Dear Colin:
In my mind, soul does not have a color because it comes from within. Others
have tried to label it and categorize it towards a particular color, but it's
essence has more to do with "feeling."
Dusty Springfield was one of the most "soulful" singers I know who doesn't
fit the traditional "mold" society has created for this term. Tom Jones, in
my opinion has soul. Sting has soul. Janis Joplin had soul. Carlos Santana
has soul. The lead singer from Matchbox 20, Rob Thomas has soul. Gwen
Steffani has soul. Cyndi Lauper has soul. KD Lang has soul. Sade has soul.
Jill Scott has soul. Dave Matthews has soul. Ann(sp?) DiFranco has soul. In
the music business, it is also referred to as "it," an unexplainable term
which translates into record sales. In this case, the beauty of soul has been
downgraded into monetary terms. The industry has further diluted "it" by
packaging it up all neat and pretty and including components that have
absolutely nothing to do with a person's raw talent.
There are many people in the music industry with "talent," the ability to
sing, write, or dance. Packaged with a pretty face and nice (though skimpy)
clothes, they do very well. However, the element of soul has the ability to
transcend from the performer to the listener in a way that is very hard to
describe. It has nothing to do with color. When Aretha Franklin was aptly
named, "The Queen of Soul,'" and James Brown was dubbed, "the Godfather of
soul," I think society started to naturally associated the term with black
artists.
Soul comes from experience and a need to communicate that experience. When I
hear a sad Irish ballad, I can feel soul in that song. I feel the soul in a
Native American chant over what was lost by a nation. Joan Baez sang a song
called "Joe Hill" long ago which touched me to the roots. It was a song about
the Union and the awful things which made it necessary in the 20's to start
it.
Joni's soul comes from her experience with life and with love. It comes from
the need to communicate the hurt, the pain, and the joy she has felt all of
her life. Soul takes courage to communicate because you expose your heart to
another human being when you do it. You strip yourself bare.
Without rambling further, I hope this answers your question that soul, in my
opinion, has absolutely nothing to do with color, but has everything to do
with being brave enough to share your heart with others.
Sherelle
