I was talking to someone yesterday about what he called “foundational music”, the music that you’re listening to at that point in your life where you start to figure out what music actually, is, and what it means to you (usually around 8th or 9th grade, I think – though maybe you’re one of those precocious kids with older siblings who was listening to the Clash, or Ministry, or the Strokes when you were six).

Then he asked me an interesting question – “What was the first song you learned the lyrics to?” – which led me into a full-on, time-traveling nostalgia attack.

When I was 5, my parents bought me a radio for Christmas, and every night after they put me to bed (and I was supposed to be sleeping), I’d switch it on and stay up ’til midnight listening to KFRC, which was San Francisco’s AM hits station at the time.

I remember that they played a lot of Heart, Foreigner, Fleetwood Mac, Gerry Rafferty and Jefferson Airplane, but the song I really liked, that I’d stay up waiting to hear, was “Rock’n Me”, by the Steve Miller Band.

Why? Well, the melody is pretty sing-songy and memorable – perfect for a five year-old – but what I really dug was the part where he started reeling off the names of cities: “…Phoenix, Arizona all the way to Tacoma / Philadelphia, Atlanta, L.A…” (What he was probably actually doing was obliquely cursing his booking agent, but I didn’t know that).

And then when he ended with “Northern California”, where I was living – well, that was just the greatest! Every time it came on, I listened to make sure that I had all the cities right, and in the right order, and I gradually learned the rest of the lyrics too.

What about you? Any first lyrics-related memories? Don’t be shy. I mean, I think I just copped to loving Steve Miller – there’s nowhere to go but up.

Be the first to comment

Just testing the old blog plumbing here, folks. But please enjoy this photo, which I look for every excuse I can find to post.

Be the first to comment

Wow, this is pretty cool. Except for the fact that the site seems to think that Temescal is located in San Francisco, and that the music is, well, blink182, I could spend some time here.

Where do they think your neighborhood is?

Be the first to comment

Been digging this video the last couple of days…

Dog lovers, be sure to stay ’til the end!

Be the first to comment

From this month’s issue of TapeOp:

“What people want from music is to be able to exist vicariously through the artist’s visions”
- Michael Beinhorn, Producer (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Soundgarden [Superunknown{!}], etc.)

True? Not true? Kinda true? True even for Rihanna fans (who really want to give people permission to stand under their umbrellas)? Discuss!

Be the first to comment