Where my last post was about the people I don’t work with. I felt called to start highlighting the people I DO work with. Their stories, their journey, their motivations and visions.
Why?
Because in an increasingly polarizing world that at times feels fragile at the seams, ready to tear, it’s a good reminder that there are people out there who represent values of dedication, love, creation, and connection.
Today, I want to talk with you about Bob.
The Curious Case of Bob and his Bass
Mind you, this is my subjective interpretation. It’s not conclusive. It’s not the full truth. But it’s my truth and my perspective and I want you to come along and read in between the lines.
Why write about Bob? Because Bob inspires. This is a story about going against the grain of the sensible for the sake of the sensational.
Let me paint you a picture of Bob. Blue eyes, short brown hair. Standing tall at 1.86m. Not skinny, not chubby, a solid frame. Swagger in his step. Gives high fives and fist bumps with an extra jolt to them. Kind. Witty. Playful. You can always find a terribly lame or absolutely brilliant joke up his sleeve. You miss 100% of the puns you don’t take. So Bob takes them 100% of the time. My kinda humour.
Bob is a musician. But Bob is no ordinary bass player. Bob’s a bass boss. Funk in his veins. Strumming the 4-string steel with a deep oomph. That oomph stems not from his instrument but is a rarefaction of the resonance beating from his soul.
How do I know? Because I knew him before he was a bonified bass player. Bob and I used to light it up. Endless nights playing records, PlayStation, pseudo-philosophizing, and watching basketball with our friends. ‘Till dawn peeked through the curtains and we dusted crumbs from the midnight munchies off of our torn-up blankets. Derelict students supreme.
The man educated me on what music really is. We’re talking vinyl to drool over: Sly & The Family Stone. Amnesty. Young Holt Unlimited. Grover Washington Jr. The Sylvers. Magnum. Robert Glasper. Dizzy Gillespie. Gil Scott-Heron. Alice Clark. This is music that stamps a soundtrack on your life as you can’t help but repeat the tracks over and over.
I mean. Just listen to this.
What was cool about his casual education was that Bob had a story to match. Like a background beat. Some obscure piece of trivia on the artist. Or the instruments used. Or a random story about the record shopkeeper that dug up a rare album.
My favourite story - albeit tragic one - was about the legendary singer Curtis Mayfield. On August 13th 1999, Wingate Field, Brooklyn, Mayfield stepped on stage on a hazardously stormy day. The conditions weren’t right. Mayfield and his band still went ahead and an unfortunate tragedy ensued. A strong gust of wind sent a lighting rig flying and landing directly on Mayfield. Broke his back in three places, paralyzed from the waist down.
As a true devotee to the craft of creation, Mayfield managed to record one final album. New World Order. Squeezing out high pitch notes under antagonizing pain before passing away in December later that year. A deeply tragic story and yet shows the dedication of an artist carrying out his calling until the very end.
This is not how Bob told the story. He told it in more or less these words. Biting his nails, tapping his other hand on the armrest, watching LeBron James and D Rose go at it, Mayfield playing in the background:
“Almost killed him on the spot, you know? Such a crazy story. Recorded his last album pretty much on his deathbed. Curtis Mayfield, man, what a legend. A real innovator till the end.”
In these stories, however long or short, Bob was able to unearth the humanness of icons. And in a way, my writing here is a humble attempt to highlight the human in the artist known as Bob.
Because that same dedication to an artist’s calling, I attribute to Bob.
And Bob had the chips stacked against him.
When we met - around 2009, Breda, The Netherlands - he had just started his studies in Marketing Economics. The kind of education that leads up the career ladder of an ad agency or some corporate marketing department. Nothing wrong with that, but not the stuff you dream of as a kid. As far as I could tell, as the years rolled by, he wasn’t animated by the future his degree promised.
We mostly hung out in dim-lit rooms of musically gifted friends, surrounded by countless records and instruments within arm’s reach. Or we’d shoot hoops on the basketball court. The thing that always struck me about Bob was how much passion he had for both the game and the music. And when it came to basketball, he played the right way: With jazz in his step and an eye for the rest of the band.
A Side Story - The Underdogs
At some point in 2012, we entered a basketball competition with a group of friends. It’s safe to say we weren’t ready to translate our streetcourt antics to an officially refereed game. We couldn’t buy a bucket even if we were underneath it. Let alone figure out which plays to run beyond a basic pick ’n roll and a catch-and-shoot. Obviously, we lost. A lot. Racking up more L’s than good for you.
Have you ever seen the Little Giants movie? Or Mighty Ducks? Moneyball? Real underdogs. That was us. A band of misfits.
In our core group there was Honders, the tallest man in the gym so by god-given design he was our center. Wally, swift and smooth with kneecaps drenched in tiger balm - at some point even able to dunk. Sebas, the bulldozing intimidating defender. And myself, more of a 3-and-D. That sounds good on paper but we had the fine motor skills of a dog coming off anaesthetics from a trip to the vet.
There were two people on the team who did know how to play: Bob and Luca. Luca was our Italian mercurial point guard, passionate and fiery. And Bob, a true bass player - if he wasn’t on your team you knew something fundamental was lacking.
Regardless of the score, we kept focusing on just having fun - a group of friends shooting the sh*t. And sure enough, as the season progressed, we slowly started to understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses.
Then it happened: symphony, harmony, playing to each other’s tune. Conducted by Bob and Luca. We tapped into flow states and started winning big time. Racking up wins against the best teams in our league. You know, the kind of semi-pros that rock branded elbow sleeves and headbands? We beat them generously with double digits, torn up sneakers, and goofy smiles on our faces.
We ended on a spectacular 3rd place in a 14-team league. A case of: the journey mattered more than the destination. And the company we found ourselves in made all the difference.
Facing the Storm
Back to Bob and his music / studies predicament. The monumental problem Bob was facing at some point, was that he was 3 years in on a 4-year study. Not the moment to back down.
Sunken cost fallacy it’s called.
You invested time and money and energy and you’re so far in that pulling away appears to be the dumbest thing to do. Plus you have family and friends encouraging and pushing you to stick through one more year. Just one more. Please don't disappoint.
But there was no joy. For Bob - and more of us at that time - the haze of substances served only to cloud the pain of a path not meant for you. Until even that numbing effect becomes unbearable.
If you live and breathe music, then marketing tactics must feel like a death sentence. If your every fibre just wants to groove, then Economics must feel like the screeching halt of a record player.
What happens when we don’t follow our passion? When you choose to be rational, choose the sensible career, the façade of material safety. Starving your truth.
From experience I can tell you what happens: we become disconnected and disjointed. And not just on an individual plane. Think about the daily weight in your shoes. How that drags across your environment too? That heaviness that’s dumped into the lap of your surrounding? The people who want nothing more for you than to shine your light and here you are dimming it.
Pause for a second. And feel the grief of a soul’s path not traversed and the myriad of frictions it casts across your entire life.
That was the storm Bob found himself in.
In these situations, the very thing that lights us up is never far, and often sits right under our noses. You have to look for it though. You have to become a tracker.
By the 3rd year of his studies, Bob was living with Joep. A gifted musician with a teacher in his soul - often displayed by his crystal-clear explanations of board game rules. Joep attended the Rock Academy and brought home sprinkles of inspiration.
That was the tipping point. One day, Bob knew he couldn’t do it any longer. He could no longer deny his desire to follow the path of music, to create. It was time to take a shot at a different future, one that still seemed far out of reach but appeared brighter than the path he was on. He chucked his studies in the f*ck-it bucket and set out a new course.
That day the weight of the world fell off his shoulders. The day he chose to follow the music.
We might think of courage as the soldier on a battlefield going head-first into enemy fire. Or a superhero saving the day. But real courage is shown when the conditions are not supernatural. When the world is not black and white. Courage is a mother moving beyond her own exhaustion for the sake of nurturing her child. Courage is saying NO when all your loved ones say YES. Courage is doing what’s right over doing what’s easy and facing the mess. Courage is seizing control of your life, your physical and mental health. Courage is owning your side of the equation.
Courage is a sort of endurance of the soul.
- Socrates
So please my dear reader, transport yourself to Bob’s situation. Take out your pompoms and cheer loud and proud: “Go Bob!”
Answering the Call
When we decide to shift to a new paradigm we’re often met with the strongest of oppositions. Seductions and distractions amplify. Going astray seems easier. The initial fire fades and is replaced by the realization that now there’s a real mountain to climb. And it’s huge. Living your calling does not come easy. You’ve got to pass the test.
Bob knew this. His current lifestyle was not going to set him up for a win. And the only way to prepare for this journey was a change of scenery.
Two years earlier I had been in the same situation, needing a change of environment in order to change the course of my life. I did so by moving into an apartment with my younger brother Lukas in Utrecht.
Lukas was a professional hockey player. Cheerful, funny, and with a lightness of being that seems to follow him like a shadow. As an athlete, he lived and breathed dedication, perseverance and discipline. It was the right environment for me to be around. In just a year I made a 180-degree turnaround. Going from lethargic and chubby, to passionate, driven, curious and knowing exactly where to aim.
And that seemed the right place for Bob too. He moved in with us and stayed for a year. Preparing for his entrance exams for Codarts - a renowned university for the arts. And getting into Codarts is far from a walk in the park.
Little Ghetto Boy
Part of the reason for this detailed story about Bob is because I remember his drive so vividly. Seeing a friend or loved one make better choices each day and noticing the subtle changes in character, in appearance. That’s nothing short of inspirational.
Little moments stand out. Such as the one where he came home wearing a thumb-ring. It might seem insignificant but underneath it was Bob breaking from conventions and embodying the creative side of an artist. Embodying the person he was going to be and he was ready to claim that new vision.
He set out to get into Codarts with the bass as his main instrument. One - out of the many - entrance exams you had to do before being admitted to Codarts is to play a song of your choice, and play it flawlessly.
Bob picked his song:
Little Ghetto Boy - Donny Hathaway.
A song seeped in funk with a challenging but oh-so-dope bass line.
Codarts only allowed 5 bass players in for the following year. And there were 200 people trying to get in. He faced a 1-in-40 shot at his dream and only a year to prepare. Bob didn’t just pick a mountain to climb, he chose his Everest.
I have to say, Lukas and myself got annoyed at times. We shared a small apartment. So the same notes being practised over and over and over and over and over can get tiring. Minor grievances because it was worth it, and Bob didn’t care, he was a man on a mission.
And if you’re here for poetic justice.
Have a read at the song lyrics.
Little ghetto boy, playing in the ghetto street
Whatcha' gonna do when you grow up
And have to face responsibility?
Will you spend your days and nights in a pool room?
Will you sell caps of madness to the neighborhood?
Little ghetto boy
You already know how rough life can be
'Cause you've seen so much pain and miseryLook out, son
Little ghetto boy
When, when, when you become a man
You can make things change, hey hey
If you just take a stand
You gotta believe it yourself in all you do
You've got to fight to make it better
You'll see how others will start believing, too
Then, my son, things will start to get betterEverything has got to get better (I declare, I believe that today)
Everything has got to get better
Everything has got to get better (just as soon as you make up your mind)
Everything has got to get better (you go 'head on and do what's right)
Everything has got to get better (I said everything has got to get better)
Everything has got to get better (I'm depending on you, little brother)
Everything has got to get better (I'm depending on you)
Everything has got to get better (Hey hey, need your help, little brother)
Everything has got to get better
Could it be that this song chose him, just as much as he chose the song?
Bob passed his Codarts exams with flying colours. Nailed every single exam. Top of the class. Golden ticket fully earned. Little Ghetto Boy grew up.
The Final Act - World’s Merging into Space
Bob completed his arc in our apartment and he moved to Rotterdam to start his new studies. Though there was the occasional check-in, chill-out and shooting hoops, we eventually lost track a bit when I moved to Indonesia in 2018.
When I started Voices Unleashed in 2020 in Bali there were more exchanges between us. We found an overlap in passion. With me here co-creating a platform for expression and Bob finding his sound, teaching and playing music every day.
It was last September (2022) when I woke up to a message from Bob.
Together with 3 other friends (Bob, Bobby, Teun, Barend) - with 1 of them, Teun, also a dear friend from our early days - Bob had started a band. Or more accurately an entire record label. And my god they rock. This is real passion birthed. Fire turned into a blaze. Music that just has you feeling and moving.
Space Grapes Records. A label focused on contemporary live music. Bringing funk, disco, and modern vibes together. Under the label there are various concepts with different band member constellations and music influences. Each of them juicy like honey: Another Taste, Jambonne, Jerry & The Melange, and more coming.
Bob shared with me they were starting to make ripples in the live music scene. And it was high time for a professional artist bio for Another Taste.
He asked me to jump in and write it. Needless to say I accepted. You can read the bio further down.
Have a listen and for the love of funk save those tracks.
Since that moment in September, Space Grapes Records has blown up.
Playing in some of the coolest venues in Europe:
ADE - Amsterdam, Tresor - Berlin, Jazz Cafe - London, New Morning - Paris.
And a bigger tour is on the way this summer. (Honestly, follow them)
When it was time to write their bio, I put my headphones on, hit ‘play’ on their album, and banged out the words in 30 minutes to the same rhythm of their songs. It was one of the most fun being-in-the-zone writing I’ve done. Fueled by honouring Bob's journey.
Another Taste - Bio - September 2022
Known for famous YouTube comments such as; “Shbengg!”, “C’Maaaan!”, “Straight Fire”, and “This is Space Boogie”. Another Taste is the amalgamation, the realization of four brains, hearts and big souls coming together to vibe. The band stays firmly grounded and in gratitude to the many music streams that influenced them. Is it boogie? Is it 70’s funk? Obscure disco? Or an ode to Burgess? It’s neither and it’s all. Indefinable yet universal. As Another Taste reinvents itself with every release but remains true to the familiar. And the familiar being that which makes us hit the floor and bop heads for more.
Where did the buzz start? An early studio recording at the home of Danilo Plessow (MCDE). Experimenting with tape and analogue equipment only, Another Taste found their sound in the beauty of the imperfection. No computers, straight-up feels instead. That initial track was plugged into a set and Another Taste dripped itself into the ether and the ears of many around the world. You could say they went viral before the first vinyl. And Another Taste is now brewing its soon-to-be-released full album. Records are pressed on 12” as a homage to the good times and to bring people together in delight.
Bob (bass), Bobby (keys), Teun (drums), and Barend (keys) each bring their individual flavour to the palette, yet it’s the collective eclectic that brings the magic. Because Another Taste extends beyond the four band members. Serving up fresh productions and sound sensations with other musicians too. Never limiting themselves to one concept. Always striving to find Another Taste.
Not long after, Bob’s equally soulful vocalist/DJ life partner Aysia approached me to write her bio too. And then another artist. And now other creatives too. These cosmic invitations have lead me to create my Founder Story service. Our threads in life are connected and Bob's strumming caused a vibration in mine.
This is where our story ends. A celebration of Bob’s development and acknowledgment of what happens when you start making the right choices from the heart. Recognizing what’s meant for us and matching it with commitment.
Parting Thoughts
For the record, Bob didn’t ask me to write this story. I wanted to highlight the people I choose to work and relate with. With stories that point to a greater meaning. And Bob’s story had been brewing for a while. Bob is dear to me, as a friend and for what he represents: a human being following his true passion.
If you find yourself on a similar path as Bob. I hope you choose to listen to the fairies. The little voices that speak to your dreams. That idea that lights a fire in your eyes and a spring in your step. Follow it. Track it. Overcome the adversity. And seize it.
What we are to do in this life comes from somewhere beyond us; it's bigger than us. We are each called to be something. We are selected. We are chosen...
But will we choose to accept this? Or will we run away? That is our call.
- Ryan Holiday, Courage is Calling
Dear reader, thank you for tuning in.
With joy,
Roel
I'm Roel W.T. Cruys. Writer, community builder, lover of all things human nature. I help people and businesses communicate better and connect deeper.
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Wat een fantastische weergave van hoe onze Bob zijn eigen paden bewandelt en zijn hart altijd volgt en zal volgen ongeacht wat anderen ervan vinden. En wat ontzettend pakkend weergegeven Roel💚 een trotse moeder xxx