"I've thought about doing it as soon as it is possible with this new CD getting some wings and getting out there. I don't know how soon that will be"
About this Quote
There is a particular kind of humility baked into the phrase "as soon as it is possible" - the humility of a working musician who knows the calendar doesn’t belong to him. Al Jarreau isn’t selling a grand artistic mission here; he’s describing the backstage math of momentum: a new CD needs "wings" before it can carry him "out there". That metaphor is telling. Records don’t just drop; they have to be lifted by radio, reviews, word of mouth, maybe a late-night performance, the slow-to-build proof that an audience is ready to meet the songs in person.
The intent reads practical but the subtext is emotional. Touring is framed as desire ("thought about doing it") held in check by timing, market forces, and the physical demands of performance - especially for an artist whose instrument is a body and breath. "Getting out there" is classic musician shorthand: it means stages, crowds, travel, and the unglamorous churn between cities. It also means connection, the real payoff after the studio’s controlled environment.
"I don't know how soon that will be" lands as an honest shrug, not coyness. Jarreau is acknowledging uncertainty without dramatizing it. In the CD era - when labels still mattered, but audiences were already splintering - that uncertainty was structural. The line captures an artist caught between craft and commerce, eager to move, waiting for the wind to pick up.
The intent reads practical but the subtext is emotional. Touring is framed as desire ("thought about doing it") held in check by timing, market forces, and the physical demands of performance - especially for an artist whose instrument is a body and breath. "Getting out there" is classic musician shorthand: it means stages, crowds, travel, and the unglamorous churn between cities. It also means connection, the real payoff after the studio’s controlled environment.
"I don't know how soon that will be" lands as an honest shrug, not coyness. Jarreau is acknowledging uncertainty without dramatizing it. In the CD era - when labels still mattered, but audiences were already splintering - that uncertainty was structural. The line captures an artist caught between craft and commerce, eager to move, waiting for the wind to pick up.
Quote Details
| Topic | Music |
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