From John Steinbeck's, East of Eden . . .

"Our species is the only creative species, and it has only one creative instrument, the individual mind and spirit of a man. Nothing was ever created by two men. There are no good collaborations, whether in music, in art, in poetry, in mathematics, in philosophy. Once the miracle of creation has taken place, the group can build and extend it, but the group never invents anything. The preciousness lies in the lonely mind of a man."

I thought that was worth sharing.

-Ted

Has anyone else noticed that the USGA has ignored the collaboration of golf writers as architects?

I've also observed Paul Cowley out in the field with no one else around him carrying on a conversation quite loudly with someone who clearly wasn't there. He certainly wasn't talking to me and I really didn't want to say anything about it and I certainly didn't want to ask him who he was speaking with but I did notice when he was done it seemed like he'd resolved whatever architectural problem he had.

From John Steinbeck's, East of Eden . . .

"Our species is the only creative species, and it has only one creative instrument, the individual mind and spirit of a man. Nothing was ever created by two men. There are no good collaborations, whether in music, in art, in poetry, in mathematics, in philosophy. Once the miracle of creation has taken place, the group can build and extend it, but the group never invents anything. The preciousness lies in the lonely mind of a man."

I thought that was worth sharing.

-Ted

Without any concrete examples, I'd say this is too simplistic.  I might agree that most but not all great creations are the brainchild of the solitary thinker.

TEP,

Thanks for the C&C anecdote.  During one of my two visits to the Sand Hills, they were there, having dinner one night.  Although I didn't obsess on their presence, I did look over a few times, and neither one appeared to say anything.  They're a quiet bunch.

I don't know about that ... Lennon & McCartney were pretty successful, for one pair of collaborators.  In fact, there are a whole slew of songs with separate musical & lyrical credits.

I've also observed Paul Cowley out in the field with no one else around him carrying on a conversation quite loudly with someone who clearly wasn't there. He certainly wasn't talking to me and I really didn't want to say anything about it and I certainly didn't want to ask him who he was speaking with but I did notice when he was done it seemed like he'd resolved whatever architectural problem he had.

Tom....you probably were watching me while I was cell phoning.

"Tom....you probably were watching me while I was cell phoning.  

Yeah, maybe that's what it was. I mean here we usually are, way out in a field in the middle of nowhere with few around and that cell phone of yours makes it seem like we're in Grand Central Station! By the way, if you don't do it first I'm personally going to get rid of that Clint Eastwood "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" ring tone on your cellphone!  

Jason:

Your analogy would be better to say that Lennon did the greens and McCartney the bunkers ... they weren't doing the SAME thing.  And yet few of us are so into music that we separate the two pieces in terms of our enjoyment.  (And George could built great greens, too, when they let him.)

In terms of the quote at the start, though, I would agree in that case that the "genius of creation" did not spring from both simultaneously ... I'm sure each song started with a bit of music or lyrics and evolved from there through hard work.  In golf course architecture, if there is a comparable moment of artistic inspiration, I would say for most projects it comes during the routing of the holes.

Philippe:  Somebody's got to keep the beat going.

TomD:

Did you realize McCartney can't read music? Do you think that might be something akin to you not being able to understand or use a topo?

He keeps saying he wants to learn to read music one of these days but he's just been too danged busy for the last thirty five years or so.

Did I tell you I ran into him about three times over two days this year in Easthampton?

Yep, and the last time I ran into him he looks at me, or maybe he was looking at my golf cap that said "Prairie Dunes" and he says; "Where's that?"

Yep, and I said to him:
"Well who the hell wants to know and by the way would you consider changing your clothes tomorrow because you've been wearing them for two straight damn days?!"

I can't read music either, at least not fluently enough for it to be of any use to me. But I have, in a roundabout way, scored parts for a string section...

The key to Steinbeck's quote is - 'Once the miracle of creation has taken place, the group can build and extend it, but the group never invents anything.'

Certainly this is the way Lennon and McCartney wrote. They never collaborated on an idea and they very rarely did more than help fine tune the other's idea. They were, in fact, more like editors to each other.
The only exception, I believe, is 'A day in the life' which two unfinished song ideas stuck together. No prizes for guessing who wrote which bit.

Jamming to create songs is the musical equivalent of the Hollywood screenplay thinktank, or round table, and we all know what great movies this approach has given us. The only band I can think of that did it successfully (Talking Heads) had an undisputed leader who made the ideas into songs.

Successful songwriting partnerships almost always have strict demarcation of role - one writes the words, one the music. Elton never wrote a lyric, although he did give Bernie pointers, and themes that he would like to sing about - Someone saved my life tonight is a song that was written out of Elton's experiences (accepting his homosexuality, I believe) but Bernie wrote the words. Very good they are too.

All of this leads me to believe that it must have been very tough for Tom and Jack at Sebonack, but Tom's relationship with Urbina seems like a natural sure thing.

Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person.

It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer.

Albert Einstein

He doesn't discount collaboration, but it isn't necessary either.