Friday, May 24, 2013

Writing: "Tighten Up" by Archie Bell and The Drells

I can tell that I'm in a major transitional phase of my life.  As with all things in life, in general, there is a natural ebb and flow.  But lately I feel that my usual gentle ripple is merely the start of a roaring tide.  How do I know this fact?  Well - I've been receiving more and more interest in my WIP (work-in-progress) manuscript.  And this interest is not just from any 'ole body, it's from some pretty heavy hitters in publishing.  To say that I feel GREAT about all of this attention would be the understatement of the year.

Note: I do have a finished manuscript that is slowly (SLOWLY) making the rounds.  But what folks seem to REALLY want is the book that isn't written.  I have large account sales in my day job CV, so I can say with authority that customers always want the product you don't have.  To paraphrase my old boss, "there is infinite demand for the nonexistent or unattainable." So true....

I am making progress on my WIP, though.  And I received some AMAZING feedback on the first five pages from a well known agent.  This person is uber-busy, so the fact that they gave me line edits was a shockingly pleasant surprise.  In short, their advice was "Tighten Up."  Which led me to this week's entry for my mix tape.

"Tighten Up" by Archie Bell and The Drells

Ok, so I know that The Black Keys recently released a song named "Tighten Up", but I had to go back to this 1960's track!  First, it is more fitting for my post message.  And second, when given a choice, I prefer the lesser known (more obscure) song.  I will be honest and say that I haven't done my research on Mr. Bell and The Drells to know if they were more than a one hit wonder, but I can say that I dig on their overall vibe.  They were an integrated band, in Texas, in the 1960's - how interesting and FANTASTIC is that??

Overall the song is meant to be danced to....mostly, because it is in the tradition of songs intended to launch a new dance craze.  (Think Chubby Checker's "The Twist" or Digital Underground's "Humpty Dance" or any other number of examples.)  For this reason, the song is catchy.  Specifically, I love the bass and drums, but it is the lead guitar and horns that really make the tune stick with you.  In fact, I will randomly find myself humming this song or repeating Mr. Bell's humble words at the start of the song:

"We don't hardly sing, but we dance just as good as we walk...."


Looking good, girl...but I gotta get to writing!!  :D



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