Thursday, July 05, 2018

The Future

 So, we’re winding down the 2018 Blues U camp for kids at The MacPhail Center for Music in Minneapolis, MN. I can’t say enough good things about this program, this facility or this city for that matter. So you know, this camp is a week long adventure for kids that allows them to be put into a band with other kids, they spend a week learning and rehearsing a set of songs (usually blues but that can be negotiable) and then the camp culminates with a Friday night performance at Famous Dave’s here in Minneapolis. With funding and grants, no child is turned down because they can’t afford it. 
 The first thing you notice when the camp starts is the fearlessness of these kids. They are totally open to the experience of self expression through music and the mechanics of being a supportive member of a band. I’ve yet to see an ego or any sign of anything but full on support and encouragement for their fellow bandmates and campmates. They sing and play with conviction and allow themselves to be coached and instructed so openly that it gives you added faith in our future if these are the kinds of folks that will someday take over!
 The instructors, Charles Fletcher, Jimmy “Prime-Time” Smith, J.D. Steele and myself take our groups through the week and simply guide them to the performance that we already know they are capable of and to see the look of discovery on their faces is the biggest reward, I think, any of us receive. 
 The real heroes of the camp are Jack and Lisa Campbell. The incredible husband and wife team that host the kids (all 30 of them at times!) in their home for the duration of the camp. Hey parents, here’s a challenge; host 3 teenagers for 1 night at your home…now multiply that by 10 for a week and the Campbell’s are willingly and eagerly doing that! Jack is tireless in his fundraising and in riding herd over the camp to make sure everyone is where they are supposed to be, that they’re all fed and all safe at all times. If there aren’t medals for this kind of service, there should be!

 I was blessed a few years ago to be invited to visit the camp for a day and fell in love with the project! I told Jack to count me in from then on and I consider it a blessing to be invited back each year. In a city like Minneapolis, where art is so strongly and fully supported, it only makes sense that a camp would exist that nurtures the Blues in the youth and encourages kids to pick up this art form and make it their own. I’ve got a tremendous amount of gratitude to Jack & Lisa, their talented sons, the amazing musicians who make up the coaching staff and the kids that make this camp a tremendous blessing. Thank you guys once again for letting this Tennessee guitar player feel like Minneapolis is another “hometown”!