From The Classical
The Celtics and Blue Note Records in the late fifties and early- to mid-sixties each offer up a confluence of instinct, teamwork, vision, flexibility, talent, luck and belief. If the likelihood of all those factors coming together to produce comparable dynasties today seems remote, it’s good to remember that it only looks so concrete in reverse, from a distance. As much as they stand for quality, fidelity, and consistency, they’re also reminders that dynasties are not monoliths. The game is too mercurial for that; the world spins too fast. If what Blue Note and the Celtics created was not quite permanent, it was at least enduring. In their ragged, human particulars, these dynasties are neither formulaic nor prescriptive, but reactive and alchemical.