A Moment Frozen in Time: How ‘One Shining Moment’ Captures the Spirit of the NCAA Tournament
David Barrett draws inspiration from his surroundings. While the singer-songwriter is sitting at home, anything can occur to him. Perhaps while he is attending a wedding or enjoying a noteworthy occasion.
Or perhaps when he is conversing with a waitress at a nearly deserted restaurant.
While enjoying a beer at the Varsity Inn in East Lansing, Michigan in 1986, Barrett was watching the Boston Celtics and Larry Bird on TV. He struck up a conversation with the gorgeous server Jan Shoemaker when he was seated. He was talking about basketball and its beauty, and he admitted that he was a little frightened. Prior to being successful in soccer, Barrett was a self-described “ball hog” who was recruited to play at Albion College.
Even though he did not obtain Shoemaker’s phone number, they had a remarkable chat. Barrett took a moment that evening to scribble words on a napkin. He wrote a song and used those lines as the title.
The song: “One Shining Moment.”
“I call it my little miracle because it’s miraculous the way it fell,” Barrett said.
Someone has tipped the ball. And there you are. It is a race for your life. You are a bright future.
Barrett views basketball as more than simply a game; it is a spectacle. He watched Bird gleam that night. He attempted to explain to Shoemaker “the poetry of basketball” at the same moment.
Rather, Shoemaker departed.
“When she got up to leave,” Barrett said, “I leaned to my right, got a napkin and wrote down the title for the song — because I thought that’s exactly where Mr. Bird is right now. I played a lot of basketball growing up, so every once in a while, you know what it is when you get in the zone. So I thought there’s a song, and that’s how it got started.”
March Madness has become synonymous with Barrett’s “small miracle.” It usually means that the men’s college basketball season is coming to a close. You can anticipate hearing it on Monday night after the NCAA men’s basketball championship game.
and every year since. Nobody is aware. How much effort you put forth. However, it now appears…
Some college basketball players and coaches would kill to hear this music. It was originally included in the video montage that was shown following Indiana’s 1987 national title. The song was so amazing that it was recorded by many legendary musicians, such as Luther Vandross and Teddy Pendergrass.
“I was writing a lot of music,” Barrett said. “I was getting paid to perform, but the music … most of it was stuck in my sock drawer.
“After ‘One Shining Moment,’ I was able to pull a lot of those compositions out of the sock drawer. And then all of a sudden, I had talent.”
Everything is at stake in one brilliant moment. There, captured in time, was one brilliant moment.
Barrett claimed that while seated at the Varsity Inn, the song’s title was the catalyst for everything. The next morning, as he waited to have breakfast with a friend, he wrote the remaining lyrics. After he wrote it, he realized he had something unique. He was merely unsure of how to handle it. Although he had been writing and performing music since his teens, he had not yet succeeded in making music his full-time profession.
Barrett benefited from his relationships, such as those with veteran journalist Armen Keteyian. Both of them are from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and throughout high school, they were acquaintances but not close friends. Soon after they graduated from college, the two would become closer thanks to a mutual buddy. When Barrett visited New York in 1986 for a music performance, he lodged with Keteyian, who was writing for Sports Illustrated at the time, and his spouse, Dede.
“Honest to God, you talk about fortuitous, kismet, whatever it was,” Keteyian said. “Dave comes in to play one of his gigs in New York, and he’s got this cassette tape. He says to me, ‘Hey, I just wrote this song. I think it’s really pretty good. It’s about basketball. Would you mind taking a listen?’”
Keteyian was astounded by how well the song’s lyrics captured the energy and rivalry of sports when he first heard “One Shining Moment.”
However, time is of the essence. It is a long path ahead. in an eye’s blinking. Oh, that time has passed.
as well as when it is finished. Win or lose. You always gave it your all. Because you knew deep down
While discussing a position, Bob Tassie, a CBS executive, informed Keteyian that the network was searching for a sports anthem and asked him to let him know if he knew of one.That song was given to Tassie by Keteyian, who then forwarded it to Dave Towey, creative director of CBS.
Barrett had no idea this had occurred. He was unaware that staff members passing by were forced to stop and listen to his music when it was played in a CBS building.
When Towey called Barrett about utilizing the song after Super Bowl XXI in January 1987, Barrett found out CBS loved it too. Nevertheless, Towey decided to store the song for the next NCAA Tournament because the postgame show was running longer than expected.
“I’m sure as Dave has said, that was the gift that really changed Dave’s life other than whatever I did,” Keteyian said. “You know, it was kind of like a lightning bolt that hit.”
You dug deep inside yourself for that one brilliant moment. You realized for one little instant that you were alive.
Sports fans appeared to connect with every phrase of “One Shining Moment,” and it immediately became popular. It also touched a nerve with the coaches and players. Mateen Cleaves, who had dreamed of hearing the song played since he was a child, sobbed in 2000 when Michigan State won the championship.
Mike Krzyzewski, the Hall of Fame coach at Duke, referred to it as “the best tune for any sport in the world.” Aside from Queen’s “We Are the Champions,” Keteyian, who covered seven Final Fours for CBS, said he could not remember of another sports song that was as well-known throughout the nation.
“My wife (Tracy) pointed it out to me: She said, ‘Dave, you’ve written a generational song’.” Barrett said. “With the number of generations now, it’s, like, out in the jet stream in a way that is unique.”
The song’s original version was sung by Barrett and was included in TV montages for seven years, from 1987 to 1993. Then CBS got an idea: What if Pendergrass, a legendary soul singer, gave it a try? The Pendergrass rendition debuted in 1994 and was a fixture until 1999.
Although Barrett performed the lyrics from 2000 to 2002, Vandross sang them for the first time in 2003. Even after Vandross passed away in 2005, CBS continued to air his version until 2009.
Barrett gave four words in response to the question of whether he was envious or jealous that two of the best voices in soul and R&B music had taken the place of his version of the song.
“Are you kidding me?” he said. “Luther Vandross was the transcendent vocalist of the second half of the 20th century. I like my version. I love their versions.
“These are great singers singing the song I wrote in a tavern in East Lansing.”
Other variations exist. In 2010, networks utilized a version starring Jennifer Hudson, but the next year they returned to Vandross. In 2016, Ne-Yo gave the song a unique spin by creating versions tailored to his squad. While Ne-Yo’s renditions aired on TNT and TruTV, Vandross’ version continued to be utilized on TBS’ main program.
Take note of your heart’s rhythm. Take in the breeze on your face. It goes beyond a competition. It goes beyond just a race.
Barrett’s musical career has taken off after that East Lansing night 38 years ago. He probably already has something recorded and written that works if he is contacted with an idea. If not, there is no issue with coming up with something fresh.
For the beginning of “Beyond the Gridiron: The Life and Times of Woody Hayes,” Barrett was awarded an Emmy. He has written music for television shows and athletic events like the Olympics. He has performed on tours with acts like Art Garfunkel.
In addition, he instructs musicians and exhorts them to discover their own voice through self-expression. Seeking commercial success is one thing, but be sure you stay true to who you are.
Barrett found success with it.
“Sometimes it takes away your own voice because you’re just chasing their ideas,” Barrett said. “When I advise young people, I say just make sure you keep what’s unique about what you do and then get good at it. You can write whatever they want, but you still have what you do, if that makes sense.”
as well as when it is finished. Win or lose. You always gave it your all. Because you knew deep down
This time of year is significant for Barrett because he values his position in collegiate basketball. Barrett adores sports and the build-up to the championship game, thus “One Shining Moment” will always be associated with the conclusion of the NCAA Tournament. It has brought him satisfaction to witness athletes, coaches, and supporters belt out his song following one of their biggest victories.
“Most of the players will play in the NBA, and that’s their glory moment. The way CBS handles it with great respect and the sense that they’re freezing (college players) in time, in a poetic way … it’s great, honestly,” Barrett said. “Vanity aside, I loved the tournament before, and now, knowing that people identify with my song and that event is very gratifying.”
Barrett has achieved success in sports of his own. Despite being recruited to play basketball at Albion, he excelled as a soccer player and is included in the school’s Hall of Fame. But all the attention will be focused on his music. Most musicians dream of having one huge hit song that appeals to all age groups.
His hit assists in appointing a national champion.
You grabbed for the sky in that one brilliant moment. You knew that one bright moment. You were willing to attempt, that one golden moment.
One glorious instance…
“Most music on TV is perishable,” Barrett said. “They decided, happily so, that this was not perishable but meaningful. … They decided this is something we want to keep. And as a consequence, going on 40 years later, there it is.”
(Top photo: Jamie Schwaberow / NCAA Photos via Getty Images)