"...At one point in [our 2010] interview, Gil says: "If someone comes to you and asks for help, and you can help them, you're supposed to help them. Why wouldn't you? You have been put in the position somehow to be able to help this person." That undeniable truth and his simple expression of the importance of taking care of those around you who need help and ask for help was not some empty statement. Gil lived by this creed and throughout a magnificent musical career, he helped people again and again, with his willingness and ability to articulate deep truths, through his eloquent attacks on injustices and by his enormous compassion for people's pain.
. . . Hundreds of thousands of people saw Gil perform live over the decades, always with remarkable bands, and few came away untouched by his magnetism, humility, biting wit and warmth of spirit. He was the most generous of bandleaders, inspiring great loyalty and love in his fellow musicians, infecting everybody on and off stage with his singularity of vision, his charismatic personality, his moral beauty and his willingness to take his fellow travellers through the full range of emotions."
Excerped from: "My Brave and Brilliant Friend." By Jamie Byng'
Gil Scott-Heron, my brave and brilliant friend
This article appeared on p34 of the Main section section of the Observer on Sunday 29 May 2011. It was published on guardian.co.uk at 00.01 BST on Sunday 29 May 2011.
This article appeared on p34 of the Main section section of the Observer on Sunday 29 May 2011. It was published on guardian.co.uk at 00.01 BST on Sunday 29 May 2011.
The entire tribute can be found here.
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