I am in love with virtuosity.

I recently had an experience on another board when I was talking "things without equal are equal to each other", and in drawing a parallel brought up Handel's Harmonious Blacksmith -- taking for granted the recording everyone would naturally have access to would be Trevor Pinnock's ©1984. [blush].
I also mentioned elsewhere Cyprien Katsaris' recordings of the Beethoven / Liszt transcriptions. the 6th in particular.

Then there's my current long time favorite well known electric guitarist, who recently having celebrated his 50th birthday has decided to "come out" as an acoustic player (yes even more extraordinary "unpluggged") and pianist (OMG! can you just say -- OMG!!??) His music *consistently* blows me away.
eric johnson.

Then of course I could rhapsodize over the artists everyone recognize: Joni, Dylan, Paul Simon, unique voices with Universal access to our collective minds and hearts. Living, expanding,Treasures.

I'm remembering more things, the soundtrack to my life unfurling like an aural crazy quilt tapestry by a benevolent goddess of music chasing the cold winter of middle age with the borrowed warmth of endless summer in songs. It doesn't matter when I heard them first -- they still ignite that spark within --all I need do is think of them: and well -- time to fire up the turn table:

The Great Paris Concert
Most anything Charlie Parker breathed on
first 3 Jimi Hendrix albums
The first single I ever bought that I hadta have pleeease Mom! -- "I Can See For Miles" by the Who (I was either 6 or 7.)
oh, those Mozart arias....
needless to say I am a guitar-a-holic: Keaggy, Redbourne, Fripp, DiMeola....
Richard Thompson's "How Will I Ever Be Simple Again". and so much more...
Songwriters, oh maaaan...
Robyn Hitchcock, Ray Davies, Lennon & MacCartney, ...
can we talk about vocal stylists?
Patsy, Piaf, Lady Day, the Divine Sarah, Ella,
oh and the fellas too -- Bennett, Sinatra, Darrin, Cooke, Elvis.. Brother Ray...

There are so many artists who blow me away you would think I spend all my time in a perpetual cloud of Happy Dumstruck Wow-zation.
well -- all I have to do is switch on Terrestrial Radio and I'm back, Jack. argh.
Thanks for the memories. Time to pop in some Christmas movies and go be sociable. If I behave and don't bite anyone -- I'll reward myself with the Brandenburgs.
Pinnock and the English Concert, of course. heheh.