The Not So Grateful Dead

I thought I would blog about Michael Jackson's recent passing.  But, then I thought what could I say that many others have not already said and said  better.  Then I thought Michael has just begun to be dead, so after the initial hubbub ends and the last retro CD has been purchased, there will be significant new things to be said but I still think I will leave those comments to others.  

However, I would like to say that Michael Jackson was a great and original performer who left a huge amount of his work behind to be enjoyed by others for generations to come.  But, so too did Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Ernest Hemingway, Edgar Allan Poe, Charles Dickens, Ian Flemming and Ray Charles just to name a few.  All of them had their emotional and physical limitations, but somehow soldiered on and cranked out the everlasting art we continue to enjoy

On the other hand, there are several artists who produced some fabulous work, but, as Neil Diamond said in his song of the same title, they were "done too soon."  I'm talking about Jim Croce, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, James Dean and most certainly Heath Ledger.  I am also thinking about Harper Lee who wrote "To Kill a Mocking Bird."  Sadly, it seems, she didn't live long enough for us to find out if she had another fine novel within her.  (Author's note:  Bulletin!  Harper Lee is not dead.  Therefore, we have to substitute someone else like the photographer Diane Arbus who committed suicide before photographing anywhere near the potential of her lifetime portfolio.  Furthermore, she didn't make very many of the classic prints for which we hold her in such high regard as an artist.) And then there is  "Gone With the Wind" author Margaret Mitchell whose life was  cut short tragically by an auto accident.  Yes, within the last few years relatives found a manuscript entitled "Lost Laysen" among Ms. Mitchell's papers but nothing has come of it.  Maybe it just doesn't compare to her masterpiece.  How could it without her being around to shape into something akin to GWTW.

So, I guess the point of this is to remind ourselves to  treasure the artists that we discover early in their careers who touch that special place in our hearts and souls and dare not assume that they will be around any longer than it takes to type a semi-colon.