Great quote. But if you die?

Spyro Gyra used to be one of my favorite bands in the world. I still own nine of their albums:

http://www.shunn.net/bill/music/artist.cgi?284

I stopped listening to them after 1987's Stories Without Words, however. In my opinion, that was their last worthwhile album. The tunesmithing quality on that album was quite high, even if the trend toward formulaic structures and solos was well on its way to becoming entrenched.

Their 1978 debut album is a classic, and one of my favorite albums ever. It sounds as fresh and exciting today as it did when I first heard it, long Jay Beckenstein's unique sax tone had become a cliché. The album closer, "Galadriel," is one of the most gorgeous instrumental numbers I've ever heard.

Subsequent albums declined a bit in quality, though the rotating cast of supporting musicians (which included most of the smaller fusion stars of the late 70s, including the Brecker Brothers) kept things interesting. But the formula didn't seem to start sinking in until around Incognito in 1982. The next few albums had a lot of good moments—Access All Areasis especially notable for capturing their intense live energy in a way the studio recordings never did—and then there was that high point with Stories Without Words.

But I've sampled the stuff since then, or heard it on the radio, and I find that they have now come to embody everything that is pompous, boring, and pointless about smooth jazz. Too bad. I used to worship them, and I saw them live at Snowbird at least four times as a teenager.

Discuss.

Interesting. Spyro Gyra was some of the first music I ever bought for myself. I was probably 12 or 13 when I started digging them. Carnaval—that's one of the good albums.

What other childhood music do you recall?

You know, some guy wrote me just yesterday to tell me that no one can deny that logic dictates the necessary existence of a God, and further dictates that he must be merciful and just.

Sorry, but I disagree on both points. There's no logical need for a god, and if a creator does exist there is no need that he be merciful or just. Frankly, I would find psychotic an attribute far more easy to believe.