Friendship - Service - Music

I woke up this morning to discover that one of my friends, Matt Butler, is celebrating a birthday

Here’s a blast to the past in which I got to know Matt Butler, the leader of the Everyone Orchestra, a bit better. We’d meet in person a few years later outside the Ardmore Music Hall but this YouTube provides a pretty good introduction. What a life! This past year has not been easy but he’s out with the Everyone Orchestra still here and there. I think my first time catching the “Everyone Orchestra” was at “Gypsy Sally’s” in 2017.

While the link to the Everyone Orchestra provides a lot of context, my main focus of amazement is that this young man’s vision has managed to bring over 1000 musicians together over the past two decades to perform improvisational music. There are many videos of their performances here.

Matt and I caught up on a Zoom call a few weeks ago. His generosity of spirit deserve to be recognized more widely and I figure, what better way to say it than to post a little bit of my personal reflection and regard here on Substack. The very first post here from me titled “Getting Acquainted” has a direct connection to Matt which, at first glance, might not be apparent.

I was at the Marco Benevento show at the Black Cat on April 12, 2024 and this young lady came up to snap a selfie. I had given her a “miracle” ticket to catch Karina Rykman at the 8X10 in Baltimore the previous September 22nd (2023). The reason for that is I had to make a choice between attending that show or the 10th Anniversary of the Ardmore Music Hall. I had opted for the latter, driven up to Philly for that show and then back to DC that night. Here’s a taste of what I was seeing:

The next morning, I headed down to Williamsburg, VA to visit with my late father and my mother at their home. That evening, I headed up to Richmond, VA to “The Camel” for Karina Rykman’s show there with Guerilla Toss opening. The journey home that night of September 23 of 2023 was made in a tropical storm heading up Interstate 95. Those of you who know, know!

When the selfie above was shot, as I recount in the “Getting Acquainted” post, a lady next to me, visiting from Kansas City, Missouri as I recall, who was just randomly checking out the show asked, “Are you someone famous?” I replied, “More like notorious!”

However, the truth is, I am an imp. I inhabit the animal that bears the label of Harold Bledsoe Gill, III doing the best impersonation of that individual I can. I play the role.

I have come to the conclusion that I am “Nothing Special” but my fellow travelers are.

They are special to me - because of who they are and what they do with what they have where they are. Listening now to the September 22, 2023 show that Matt led - hearing the keyboard fills provided by Holly Bowling, the vocalists soon to be chiming in and the bass surging up from Dave Dreiwitz, I’m reminded of just how lucky I was to be there for this performance - improvised on the spot. We were lucky to be there.

In general, I’m aware how fortunate I am to have Matt still in the world as well as being in the world myself - against the odds. We are all miracles. Matt’s birthday has provided me with a good writing prompt - but even more so - he’s provided me with a sound track. If you’ve taken the time to listen to the panel talk, you’ll know just how miraculous it is that he has carved out this path through life. I’m grateful for everyone, as I was talking about a couple of days ago. Cultivating a sense of gratitude is one of the most important projects in which I have engaged. I express it by providing something of myself to those causes that my friends also support. In the case of the weekends of “Unlimited Devotion” since 2016, the causes are Camp Winnarainbow and the Rex Foundation.

Did this resonate with you? If so, why not:

I can only do this because there are 11 of you who have subscribed at one of the paid levels. Everyone who subscribes for free is appreciated, of course, but I could sure use more support to keep these posts flowing! Thank you all in advance for your support.