See Your Music Heroes Before It’s Too Late

In case you haven't noticed, I'm a HUGE music fan. Which is one of the many reasons I love Louisiana. The home of Louis Armstrong, Lead Belly, Dr. John, Buddy Guy and countless other amazing musical talents. Literally, from Shreveport to New Orleans, you can go out and find a great band playing somewhere in town EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK! It's fantastic.

But, with that being said, I think sometimes we take our 'music privilege' for granted. We have access to all these great musicians that sometimes we pass on opportunities we shouldn't. Like, for me, The Rolling Stones are playing at Jazz Fest this year. And, once it was announced, my first reaction was "I don't want to fight with all those people...I'll catch them another time." But, sadly, there may never be another time.

All the Stones are in their 70s now. Buddy Guy is 82. Willie Nelson is 85. Dr. John is 77. Jerry Lee Lewis is 83. Opportunities to see the guys that we grew up listening to are growing shorter by the day. Jerry Lee recently had a stroke. Charlie Watts, drummer for the Stones, recently said he's contemplating retiring because he's tired of touring. I mean the days are running out for these guys.

So, my suggestion, is that we see and honor them while they are still around instead of mourning them on Facebook when they are gone.

And, by the way, all those guys I specifically mentioned in this post are on tour now or will be hitting the road in the coming weeks. Get out, see a show and experience the songs and artists that move you live before it is too late.