Hive Open Mic ( #openmic ) is a global community of music lovers, for music fans and musicians. Each week is a new invitation for expression and connection.
Reach Out I'll Be There
A Soul Song by Four Tops, 1966
This week's Hive Open Mic invitation is: "Reach Out," and this song was the first to come to my mind, for obvious reasons. Until now, it hadn't even crossed my mind to give it a try, so this was my first attempt. As soon as I learned the opening chords, I was realized it was the perfect storm of inspiration.
I found myself on the Texas Gulf Coast, house sitting by the beachside, feeling the ocean energy. It was a blend of elemental movement in the waves, the wind, the sand, and the sun. It was a chance to honor the anniversary of my dad's day of passage: August 6, 1996. This song is one that my dad and I shared inside our souls.
For this open mic entry, I challenged myself to tap into the essence of this emotionally-stirring song while also respecting the unique musical style that I'm cultivating. The video you see here isn't my best performance, sorry; it's just a humble attempt at something meaningful.
Reach Out I'll Be There
An Ocean-Influenced Rendition of a Classic
"Reach Out I'll Be There" is one of the core memories that shaped me into the person I am. I remember rocking it on the radio on Sunday mornings, circa 1990, enjoying the Golden Oldies on the long drive home from church. These road trips were filled with wonder: mountains, magpies, and Motown. Mmm.
According to Wikipedia, this songwriting journey is influenced by the bolero (Latin music), plus a gospel feel in the chorus, with Bob Dylan's trademark: shout-singing the lyrics. The song was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in Fall '66. It's easy to understand why this sentimental song was such a success at the time of its release—it has strummed my heartstrings throughout my youth, my early adulthood, and now again in my parenthood.
2020 is a year of social distancing, and quieting. Figuratively speaking, it occurs to me right now that our throat chakra is being challenged as a planet at this time. While recent years celebrated music and community, through creative expression and genuine connection, this year we are asked to isolate. Some are struggling to breathe, let alone sing. Bands are silencing themselves. Church choirs are quiet.
During this time, when we're struggling to find our collective voice, we are invited to focus on the voice inside. This is our calling to find and refine our talents, processing emotional energy, singing for ourselves. Singing is a God-given coping mechanism for stress. Singing is an expression of joy. Singing generates gratitude. Singing will save us.
By an awesome stroke of good luck, we also have our Hive Open Mic. This is a place where we celebrate our voices, including the voices of our instruments. This is a place where expression and connection still exist, as our voices have the potential to be amplified and heard around the world. We are working to achieve Global Harmony, and on a small scale this is already happening.
We are not alone. We are in this together. We are stronger because we have each other. To me, this song's central message: "I'll Be There" is like the voice of the God. It's also like the voice of our conscience, letting us know I am here for myself. You are here for yourself. We are here for ourselves. We are strong, healthy, happy, living well, because we honor the voice inside—the Guide Inside.
Reach Out I'll Be There
A Soundtrack for a Special Moment
I mentioned this week we zoomed to the Texas Gulf Coast. Specifically, we were in Galveston, where there are palm trees with tropical fruits and epic displays of the sky and sea. We saw dolphins swimming and pelicans diving. We saw a pink full moon and a pink sun, with sunbeams playing on the waves.
Acknowledgements
Hive Open Mic - Week 17 is underway right now, with the current theme: "Reach Out." There is still time to jump in and enjoy! Late entries are always accepted in our pressure-free event. Look and listen for this week's highlights to be released on Tuesday.
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Bio
Howdy, I’m Cabe Lindsay, a rad daddy making life with three kids and a wife: @wildfamily. Professionally, I’m a media maker, serving as the director of ARISE Video Studio. Artistically, I'm a writer and illustrator of published books: Brave Spirit, Be Well Bee, WYLD, Big Idea Patterns... Musically, I'm a bandmate of Cosmic Butterflies [And A Bear] with new music releases: Brave Spirit, Home, Colors Flying... Thankfully, I'm delighted to be here thriving on Hive!
Interesting cover, I like your voice more when you sing lower. But you can reach quite high notes. Very interesting bio, love your family.
Good luck with the competition.
!tip
Thank you! Yeah, I'm much more accustomed to singing the lower notes, and it's a real stretch working up to some of those high notes. I hope I can get up to the heights one day soon. Lots of room for improvement. :)
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Sending tips with @tipU - how to guide.
Great cover man. Really like what you did with the sound of the vocals.
Hey, thanks for the encouragement. It felt like I was onto something special, although I wasn't able to nail it. Felt like I couldn't quite reach the high notes. Just requires some more practice, I'm thinking.