I got sent to Tulsa today to cover elements of Wayman Tisdale's funeral. More specifically, the procession from the funeral home to the BOK Center in downtown Tulsa.
Hundreds of people lined the streets to say goodbye and get a glimpse of Tisdale's casket in its own horsedrawn carriage.
At the BOK (Bank of Oklahoma) Center, I was standing outside when a colleague from our sister station KOTV came out and said the service had just started. She said Fred Hammond was singing "This Is the Day."
"Did you say Fred Hammond?" I asked dumbfounded. I took a look at the funeral program that she had, and it also listed other music giants. I had to go in.
Inside I grabbed a spot just in time to hear Wayman Tisdale's band perform with Marcus Miller, Kirk Whalum, Jonathan Butler, and Fred Hammond. Dave Koz was there also, but I didn't see him play. They stood Wayman's bass guitar up in front of his casket. Outstanding.
But as awesome as that performance was, the most memorable part for me was something Koz said a few minutes earlier. He was actually quoting someone else ( I don't remember who, but it doesn't matter.)
He said basically: When you look at someone's date of birth, and then the date of their death, both are obviously important, but the REAL important part is that DASH in between. That's where the good stuff is.
Wayman Tisdale
JUNE 9, 1964------------------------------------------------------------------MAY 15, 2009.
HERE'S WHAT I SHOT, EDITED, AND POSTED... http://tinyurl.com/p6gs49
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