The most fun we had this past week was when the kids had the opportunity to participate in a music workshop with the Kelly Bell Band. The band was in town to perform for the base’s 4th of July concert and they offered to do a free kid’s workshop as well.
So I arrived with guitar, cajon (box drum) and 4 little people, not sure what to expect. The information said that they would do a 45 minute workshop geared toward younger kids (aged 5 to 10), followed by one for kids aged 10 to 18. Three and a 1/2 hours later my kids were bursting with music and enthusiasm having just spent the evening with the nicest group of talented, funny, generous and kind musicians and their only regret was, “We wish Dad had been here! He would have loved it!”
All 4 kids participated in both sessions — the first one went half an hour over and bled into the next one. It was a night of one long jam session, punctuated with a fabulous background of music history.
They started with the origins of modern music, the spiritual (including its importance as part of the signaling system for the underground railroad). How the popular instrument back then were strings strung on the side of a shack and played with an old bottle to get the vibrations just right. Then the move to stand alone instruments and precision guitars (with frets to mark the right fingering), the progression to blues and Robert Johnson, the father of the blues. Next came jazz and electric blues, the “pop” music of their day. Then, the rise of the electric guitar and rock and roll, moving into distortion . . . add in some funk, rap, and heavy metal and I think we covered it all.
It wasn’t a history lesson as much as different band members took turns demonstrating the various techniques and styles and telling stories of how various music styles came into being. The boys (and girl) were captivated. The band also encouraged the kids to play along with them, showing them the beat, various chords and some new skills so they could join in.
At the end of the first session they all took part in writing a blues song and then played along as the band members made up lyrics on the fly. At the end of the second session the emphasis was on poetry and rap and they brainstormed rhymes that were turned into a rap at the end.
** tragically, my phone ran out of battery part way through the first session, but I’m glad I at least got part of it.
At the end of the night the drummer gave Caleb his drumsticks (and signed them), they gave all the kids at the workshop a free copy of their new album Too Far Gone (which I love, btw and you can listen to samples on iTunes to see for yourself), and made them all promise to keep in touch and let them know how their playing is coming along. I fell in love with a group of strangers in a few short hours.
Here’s a video of them in action. They have been together for 18 years and were telling Calvin that once upon a time Jason Mraz opened for them and then a few years later he surpassed them in popularity and they were opening for him. They told Calvin to keep playing and were joking that maybe one day they’ll be able to open for him too.
