Michael Jackson & The Babies

OK, so I have this book. That makes 4 now.

It's called Musicians In Tune by Jenny Boyd, who was once married to Mick Fleetwood, and then ended up married to Ian Wallace, a drummer for King Crimson among others.

Another book I've had for a long time. Never looked at it. Not true. I looked at it. Several times. But I never read it.

It's Jenny's PhD thesis, more or less. Interviews with musicians about creativity and art and how it happens and all that. I'm a bit leery of it as a PhD thesis. To me, there's nothing particularly ground-breaking in it, so far. Everything she's said about creativity and how it develops or is nurtured is pretty well-known these days. And all you writers out there, if you happened to read this, you'd probably say, "Oh yeah, I knew that..." Channeling the unconscious, tapping into the undercurrent or the Oversoul, being a vessel, accepting the gift of inspiration. All that stuff. But it is interesting to read what all the musicians have to say, and their stories about how they got involved in music, and how they were supported (or not) by family and friends.

And Jenny herself has an interesting story. She and her sister Pattie were both Carnaby Street models, when Carnaby Street set the world standard. Pattie married George Harrison. And then Eric Clapton. They both were in India with The Beatles and the Maharishi. Fascinating stuff.

But that's not why I'm writing about this. I believe the Maharishi has left this astral plane. What I really want to do is quote from the book. Because the quote is a bit eerie, considering it was published in 1992. It comes from a section entitled Musicians as Role Models:

Keyboardist Greg Phillinganes, who's played with numerous artists including Michael Jackson, pointed to the duty that musicians have because of their music's power: "There's a responsibility because people are greatly affected by what you do. I know people don't want to believe in hidden powers or hidden messages behind music, but I believe that. I think it greatly affects people, and it's a responsibility. How can you account for the appeal that Michael [Jackson] has with the kids? I think it's positive; babies from six months to sixteen love his stuff. He's got a serious thing with the babies. I think it's very powerful."

p. 135

A serious thing with the babies? No kidding. Seriously.

What, exactly, caused Phillinganes to choose those words specifically? Talk about channeling the unconscious...