Blue jays are a pretty flash of blue of among the green canopies, and a controversial figure for their love of other bird’s eggs, but have you ever paid attention to what they sound like? They are well known for many things, but the way I know them best is by their awful shrieking voice that often goes on and on as they try to get their point across. They are like a crow but more shrill and like 50x more obnoxious. Despite this I LOVE blue jays, and this piece came from that place of both loving and listening to the blue jays in my front yard.
There are a few pairs of blue jays that hang out in the trees in my front yard. I am never really sure what they are doing when they start squawking but when I look up to observe I see that the couples will chase each other through the trees, two pairing up against two. I may be misreading the actions, but the story I have in my mind is of a blue jay sitcom; the crazy neighbors who live in the high rise apartment next door to my home that are always getting up to silly antics.
I started this piece after hearing a tune on the radio. It was a tune I had heard many times before. I had developed the opinion that it was verging on pop but had some neat instrumentation. The singer is typically very good but in this song he uses his voice in an almost grating way. The song has started to grow on me because the music seems effective at projecting the feeling the singer is expressing. Despite hearing the song a lot I felt I heard a new instrument this time. I identified it as some sort of horn blowing one quick note every beat. I was impressed at how I had not noticed it before and how perfectly in time it was. I wasn’t sure what kind of horn it was, but I was putting on my boots and headed out the door so it was all good, no need to give it too much thought. When I stepped outside and shut the front door the song became muffled, but that horn sound continued, just a bit more shrill. Sure enough, I looked up in the trees and saw the blue jays were at it again. the new instrument was just a loud interruption by my neighbors, and man, do they know how to keep a beat 🙂
This painting represents the remorse I feel that singer is trying to express in that verging-on-pop song as well as the grating nature of the infamous blue jay squawk. I mixed all those vibes up with a bit of whimsy and joy to represent the love I feel for the colorful bird. Get Off My Case is a contemplation of what it could possibly be that those blue jays are doing when they flit around in the trees. Whatever it is, the mystery is quite glorious to observe.
I am always satisfied wrapping up a piece because it gives my mind a chance to focus on the other pieces I am working on. It also happens to be the Super Blood Wolf Moon tonight so I think it is great timing to wrap this piece up, and I look forward to looking up for a bit more inspiration tonight. Fingers crossed that it stays clear this evening!
