Yesterday I wrote about a personal commitment in my work. It actually set off a bit of a word association when the other night I saw a few minutes of a film I hadn’t seen in many years , The Commitments, the story of an Irish band that plays old school rhythm and blues. It’s a nice film with a lot of humor but the part that caught my eye was seeing the band’s guitarist and realizing it was Glen Hansard who starred in and wrote most of the music for the Irish film, Once, a couple of years ago. He won an Oscar for his songwriting on the film. Even though it isn’t a film I would necessarily urge everyone to see there was something about Once that I really found engaging even though I can’t really define it. Maybe it’s just the affability of the characters. I found myself really rooting for the two main characters and liking the music as well.
Now the word association comes with the following clip from the film where the two main characters have rented a recording studio to record a demo with a back up band assembled from street musicians . The technician at the studio hasn’t much interest in them as they start. They play the song, When Your Mind’s Made Up, building layers of sound and tempo with each refrain. What I like about this scene is the technician’s recognition as they play that this was something real, something authentic built on their commitment to the music. I’ve seen that look when someone has underestimated you then realizes there is more than meets the eye.
Anyway, take a look and give a listen…
Redtree Times 
I liked this movie, too. I didn’t know that the lead was also in the Commitments, another terrific movie about music.
As for the look, here’s my story: Years ago I worked at an ad agency and it was a horrific experience. The politics were like a convenience store killing, brutal and senseless. That year for the company Christmas party, they booked a band that I had worked with a dozen years before. The guys asked me to sit in on a few numbers. I did. I blasted the first few notes of my solo and looked into the audience of co-workers. They were universally slack-jawed as they realized that they didn’t know who I was, in fact, they didn’t really know me at all.
That was a great moment.
Great story, David.