher of Metamora, Michigan for the Northfield Hilton Inn.

Here is the photo of me standing in front of "Earth Maze":

Erika also took a closeup shot of the interior details of "Earth Maze":

I spent the rest of that day touring Troy, Michigan with Erika, a fun conclusion to my birthday weekend trip--a trip that represented a milestone in my ongoing efforts to change my Perspective about life.

The evocative phrase "unknown potentialities within self and nature" can be interpreted and perceived in many ways. It reminds me of, among other things, the main title sequence for the Incredible Hulk TV show:




The voice-over describes Dr. David Banner's quest to tap into "the hidden strengths that all humans have."  While the show emphasized physical strength, the greatest strength that all humans have is the strength of the human spirit--the capacity to know right from wrong, good from evil and then act on this knowledge even at the risk of suffering personal harm. After Dr. Banner's scientific experiment went awry, his physiology became permanently transformed and whenever he became "angry or outraged" he acquired the necessary physical strength to confront whatever evil or torments afflicted him. The capability to "hulk out" and wreak havoc against wrongdoers is an alluring fantasy but the show wisely depicted the downside as well: Dr. Banner had no memory of or control over his "hulk outs" and he was extremely concerned that he would harm innocent people (even though the show's viewers realized that the Incredible Hulk, though apparently simple-minded, possessed Dr. Banner's inherent goodness and gentleness). Dr. Banner futilely sought to cure himself and/or to remove himself from any situation that might cause him to "hulk out." A child might look at the Incredible Hulk and merely see someone who uses great physical strength to control his surroundings but Dr. Banner perceived the Incredible Hulk as an entity that lacked self-control, the most important kind of control; a passage in the Bhagavad Gita--quoted at the beginning of Jerzy Kosinski's National Book Award winning novel Steps--states, "For the uncontrolled there is no wisdom, nor for the uncontrolled is there the power of concentration; and for him without concentration there is no peace. And for the unpeaceful, how can there be happiness?" The control in question has nothing to do with manipulating others through the application of force (physical, verbal or otherwise) but rather controlling oneself--one's thoughts, emotions and actions. Dr. Banner lacked peace and happiness because he could not find a way to control the "raging spirit that dwells within him," a very apt metaphor for human existence on both the individual and societal levels because "raging spirit" can be observed in both mundane circumstances (a road rager's extended middle finger) and extreme circumstances (mass murder).

Dr. Banner's quest was poignantly captured by the haunting "Lonely Man Theme," played during the closing credits of each episode of the Incredible Hulk:



Bill Bixby, the actor who portrayed Dr. Banner, died of cancer a couple months before his 60th birthday. In his final interview, he displayed both the strong will and gentle spirit that he had in common with Dr. Banner, declaring that some people cease battling as soon as they hear the dreaded "C word" but that his attitude was, "You come and get me and you drag me away. But I'm not going to contribute to my own death." Bixby concluded with these touching words: "Be good to yourselves, because if you're good to yourself, then you'll be kind to everybody else. I'd sure like to see that before I die."




Being good to ourselves as a prelude to being kind to everybody else is an excellent way to express the "unity of self as well as union between man and nature" that Wernher depicted in "Earth Maze." In the concluding episode of Cosmos (titled "Who Speaks for Earth?"), Carl Sagan declares, "The civilization now in jeopardy is all humanity. As the ancient myth makers knew, we are children equally of the earth and sky. In our tenure of this planet, we have accumulated dangerous, evolutionary baggage--propensities for aggression and ritual, submission to leaders, hostility to outsiders, all of which puts our survival in some doubt. We have also acquired compassion for others, love for our children, a desire to learn from history and experience, and a great, soaring passionate intelligence--the clear tools for our continued survival and prosperity."

Prince's First Appearance on American Bandstand

The two hour Dick Clark tribute show that aired on New Year's Eve counted down the top 30 moments/clips from his career, an eclectic selection of highlights that showcased Clark's versatility, ad-libbing skills and peerless ability to connect with artists (and fans) from several different generations. Choosing such a list is inherently subjective because Clark's multi-decade career cannot be summarized in just two hours--or, to be more precise, his career could be summarized in several different ways if only two hours are available to do so.

One clip that did not make the cut is Prince's American Bandstand debut, a performance that became as infamous for Prince's brief answers when being interviewed by Clark as it did for Prince's precocity; Prince's debut album, "For You," contained this soon to be famous declaration on the cover: "Produced, Arranged, Composed & Performed by Prince." Clark explained that Prince turned down several record deals until he obtained the right to make that declaration not just a dream or a boast but a reality. Although Prince was in fact 21--not 19, as he told Clark--when he appeared on American Bandstand, he was just a teenager when he put together "For You."

Here is the complete version of Prince's January 26, 1980 American Bandstand appearance:

 

 
Creative and financial control over all aspects of his work has always been critically important to Prince, which has led to some wonderful results and some bizarre moments; the highlight of Prince's career happened just four years after his appearance on American Bandstand when Prince became the first person to simultaneously have the number one movie, album and song in the United States (the Beatles previously pulled this off as a group): "Purple Rain" was both the number one movie and number one album and--even though the title track stalled at the number two spot--two "Purple Rain" singles reached the top of the Billboard charts ("When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy"). Prince's determination to control every aspect of his career later resulted in him changing his name to an unpronounceable symbol because he wanted to release his music on his own time frame but as Prince he was still under contract to Warner Brothers, a company that felt that he was diluting the market with too much product. Prince told the New York Times' Jon Pareles, "The music, for me, doesn't come on a schedule. I don't know when it's going to come, and when it does, I want it out. Music was created to uplift the soul and to help people make the best of a bad situation. When you sit down to write something, there should be no guidelines. The main idea is not supposed to be, 'How many different ways can we sell it?' That's so far away from the true spirit of what music is. Music starts free, with just a spark of inspiration. When limits are set by another party that walks into the ball game afterward, that's fighting inspiration." Prince has never been afraid to confound record company executives, so-called experts, the carping critics and even his adoring fans while he remains true to his vision of how his art should be created, performed and distributed.

Theater director Peter Sellars--who staged a critically acclaimed series of Mozart's operas--compared Prince's creativity to Mozart's and many other highly respected musical artists speak of Prince in the most reverent tones. Prince explained to Pareles that new songs are constantly flowing fully formed through his mind: "You hear it done. You see the dancing; you hear the singing. When you hear it, you either argue with that voice or you don't. That's when you seek God. Sometimes ideas are coming so fast that I have to stop doing one song to get another. But I don't forget the first one. If it works, it will always be there. It's like the truth: it will find you and lift you up. And if it ain't right, it will dissolve like sand on the beach.''

It would have been fitting for Prince to be included alongside Michael Jackson, Madonna, Elvis Presley and the other 20th century musical icons featured in the New Year's Eve tribute to Dick Clark.

Perspective

I celebrated my birthday last month by treating myself to a trip to the Second Annual Michigan Chess Festival, held at the MET hotel in Troy, Michigan. I lost rating points and did not win any prize money but I will always have fond memories of my first visit to Michigan because it represented one more milestone in my evolution from a mindset based on willpower to a mindset based on what Garret Kramer calls Stillpower. Kramer emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between "life" and "life situations." Kramer explains, "Your life is a constant. While most of us think that external circumstances actually happen to us, in truth they don't. They're just happening. All life situations are just happening. Granted, we play a role in the outcome of whatever it is we face, but regardless of our role or whether we're happy or disappointed, the nature of all circumstances or results in life is unbiased. This basic understanding is essential to your quest for success." I went to Michigan with the mindset that my life is good regardless of how I perform in the tournament and that I would savor every moment of my trip regardless of what happened on or off the chess board.

Until very recently it would have been difficult for me to enjoy myself at a tournament if I did not play well--and I set a very high bar to define playing well, which can turn life into a joyless all or nothing proposition. This time I did not allow my performance to affect my mood during the weekend; although I did not play as well as I wanted to play, I learned from my two losses versus Grandmaster Ben Finegold and National Master Seth Homa, I enjoyed GM Finegold's Saturday lecture about GM Hikaru Nakamura and I had an interesting conversation about chess, poker, backgammon and other subjects with Senior Master Fred Lindsay, a bookseller who I have known since my chess career began in the 1980s (I also bought some cool items from Lindsay, including an English translation of GM Miguel Najdorf's Zurich 1953 book).

Both before and after the tournament I spent some quality time with my friend Erika Klotz, a Troy native who showed me around town. My pre-tournament mindset often involves isolating myself so that I can visualize playing well without being bothered by any distractions but in Michigan I took a different approach; I enjoyed a nice Friday dinner with Erika at Noodles & Company--I'd never been there before; the chicken soup is very good--and after the short drive back to the MET we found a quiet corner in an unoccupied ballroom so that I could teach Erika some chess basics. I have been teaching chess since 1999 but I rarely teach complete beginners so I do not have much experience showing someone how the pieces move; it is fascinating to see the game through "beginner's eyes" and this is also a good way to look at life: to perceive each moment as something new, exciting and wonderful.

Erika learned very quickly and thus was able to follow algebraic chess notation well enough to play through one of the most famous miniatures in chess history, Paul Morphy's 1858 "Opera Game" versus Count Isouard and the Duke of Brunswick:

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Bg4 4.dxe5 Bxf3 5.Qxf3 dxe5 6.Bc4 Nf6 7.Qb3 Qe7 8.Nc3 c6 9.Bg5 b5 10.Nxb5 cxb5 11.Bxb5+ Nbd7 12.0–0–0 Rd8 13.Rxd7 Rxd7 14.Rd1 Qe6 15.Bxd7+ Nxd7 16.Qb8+ Nxb8 17.Rd8# 1–0

The final position is a picturesque model of artistic harmony combined with brutal efficiency; Morphy sacrificed virtually his entire army in order to deliver checkmate:

Siegbert Tarrasch once said, "Chess, like love, like music, has the power to make men happy." One of the great joys of life is to savor the creations of a genius' mind and you don't have to be a genius to appreciate Mozart's music or Morphy's moves because the touchstone of genius is simplicity: think Richard Feynman and his demonstration about the O rings after the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. Morphy's Opera Game has that touchstone of genius, so it is a pleasure to share a glimpse of that kind of genius with someone who previously did not know anything about it.

Perhaps inspired by the experience of sharing Morphy with Erika, I secured victory in my fifth round game with a nice tactical shot: in the position shown below I played ...Bh3+! If White takes the B then Black forces mate with ...Nf4+ followed by ...Qh5+ and Qf5++; White instead lost the Exchange after Kg1 and he resigned seven moves later.

Instead of lamenting the blunders that transformed my fourth round game from a win to a draw to a loss, I focused on being grateful for the opportunity to play in this fun tournament and I enjoyed finishing the event on a positive note with a crisp win.

Before I drove home on Monday, Erika showed me around Troy. We first visited the Somerset Collection in order to see the Sorvikivi Floating Stone Fountains (one of them is pictured below, courtesy of a public domain photo on Wikipedia:



The next stop on the tour of "The City of Tomorrow, Today" was the Troy Community Center, home of the Ayrton's Head sculpture that used to be located in front of Kmart's world headquarters: