Earlier this year on the Grammy Awards, as they honored various elders who have passed on. Ali Farka Toure and Ertegun were two.
Then, last night PBS broadcast documentary titled Atlantic Records: The House that Ahmet Built about the Turkish-American founder of one of the biggest record labels in United States history. The story was so interesting that I was up 'til 2 a.m. (okay...not just because of the film. I had to clean the kitchen afterward. I've gotta stop staying up so late. But that's beside the point.)
Learning about Ertegun's sacred drift of body and spirit along the path of music was fascinating. And the journey was guided by love, a love of roots blues and jazz. One must also pay attention to how the historical-political, artistic strands of his family history came together to in this man to form this vision and passion. He was no saint, and who can truly claim to be, but was definitely influenced by way of the mystic.
This statement of his talks about living a fiery life fueled by passion...
"I think it's better to burn out than to fade away... it's better to live out your days being very, very active - even if it destroys you - than to quietly... disappear.... At my age, why do you think I'm still here struggling with all the problems of this company- because I don't want to fade away."
Compare it to how such inner fire is connected to the idea of spiritual alchemy/transformation.
If you're interested in more, this article captures the gist of the film. (And be looking out for the quote where he ties together Ray Charles, Carl Jung and the unconsious. I think Ertegun felt this way about all honest contributions to Soul music.):
PBS American Masters: Ahmet Ertegun
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