Group Effort

I'm not a notably creative person, though I have my moments. I suppose that's why I'm especially interested in the kind of creativity associated with various kinds of group. The ways things get done in the theatre fascinate me, partly because I've contributed to that kind of creativity myself whilst being keenly aware of my own lack of genuine originality. I'm more than happy to feed off the talents and ideas of others. Doing so gives me a definite buzz.

And then there's the world of music and its various 'group creations' - indeed, the very notion of the group or band in the sphere of popular music. I've just been reading about The Clash in the period that they came up with the classic London Calling album and it's striking how the key four players involved fed off each other. And how the group itself fed off the wider scene of which they were a part. Given the general embracing of a spirit of chaos in which they invested it's something of a miracle that anything great came out of it. But that's part of the mystery. It really shouldn't work. But it does, sometimes, and we all profit.