Do you ever take just hours to listen to music? I suppose so many people are 'too busy' for that.
When I was just a young kid, first it started just sitting in the living room listening to my parents records. This was where I was introduced to long favorites, ABBA, The Jesus Christ Superstar Soundtrack and the Godspell soundtrack and more, the Rovers, Chris Deburgh, Neil Diamond.
In the years that went on, I came to find my older Brother had a record player in the basement, so there I'd sit and listen to the 'Beatles', the only real Beatles album I like is what was called 'Beatles '65', I remember a single for 'Always Something There to Remind Me' by Naked Eyes, The Turtles and some 'Heavy Metal', in fact 'Master's Of Metal'.... My Father had a couple of portable cassette players, so I'd tape my favorite songs off the radio; Duran Duran was big for me (Because of the neighbors at the front of cul-de-sac we lived in, all girls).
The Lockhart girls, were our neighbors at the front of the cul-de-sac we lived in (as just mentioned above), they had like super cable tv, had subscribed to Much Music when it first started, so not only radio, but I was seeing all the hottest, greatest, newest singles and songs released.
So I'd make these mix tapes and we're talking like 1982/'83 here, and then at Dad's I'd go outside and listen and rewind and listen and sing and just be enthralled by the music. It was my escape. I loved the music and despite what some may think, the '70's and '80's had fantastic music in so many genres, we were able to be part of new genres that were breaking out, from Disco to Pop music, Metal to Dance and Techno. For many genres and listeners it was all new uncharted grounds...
Once I got into Metal, which I'm sure was annoying for everyone, I'd come home from school, throw on a record and take the speakers and I'd place them on each side of my head and be immersed (no one thought of buying me headphones I guess).
A family friend and neighbor blocks away, Mike Belyea would lend me all of his Metal albums or at least as many as I wanted and I'd take them home and just digest them, I couldn't get enough.
There of course was also CHSR, the Crazy Train started in 1980 by my mentor Andre Faust, and then others, for years the Crazy Train was my gateway to all kinds of incredible music, because of different hosts, for 2/3 hours EVERY Saturday night the Crazy Train fed me... But I am getting ahead of myself a little bit here.
In the mid '80's there was also the roller skating craze. In Fredericton we had 'Roxy's' and then it because 'Skate City'... What better way to rid your house of your children each Friday and Saturday night, than to dump them off with a ton of other kids at the roller skating rink. So it was a major source of this drug I was becoming so dependent on. They of course had Tom Blizzard (No, not his Son the drummer of 'Cusser' and 'Hard Charger') who'd be spinning all the greatest 'Top 40' hits.
Round and round you'd skate, groovin and shakin it. It was the first place for many things, first crushes, first kisses, first waltz', first heartbreaks.... Ahh memories... Obviously I'm a very nostalgic guy, how could I not be when so much music means so very much to me.
Right before I got into 'Heavy Metal' I had a stint of the 'break dancin' craze, both Gordy (my older Brother) and I did, Scott, not so much.... I remember at St. Dunstans (my Elementary school) Jon Wilby and I did some crazy break dancing for our class. Sad to see Jon today. He lived in Florida for quite a while and got addicted to some very hard drugs, I see him down around downtown, but he doesn't recognize me
of course Mom didn't much approve when I got 'into' Heavy Metal', most of the music up until that time in our hours was anything you'd hear on the radio, well, mainstream radio, but then Metal crept in.
I think it was a friend of my Mom's boyfriend who gave me this old receiver and turntable and some speakers... Hehe that really pissed Mom off, those years of the pounding at the bedroom door, 'TURN THAT DOWN!!!!" -
Our Grandparents lived in the other part of our house so it wasn't always Mom I'd be pissing off.
But like the living room, in my bedroom I could take both speakers and place them on either side of my pillow and drown myself in music.
Even as I was getting older I still loved so much of the music I grew up on, of course, in my teen years being a 'Metalhead' one can't exactly come out and say they loved Duran Duran, but I still did.
I was kinda weird with music, I liked to listen to things that were not necessarily as popular as some others... Everyone loved AC/DC, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Van Halen and others, but I tried to shy away from it, sure I liked it (well except AC/DC) but I wanted heavier more obscure music and with Metal, the heavier the better, the more evil sounding... the better.
But years later, I'd come back to love a lot of the bands I didn't want to listen to 'because everyone else was'....lol except AC/DC and Led Zepplin, sure, Zep has some Rocker's but man, AC/DC, I just don't get it, well I do, but it just doesn't work for me... Oh and Reggae and Ska... I love all kinds of music, all kinds of genres except the Reggae and Ska.... I don't like the beat, I don't like the guitar and I sure as hell don't like the lyrics.
So today, in this World of mine, living by myself, I can listen to whatever I like, whenever I like.
Sometimes I'll be listening to Talk Talk and then it would be followed by Behemoth. I have gone back and fell in love with some bands that I only liked a few of their 'hits'. Talk Talk is one, Peter Gabriel is another, ELO, Black Sabbath, Hall & Oates and many others I've added to my collection.
The 'Collection' - I still have quite a few CD's, I don't know, at least a 100 or so. I have about 30 vinyl albums, most reissues and some new stuff from local and crazy Metal bands from Mexico. I still have Xanadu on vinyl as well as a 'Fonz' album... But most of my 'collection' is Mp3
Anyhow, that's a bit 'O history for ya's with me and music. I still love it, it's my life's blood. It's got me through so many rough times, great times, crazy times, but like nothing else, it has ALWAYS been there for me and as far as I can tell, it always will be.
When I was just a young kid, first it started just sitting in the living room listening to my parents records. This was where I was introduced to long favorites, ABBA, The Jesus Christ Superstar Soundtrack and the Godspell soundtrack and more, the Rovers, Chris Deburgh, Neil Diamond.
In the years that went on, I came to find my older Brother had a record player in the basement, so there I'd sit and listen to the 'Beatles', the only real Beatles album I like is what was called 'Beatles '65', I remember a single for 'Always Something There to Remind Me' by Naked Eyes, The Turtles and some 'Heavy Metal', in fact 'Master's Of Metal'.... My Father had a couple of portable cassette players, so I'd tape my favorite songs off the radio; Duran Duran was big for me (Because of the neighbors at the front of cul-de-sac we lived in, all girls).
The Lockhart girls, were our neighbors at the front of the cul-de-sac we lived in (as just mentioned above), they had like super cable tv, had subscribed to Much Music when it first started, so not only radio, but I was seeing all the hottest, greatest, newest singles and songs released.
So I'd make these mix tapes and we're talking like 1982/'83 here, and then at Dad's I'd go outside and listen and rewind and listen and sing and just be enthralled by the music. It was my escape. I loved the music and despite what some may think, the '70's and '80's had fantastic music in so many genres, we were able to be part of new genres that were breaking out, from Disco to Pop music, Metal to Dance and Techno. For many genres and listeners it was all new uncharted grounds...
Once I got into Metal, which I'm sure was annoying for everyone, I'd come home from school, throw on a record and take the speakers and I'd place them on each side of my head and be immersed (no one thought of buying me headphones I guess).
A family friend and neighbor blocks away, Mike Belyea would lend me all of his Metal albums or at least as many as I wanted and I'd take them home and just digest them, I couldn't get enough.
There of course was also CHSR, the Crazy Train started in 1980 by my mentor Andre Faust, and then others, for years the Crazy Train was my gateway to all kinds of incredible music, because of different hosts, for 2/3 hours EVERY Saturday night the Crazy Train fed me... But I am getting ahead of myself a little bit here.
In the mid '80's there was also the roller skating craze. In Fredericton we had 'Roxy's' and then it because 'Skate City'... What better way to rid your house of your children each Friday and Saturday night, than to dump them off with a ton of other kids at the roller skating rink. So it was a major source of this drug I was becoming so dependent on. They of course had Tom Blizzard (No, not his Son the drummer of 'Cusser' and 'Hard Charger') who'd be spinning all the greatest 'Top 40' hits.
Round and round you'd skate, groovin and shakin it. It was the first place for many things, first crushes, first kisses, first waltz', first heartbreaks.... Ahh memories... Obviously I'm a very nostalgic guy, how could I not be when so much music means so very much to me.
Right before I got into 'Heavy Metal' I had a stint of the 'break dancin' craze, both Gordy (my older Brother) and I did, Scott, not so much.... I remember at St. Dunstans (my Elementary school) Jon Wilby and I did some crazy break dancing for our class. Sad to see Jon today. He lived in Florida for quite a while and got addicted to some very hard drugs, I see him down around downtown, but he doesn't recognize me
of course Mom didn't much approve when I got 'into' Heavy Metal', most of the music up until that time in our hours was anything you'd hear on the radio, well, mainstream radio, but then Metal crept in.
I think it was a friend of my Mom's boyfriend who gave me this old receiver and turntable and some speakers... Hehe that really pissed Mom off, those years of the pounding at the bedroom door, 'TURN THAT DOWN!!!!" -
Our Grandparents lived in the other part of our house so it wasn't always Mom I'd be pissing off.
But like the living room, in my bedroom I could take both speakers and place them on either side of my pillow and drown myself in music.
Even as I was getting older I still loved so much of the music I grew up on, of course, in my teen years being a 'Metalhead' one can't exactly come out and say they loved Duran Duran, but I still did.
I was kinda weird with music, I liked to listen to things that were not necessarily as popular as some others... Everyone loved AC/DC, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Van Halen and others, but I tried to shy away from it, sure I liked it (well except AC/DC) but I wanted heavier more obscure music and with Metal, the heavier the better, the more evil sounding... the better.
But years later, I'd come back to love a lot of the bands I didn't want to listen to 'because everyone else was'....lol except AC/DC and Led Zepplin, sure, Zep has some Rocker's but man, AC/DC, I just don't get it, well I do, but it just doesn't work for me... Oh and Reggae and Ska... I love all kinds of music, all kinds of genres except the Reggae and Ska.... I don't like the beat, I don't like the guitar and I sure as hell don't like the lyrics.
So today, in this World of mine, living by myself, I can listen to whatever I like, whenever I like.
Sometimes I'll be listening to Talk Talk and then it would be followed by Behemoth. I have gone back and fell in love with some bands that I only liked a few of their 'hits'. Talk Talk is one, Peter Gabriel is another, ELO, Black Sabbath, Hall & Oates and many others I've added to my collection.
The 'Collection' - I still have quite a few CD's, I don't know, at least a 100 or so. I have about 30 vinyl albums, most reissues and some new stuff from local and crazy Metal bands from Mexico. I still have Xanadu on vinyl as well as a 'Fonz' album... But most of my 'collection' is Mp3
Anyhow, that's a bit 'O history for ya's with me and music. I still love it, it's my life's blood. It's got me through so many rough times, great times, crazy times, but like nothing else, it has ALWAYS been there for me and as far as I can tell, it always will be.
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