Some Background Music

     Before I continue with this blog it might be helpful to provide some more background about myself. I have to apologize up front that I am not a tech savvy person. The absence of links to Youtube videos and creative design are probably baffling to anyone viewing this blog. This blog started as a way to force myself to write because I wanted to write a book of essays about music and my life. I haven't promoted this blog, nor did I expect anyone to even find it in the vast blogosphere. I promise at some time in the near future I'll figure out enough technology to make Sound Mind a more interesting blog. In the meantime, I welcome any relevent comments and may even respond to them in future posts. So, in short, pardon my dust.
     My musical journey has been long and often embarrassing. The first 8 Track I ever bought was Barry Manilow Live. You know, the one with him in the blue jumpsuit. Please don't stop reading. For the benefit of those of you who have no idea what an 8 Track is, it was a machine that played tape cartridges. It would break an album up into 4 parts which would audibly change in the middle of songs. It was horrible, but it was easier to use than a reel-to-reel player and before cassette tapes. It's amazing that the 8 Track player was invented by the same guy who invented the Lear Jet. Anyhow, my dad had an 8 Track player and cartridges by Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette. I believe this, coupled with being raised on Hee Haw, lead me to feel a connection with early R.E.M. and alt-country in general.
     When I was young, my babysitter would bring her records with her and most of them were Elton John. It's not strange that in the 70's someone would have Elton John lp's. However, this was mid- Michigan which was, and still is, rural, religious and redneck-ish. So looking back it does seem kind of odd that she'd be a huge Elton John fan. Consequently, the first album I bought was Greatest Hits Vol. 1.  and I would stack up 70's Elton John (and Bernie Taupin) with just about anyone in the history of music. Now old, bitchy, diva Elton John you can have.
     Confession time again. My parents were fans of Elvis and country music, not the Beatles. So I wasn't exposed to the Beatles and I knew "You're Sixteen" by Ringo and "Live and Let Die" by Wings before I knew who the Beatles were. I eventually caught up, but it was 10 wasted years of my life. To my mother's credit, she let me get 3 things at the grocery store every week. A comic book, a pack of baseball or football cards and a 45 RPM record. I had a pretty good collection, but many of them were either abused or lost over the years. I still have the first three 45's I ever bought and they are all by The Sweet (Ballroom Blitz, Fox on the Run and Action). I remember in Elementary school our music teacher would let us bring in records on Friday to share with the class. So I was exposed to Peter Frampton, Led Zeppelin, the Beach Boys and Kiss. All I remember about middle school was drawing the Kiss guys, the Boston spaceship (also a Robert Pollard side project) and Cheap Trick's logo on all my notebooks.
     For the sake of getting on with this blog, here's the Cliff's note version of the next 25 years after this. I went from Album-Oriented-Rock to Prog rock to Heavy Metal to Hair Bands to 90's mainstream Alternative. At the end of the 90's I was really burnt out on rock music and immersed myself in jazz for a couple years. I made the mistake of starting with Bitches Brew by Miles Davis and was not prepared for that yet. So I went back to Kind of Blue and it was love at first listen. Eventually I worked up to Bitches Brew and love that as well. At some point in this blog there will be a list of the best bands of all-time and number 1 will be Miles Davis' Second Quintet. Beside Miles were Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter and Tony Williams. The human race could continue another thousand years and I can't imagine a greater collection of musical talent and genius. I'll save the story of what got me back into rock music for later.