Reminiscing

[Antney]

This lockdown has given me ample opportunity to reminisce about my musical journey. I was born in 1959, and can vividly remember the night my older brother came into our shared bedroom and woke me up at 11pm saying “you gotta hear this”. He put on the record player his fresh pressing of Meet the Beatles, and I remember he and I sitting on the bed listening to “I saw her standing there” and him muttering almost trance-like “everything has changed”. It was a voracious time for music, new explorations and deep cuts, even pop hits and top 40 music was very well written and produced. The constant slew of one hit wonders kept things interesting. And the competition between the Beatles, Stones, and Beach Boys kept you always anticipating their next release. Throw in The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Doors. Hendrix, Creedence, Jefferson Airplane, Mamas and the Papas, and everyone else I forget to mention and it was just a damn exciting and creative time. And we had Dylan keeping everyone honest. Never been a time like it.

As a teenager and young man my friends and I would go to rock clubs in Boston and hear really good live music, and leave the clubs around 2am and drive for a few hours listening to WBCN, how fortunate we were to have such an iconic and groundbreaking radio station within our airwaves. We earned our musical merits listening to the vault of deep cuts their dj’s played, and I became so aware of how a song and the recording of that song differ. My wife says she doesn’t know anyone who listens to music the way I do.

Earlier this week I was noodling a riff on an acoustic guitar, and my wife asked “what’s that you’re playing”? “19th Nervous Breakdown“ I replied. “No it’s not”. “It’s the guitar part”. “Nooooo”. “Yes it is” Then I played the chords to the song...”these are the chords...but this is the actual guitar part”.

So much has changed.

 

[walrus]

Hey, Antney! +1 on WBCN! Great post!

Born in 1958, I have similar memories, and my wife also can't understand my music addiction...

walrus

 

[geoguy]

Ah, 'BCN. "The Rock of Boston".

Spent many late-night hours listening to Peter Wolf's manic meanderings (aka the College of Musical Knowledge, IIRC), and Charles Laquidara's morning show, "The Big Mattress".

Thought it was pretty cool that Laquidara would play either side of an LP (known as the "album du jour"), and give the listeners a little notice re: when to start tape recording.

Well, maybe it wasn't great from the viewpoint of someone who cared about intellectual property rights, but as teenagers we gave it two thumbs up.

Radio was wonderfully free-form in those days. I remember Charles Laquidara giving a little lesson one morning re: John Coltrane. Charles had just played a Coltrane tune, and in response to someone calling in to complain about it sounding like something that belonged on WJIB (an easy-listening station of which my parents would have approved), Charles gave a brief rundown of Coltrane's life & music.

 

[Stuball48]

Seems the best station for me (born 1948) to hear all the latest hits in Middle Tennessee was WLS in Chicago. Think it was a 50,000 watt station and my favorite DJ was Dick Viandi (spelling).

 

[gjmalcyon]

My wife says she doesn’t know anyone who listens to music the way I do.

Same here - and I think it is something more widespread among folks around our age than younger or older people. We would anxiously await the release of new albums from our favorite bands, and then huddle around the hi-fi with our friends for the collective "first listen" experience - those formative experiences carry forward to today.

My children (and to a lesser extent the wife) do not understand how I can spend hours with headphones clamped to my head or in my chair in my rig's "sweet spot" listening, and only listening. Not reading, not fiddling with my phone, just listening.

Then I remind them that the musician or band I introduced them to (and they now love) was first sounds in my headphones.

 

[Antney]

Same here - and I think it is something more widespread among folks around our age than younger or older people. We would anxiously await the release of new albums from our favorite bands, and then huddle around the hi-fi with our friends for the collective "first listen" experience - those formative experiences carry forward to today.

My children (and to a lesser extent the wife) do not understand how I can spend hours with headphones clamped to my head or in my chair in my rig's "sweet spot" listening, and only listening. Not reading, not fiddling with my phone, just listening.

Then I remind them that the musician or band I introduced them to (and they now love) was first sounds in my headphones.

headphones!!! First song I heard on my new Radio Shack Realistic Nova 40 headphones was stereo vinyl “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite”. WOW!!!
I say “ Screw earbuds and Bose Soundocks...gimme headphones, KLH speakers, and tinnitus!

 

[Antney]

 

[richardp69]

Can't remember the radio station call letters but it was an "underground" station out of Little Rock, Arkansas.. They played all the "different" type of music we just couldn't get up in the woods of NW Wisconsin. Wonder if that station is still operating.

 

[Quantum Strummer]

In the Detroit area we had WABX. They played all kinds of stuff. You might hear the Velvet Underground followed by Coltrane followed by a Hendrix deepcut followed by Blue Cheer. I'm pretty sure I first heard Miles Davis, at least 1960s Miles, on ABX.

-Dave-

 

[5thumbs]

Seems the best station for me (born 1948) to hear all the latest hits in Middle Tennessee was WLS in Chicago. Think it was a 50,000 watt station and my favorite DJ was Dick Viandi (spelling).

Dick Biondi. He billed himself as "the world's ugliest D.J".

 

[Stuball48]

Dick Biondi. He billed himself as "the world's ugliest D.J".

Thanks Thumbs. Had an old radio that sat on the floor and all rooms in our house had one light socket in middle of ceiling with a long string you pulled to turn light on or off.. I had an outlet screwed into the socket and light bulb into end of socket. On sides of socket was a 110 outlet so I would use a small extension cord to plug the radio into the socket. You had to leave the light on or no electricity to the radio. Cut me an extra long string and looped it around headboard on the bed. Didn't even have to get out of bed to turn radio and light off. "Goodnight."

 

[bobouz]

Born in the LA area (Pasadena) in 1951. Earliest musical influences were Chuck Berry & Jerry Lee Lewis. Then more blues oriented bands such as the Yardbirds, Stones, Animals, Butterfield Blues Band, etc. Then started going further & further back in time: Original blues artist, bluegrass, big band jazz, & Django.

These days, I typically prefer to listen to instrumentals, but a fast shuffle blues number still makes me feel right at home!

 

[Cougar]

Born in the LA area (Pasadena) in 1951...

Similar to my time and place - in South Pas. We had a high school "assembly" where four of the senior girls with passable Beatles haircuts lip-synced She Loves You (Yeah, yeah, yeah). Seems like everything changed after that. We later had Spirit play at our school, then they showed up at an after-party. Them were the days all right!

 

[walrus]

Same here - and I think it is something more widespread among folks around our age than younger or older people. We would anxiously await the release of new albums from our favorite bands, and then huddle around the hi-fi with our friends for the collective "first listen" experience - those formative experiences carry forward to today.

My children (and to a lesser extent the wife) do not understand how I can spend hours with headphones clamped to my head or in my chair in my rig's "sweet spot" listening, and only listening. Not reading, not fiddling with my phone, just listening.

Don't forget the intense study of the album cover, lyrics (if there) and so on. Usually during that first listen - and beyond. Art work! Another thing the younger generation does not appreciate like us geezers did. Not the same as looking at the artwork on your phone screen...

walrus

 

[Antney]

When I last worked in an office before working for myself I covered my office walls with classic album covers. Every day people from all over the company would stop in, spend a few minutes looking at the covers and commenting on which albums they had, what songs they listened too, and how they wish they hadn’t thrown them away. All of the albums on my walls were collected via trash picking on the way to said office. One of everyone’s favorites:

 

[Antney]

as was this one

 

[Rich Cohen]

Ok, let's do a survey. Everyone report their age. GAD don't blame me if your server burns down.
39 like Jack Benny.

 

[Stuball48]

I will play --71

 

[Rayk]

Music was so creative then , a change in music history that my never come again . Born 61 grewup on Motown 45's until radio play became more of interest. In my teen yrs I meet my first best friend he played drums and he turned me onto bloodsweet and tears which was one of the first quadraphonic Albums at the time of it's release so he said which was yrs before that moment . From that My music leaned towards Genesis ( especially Lamb Lies Down on Broadway freakin brilliant !!! ) ,Yes , UK , ELP and others from BeBop Deluxe to Rush but my main music was still progressive rock which started drifting into Newage which was introduced to me by a new friend and it all started with Larry Fast Synergy .

 

[GGJaguar]

... it all started with Larry Fast Synergy .

I have all of the Synergy albums! That was the gateway to Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Kraan, Gong, and even Yellow Magic Orchestra. And yet, I still consider myself a power pop guy. Go figure.