"I Don't Know You, But I Want You..."

A couple of nights ago, my husband and I went to a concert at the Hollywood Bowl that featured three boy/girl bands: The Bird and the Bee, She and Him (Zooey Deschanel’s band), and The Swell Season. The Bird and the Bee and She and Him were good, but as one review of the concert said, “The first few opening bars of The Swell Season's set made it clear that the children had been put to bed, and the adults had come out to party.”

The Swell Season were absolutely amazing. Both Glen and Marketa are crazy talented, but there is just something about Glen Hansard that is so engaging. He plays his music with such raw emotion, yet at the same time he is funny and warm. He is generous with the audience and with his band members. I could have watched him all night.

Yes, I am now officially in love with him.

And I guess it’s no wonder. We have so much in common. He opened the set with Tim Buckley’s “Buzzin’ Fly” interspersed with a verse of Jeff Buckley’s “Grace,” which shows that we share the same taste in music and that he adopts one of my favorite methods of introductions: using somebody else’s words.

Introduction paragraphs are perhaps one of the main causes of writer’s block. It can be so hard to get started with that first word. One way I teach my students to avoid this kind of writer’s block is to start with a quote. Not only does starting with a quote cheat writer’s block; it may also be fun for our readers because they may recognize the quote or the quoter. It’s also a show of generosity because it’s like paying a tribute.

However, when we start our introduction paragraph with a quote, we need to make sure it’s appropriate. Glen aptly started with Jeff Buckley- another raw, emotionally charged musician. It would have been jarring if he started with Ke$ha.

We also need to make sure that we don’t just lazily tack a quote on the beginning and then forget to follow through with its line of thinking. Here’s an example of a quote that’s kind of just tacked on:

“He who hears music,” said Robert Browning, “feels his solitude peopled at once.” I went to The Swell Season concert last night.

Here’s an example of drawing from the quote:

“He who hears music,” said Robert Browning, “feels his solitude peopled at once.” At last night’s The Swell Season concert, as soon as Glen Hansard walked on stage strumming his guitar, my lonely soul felt full.

It’s okay. My husband knows. After the concert, he’s kind of in love with him too.