It is obvious that we live in a culture of obsessive brevity. The pace of the world is whiplash fast— each day races by before I can even catch my breath. Well, capitalism. I want to slow down. I want to languish and linger.
if you see me walking down the street
and I start to cry each time we meet
Much of Black soul music of the 70s is at its core about elongation. Chorus after chorus, long-winded guitar solos in which to get lost. Refrains. One of the high priests of slowing down is Isaac Hayes, best exemplified by the album Hot Buttered Soul.
We are a full 2 minutes and 10 seconds into “Walk On By” before we hear his voice. Even then, it enters with an unrushed swagger, mixed parallel the instrumental track and leaning into the rhythm, echoing the counterline of the background singers. But there isn’t any background, really. His volume matches his lament.
I just can’t get over losing you
so if I seem broken in two
The instrumental almost overtakes his vocal at points as he glacially moves his way through the track, and there are long stretches of silence from him in which the rhodes crescendo. There’s a moment at 8:06 when you almost think the song will end, but it carries on for another almost 4 mins.
Our carrying on is one of my favorite things about Us. The song is (my God above) TWELVE minutes long. Most of it is without any vocal contribution. The four tracks of Hot Buttered Soul (largely just as long as the first) are a jam session, and we are but bearing witness. I imagine Isaac bobbing his bald head along with the beat, closing his eyes, undeterred by the fact that he is, after all, supposed to be singing.
you put the hurt on me
you socked it to me mama
and then you said goodbye
We are escorted out by a nasty percussion solo at around 11:30. There is such a transformative lesson to be learned in lingering. I recently uncovered a photograph of my Gigi taking a nap in her chair after Thanksgiving dinner— mouth slack. It felt so good to see her in leisure, in rest.
This album says goodbye in the same breath as it says hello. The leisurely (to say the least) pace of “Walk on By” is an exquisite example of form meeting function. The verse is lost in the melody line, because this song is about basking even as the title signals movement. This album is about swaying and forgetting where you are. It’s about getting lost on purpose. Without purpose. It’s an anti-brevity anthem. We have a lot to learn.