1963-Infinity -- The Fast Lane

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Date Posted: 12:09:19 10/06/03 Mon
Author: Jeff Rust
Author Host/IP: net-216-37-88-217.in-addr.worldspice.net / 216.37.88.217
Subject: 1963-Infinity

Shawn's sudden passing hurt me deeply - as it did all of you, his family, friends, and fans. It has taken some time for me to collect my feelings into thoughts, and I was not able to speak at his funeral. But I always considered Shawn to be a great friend and an incomparable inspiration as a musician. So if any of you who spoke at the service see this, I just want to say 'Thanks'. Your impressions, stories and expressions of love meant very much to me, as I'm sure it did to everyone who was there.
I especially liked Richard Cushing's idea to have everyone in attendance who had an opportunity to perform with Shawn stand and identify. It was a fantastic assembly of players! (And there were many other musicians who were at the wake the previous night.) Then Richard said we should. . . 'keep it going.' And we knew exactly what he meant. Steve Cox and Darryl expressed similar ideas. And I whole-heartedly agree. We no longer have Shawn to write and play music for us or with us. But I know I will always have his inspiration. And I will never forget his sense of focus, his unquenchable thirst for knowledge, his constant desire to improve his craft, and his true love for his family.

By the way my name is Jeff Rust. Thank you, Mick Trammel, for starting and maintaining this forum. Shawn and I were born the same year, so this tragedy makes me realize so much more how short our lives can be. I remember a percussion teacher when I was in H.S. (Dr. Frank Shaffer, principal percussionist with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra) telling me: 'If you go a day without practicing, it's a practice session that you can never make up. . . nor should you even try to make it up.' And it 's true, because our passing time is something we can never retrieve. That helped me to learn to meditate and discover what my real skills are and how I can best use them to serve our art community in Memphis and elsewhere. I had an opprtunity to work with Shawn on a few projects including the Steve Harris solo CD, a live recording of Shawn with Chip Laverne and Tommy Priakos at the Poplar Lounge, and Shawn did some fantastic guitar work on a few songs of mine. He was always at his best when working on new music, the undiscovered territory where great improvisors thrive. But his ability as an improvisor and creator was firmly rooted in his study of the masters. He began studying the master composers and creators from all the eras and genres that we know as musical art. This included some of the most complex forms: the operas of Verdi, Wagner, Puccini, the 12-tone music of Schoenberg, Anton Webern, Alban Berg, the player piano studies by Conlon Nancarrow, and the dense & sensual piano compositions of Alexander Scriabin. (Thank you, Juris, for performing the music of Scriabin at Shawn's service, it was beautiful.)

Shawn definitely made connections. He connected with his chosen instruments at a very tender age, perhaps even before he arrived here. He connected with a very broad range of musical styles including the blues, which he played with such intensity. He connected with people of many nationalities, faiths and cultural backgrounds and made so many good friends. A champion of education, he connected well with his students, which could be seen also in his clinics and instructional videos. And it was obvious that his connection with his family was profound and an important support to his creative life. I feel blessed to have been one of his many musical connections. I, like so many others, would have loved to have at least 40 more years to enjoy his artistry and perhaps collaborate more. But I know that the positive energy and spirit that he stirred up while here will always be with us. And I will treasure his memory whenever I listen to his excellent recordings, meet a mutual friend, or hear one of his beautiful melodies playing in the shadows of my mind.

Peace and good music to all of you who have and will contribute to this forum. Thank you Jonas, Juris, and others from overseas for being here. Your dedication to Shawn's life means much to all of his friends. Lots of Love and my deepest condolences to Willodyne, Diane, Liz, Ashley and all of Shawn's family.

JsR

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