I wrote several months ago, maybe late last year about trying to listen to some of my old music. Jimi Hendrix was an absolute favorite of mine, while blitzed to high heaven on the sauce. I tried to listen again back then, but I was not ready. The triggers were just too intense, and I could feel old drinking Neil getting a foot hold. CD put back into the archive for later.
Last night, on PBS here, they had a long PBS show on Stevie Ray Vaughan. OH SNAP!!! Oh how I loved to air guitar to his stuff while barely even able to stand. Such depth of soul stirring blues guitar riffs.
I could feel it coming back. Old drinking Neil was stirring deep within. Could I ever get to that place of blues depth and emotional release I once knew so well, while completely and totally sober??? It seems gone forever, and the trigger was there staring me in the face.
Of course, it was a lament for a bittersweet memory. I must remain totally sober. When Stevie would launch into "Little Wing", oh how being drunk on my ass would just make it seem so relevant to all that was.
Then I read a little about Stevie. He was a alcohol addict himself. He went into rehab, and became totally AF and drug-free for the remainder of his short life. You can see it in his face and physical condition during his 1989 concert appearance. Being AF was good to him in so many ways. Yet his music became even more intense and powerful.
Stevie, if you did it..... So can I.
RIP
Stevie Ray Vaughan
October 3, 1954 ? August 27, 1990
How you could play that guitar.
Neil
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