Filthy Mouth with a Pure Heart

So, it's 1996. I was offered a production/songwriting writing contract with a group out of Philadelphia called Boyz II Men. At the time, the best-selling group on the planet.

Living in Philly during this time was different. Fame and wealth are seducing beyond what can be explained here. You can read all the books and watch all the biopics, but it isn’t until you are in the belly of day-to-day excess and pandemonium that you realize what super-stardom is all about. Deception is plentiful and friends are few.

One of the interns in the studio where we recorded, was a gentleman named Ed Matthews. Early on, Ed showed himself to be friendly. We were very different, but we liked each other. Our backgrounds had little in common, but we respected each other. I was from the church; he was not from the church, but he was as honest as the sun is bright.

To say Ed cursed like a sailor would be offensive to sailors. His vocabulary was, well, colorful. “Good morning mother f***er,” is something Ed would say. However, I learned very quickly, that Ed was a gem of a human being. He was real, never changed his stance toward you, no matter who walked into the room. He had a filthy mouth and a pure heart.

I remember thinking Ed should turn down the voltage on the profanity, at least let me have breakfast first. Nope. Ed needed to be Ed. So I remained me, and he remained him.

It is poetic that of all the people on earth I could call at 4 am to get me out of self-inflicted?trouble, Ed?was on the shortlist. I know others with glowing characters and great dental plans who would never answer the phone.

In 2021, I opened my Facebook account to see a message from his wife. Ed had passed the day before. That hurt, badly. Even though we hadn’t seen each other in years, he was still on my shortlist. Knowing him taught me a lesson; don’t let people’s words fool you. Sometimes fools talk like saints, and a saint sometimes talks like a sailor. The 4 am rule is a good way to figure out who's who.