Warning! Sports content below!
A couple of years ago, excited by the Golden State Warriors late season run into the playoffs and a favorable first round matchup with the Dallas Mavericks—resulting in an historic upset victory by the Dubs—I decided that the unconventional, chaotic style played by my team reminded me of the seventies rock and roll band, The Faces.
For one thing, I’d recently gotten The Faces box set, Five Guys Walk into a Bar…and was deeply immersed in its four volumes. It’s a thrilling, perplexing collection. Definitely not for the beginner, it’s for the fanboys and girls. For one thing, the set is not organized in chronological fashion. Studio recordings, live songs, airchecks, rehearsals from different periods are all mixed together. It’s disconcerting at first, but then you begin to understand why this is so: it’s a representation of the eclectic creativity that five partying guys brought to a band. What could have resulted in drunken chaos (and probably sometimes did) often did not—especially live. There’s nothing like witnessing the power of a group of individuals hitting a groove, pushing each other to discover something new in a tune they may have played thousands of times. Whatever it is that kicks them into that gear—joy, animosity, random whatever—it’s there in the moment and then it’s gone. You’re lucky if you’re there to witness it. But what about when you’re in the middle of it? It’s the rush that must make the tediousness of touring, rehearsal, and music biz scumbags momentarily tolerable or at least forgotten. And it’s nice if you can make a living at it…
Anyhoo, I digress…The point I want to make is that the rush of experiencing the surprising success of the ‘06-’07 G.S. Warriors was for me a lot like listening to the Faces. That group of knuckleheads and overachievers coached by the eccentric, brilliant, infuriating Don Nelson managed for a few months to harness basketball chaos to their advantage, to overturn the rules of the right way and wrong way to succeed in the N.B.A. We Warriors fans, so starved for any kind of positivity or success, grew drunk on the possibilities. A few made free throws against the Utah Jazz in the second round of the playoffs (or what if Houston could have gotten by Utah in the first round? We matched up well against the Rockets!) and we could have made it to the conference finals…Next season’s going to be great! Maybe we’ll land Kevin Garnett!
And then, the inevitable decline. You can’t harness chaos for long. It’s bound to follow it’s own nature. Baron Davis is bound to go back to looking out for Baron Davis (rich and in limbo with the L.A. Clippers); Rod Stewart is bound to follow what’s best for Rod Stewart (very rich, continues to shag models, makes thirty years of shite music). Nellie is Nellie, whoever that is. We are left with good and bad memories, hurt feelings, and the question “Did this really happen?”
Now here we are in ‘09. The Warriors are in chaotic chaos. Nellie has a plan either to escape or remake the team (Watching Stephen Jackson and his supporting cast right now is not unlike observing another band, the late days of the Clash when Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon played with a few flunkies to what purpose no one was sure). Desperate fans cook up fantasy trades in which Baron Davis returns to the Warriors…Sigh…let it go, people!…We’re Warriors fans, our true state is one of humorous resignation with occasional ten year flare-ups of false hope. In this sense, being a Dubs fan is a lot like being involved in a dysfunctional relationship (or some might say, is a dysfunctional relationship)—you’re always waiting for the next disaster to happen.
And here’s where the Faces come back into these ramblings. For some time last year it was reported/rumored that the surviving members of the band would be reuniting to play shows and possibly record a new album in ‘09. I weighed my mixed feelings of disgust (without the late Ronnie Lane, the heart and soul of the band? bollocks!) and curiosity (how much would I be willing to pay to…what am I thinking? how will the fellas be able to deal with Rod Stewart’s ego? piles of money, I guess) The most recent news I’ve read is that the reunion is off. Not that I begrudge Ian and Kenny from picking up some coin, but why tarnish the memory of a great band? They’d probably end up playing “Hot Legs.”
Once again, I sigh. Let the past go. Rod Stewart won’t be the Rod Stewart of 1973 again, nor will Baron Davis be the Boom Dizzle of Spring ‘07 (although there’s a better chance of the latter, I suppose). I’m at peace with this. Just thought you’d like to know.