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| Charles Doster Feb. 26,1954 --- Oct. 27, 2001 |
| The first time I ever talked to him, we discussed getting together and playing some music. We had a mutual acqaintance, a bass guitarist, who had told each of us about the other. He`d called me to see if I was playing with anyone, and when could we meet and see what happened. We talked about what kind of music we liked and if we could work together. The usual small talk, I suppose. Then he said, he wanted to tell me something, and after I heard it, I might not want to play music with him. I couldn`t imagine what it could be, that would bother me that much. I`m not proud of it, but I`ve been into a lot of stuff in my life. Drank too much, been in jail, for things I did, and didn`t, do. So what secret could he have that was going to make me shirk away? He said, "I`m a half breed." I was speechless! Was that all? I said "So? What`s that got to do with anything?" and I laughed. Turns out, he was half Cherokee. I couldn`t, and still can`t, understand it. But he said that people had actually refused to play with him on account of it. We played together in a band for a short time, and I really enjoyed it. I think he did, too. He was diagnosed with cancer a few months back. It was already in it`s final stages, and he didn`t last long. He passed away on October 27, 2001. He was 47. The subject of prejudice and bigotry stayed on my mind, and I wrote this song. It`s called "Mixed Breeds". He and I played it together a couple of times. I wish he could have played on this recording. It`s sad that we Americans have a problem called racism, when the fact is, we are such a mixed breed ourselves. The bottom line should be, we`re all humans. I`ve done my family tree back 400 years. I`m Welsh, Dutch, Irish, and even a little bit of Native American (Cherokee), but I was born, and am, American. Charles was possibly the best lead guitarist I`ve run across, and I`ve known a bunch of them. He was a great man, who loved his family, and was fun to be around. And he was a good friend. This song, and page, are in memory of him. |