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Sometimes things happen and make you want to do something totally out of character for you. For me, that "thing" was the opening night of the 37th Clearwater Jazz Holiday Thursday. I'm not what you'd call a "Kum ba yah" type of girl, so I've struggled with how to say this, but here goes: Something about both the Commodores and Kool and the Gang last night made everyone in the crowd one color, and all the #AllLivesMatter bullshit receded — just for a few hours — and I felt like maybe, just maybe, there's hope that we're not all going to kill each other one day quite soon.
It's not because either group discussed any current events, or did even the slightest political things — these two bands may be, in fact, the most apolitical bands you'll ever see. The Commodores brought the soul —and the funk — and Kool and the Gang… well, let's just say it's hard to be of a certain age and hear "Sexy" and not white girl dance. The Commodores seemed more sedate — I blame the waning daylight and the still-filling park — but solid, and certainly appreciated. Kool and the Gang reminded us all why we should have at least two of their songs on our sex playlist (pretty sure more than one of two couples went home to specifically "get down on it" after the show).
I am old enough to remember when some of these songs first saw the radio waves, and they weren't political then. They're not political now. Simply put, they're solid. So why the happy-clappy assertion about "one color"?
Look, statistically, at least one of those people in the crowd last night was a crazy racist — maybe more — but the crowd had a nice mix of multiracial couples and white black people. I'll admit, I wish I had seen more black faces, but the music thrummed through the air with a funky energy, inspiring a goodly bit of the aforementioned white girl dancing. At the Commodores urging, people turned to each other and high-fived, said hello and asked each other how they were doing. Corny? Maybe.
But maybe that — and music — is the first step in healing what's hurting. And if I'm wrong? Well, it wasn't jazz, but it was still a damn fine start to the Holiday.
The Clearwater Jazz Holiday rolls on all weekend. Read our preview of the event at local.cltampa.com and our feature story on the good work organizers are accomplishing at cltampa.com/music.
This article appears in Oct 13-20, 2016.