I was listening to Spotify as I walked to the station this morning and was reminded of an old friend that I haven’t seen in nearly twenty years.
He was brilliant and curious and kind and candid. One of those people that you just wanted to be around.
When he wasn’t being an almost Superstar DJ - and he could have been if he chose to - he was a brilliant Strategic Planner. And very senior. When we started KI, he taught me what a strategy was and how a comms plan really worked. I was a teacher and knew nothing of this world of marketing and business but his patience and intelligence helped me change direction. He once took a day off and came to Manchester with me to pitch; we won the gig. He didn’t want to be paid, he just wanted KI to win. That gig was the one that got KI moving. It helped define what we did then and what we do today.
If KI’s story followed the path of Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth, then he was a blend of The Mentor and The Ally. That would be Obi-Wan Kenobi mixed with Han Solo or Albus Dumbledore mixed with Hermione Granger. You see, he didn’t fit an archetype. Not at all.
He was also a talented composer with a contract at Virgin. Not sure at all how you’d describe his music. It’s electronic, earthy, and funky in a wah-wah kind of way. Beautifully constructed with big beats and timely drops that keep you guessing until they bring a smile to your face and your shoulders start moving all on their own. It was his music I was listening to this morning.
We lost touch, as you do. His name was Martin, and he passed in 2009. I didn’t find out for over a year, and I reflect on this a lot.
If my internal dialogue needs a second opinion, Martin’s are the tracks I most often turn to.
I introduced them to my 16-year-old son a couple of months ago. Laurence is finding what his musical tastes are, and I knew he’d like Martin’s stuff for sure. He has an internal dialogue, too.
Last night, Laurence turned his ankle quite badly at the skatepark - I had to drive for 30 minutes to an obscure part of Kent (apparently this place has the best street park for working on a trick) to pick up my immobile ward.
We often share music when we’re in the car together. And I am often surprised by the breadth of music he and his mates take in - most of it over a decade old. Once I’d lifted him into the car and we were on our way, I handed him my phone and gave him musical control. He chose Martin.
I don’t know why that made me happy or why I am compelled to share this story. Fatherly pride? Passing of the baton? A need to share Martin’s music? Celebrate a mate? I don’t think it particularly matters. Music connects people in ways few of us, except the musically capable, can really describe. We all know it, we can’t explain it, but we definitely feel it. And that’s what this is all about. I think.
I lost my copy of an EP that Martin had given me. If it wasn’t for Spotify, I might not have shared with Laurence, I certainly wouldn’t feel as connected to my past and definitely wouldn’t have the opportunity to channel Martin’s wisdom into my thinking on demand, forever. And I am grateful for that.
Here’s a link to that 1998 EP that I lost. I dare you to listen to it and not start head nodding.
Have a good day.
