I awoke very early on May 1st 2009, as I am want to do of recent days, with these thoughts:
Let me start with my first memory of music, bagpipes!
My parents first home was in Essexville Michigan on Borton Ave., they lived there from 1956-1961; I was born in 1958 so I was less than 3 years old. I vividly remember watching out the front window with my chin on the sill as a local pipe band would practice on weekend mornings marching by the front of the house. I can only imagine what my first encounter was like; a young exploring mind hearing these flowing tones wafting from the front of the house … what is that beautiful sound?? … it brings a tear to my eye when I hear bagpipe music today. I think it is very cool to have my first musical memory rooted in an instrument that is part of my heritage, the Beattie name is of Scottish origin.
(I have a feeling that the simple question of what my favorite albums are is going to become a project of personal history with a life of it’s own.)
The next memories that come to mind are those of my parent’s albums: The Ames Brothers Mitch Miller Herb Alpert
There’ll Always Be A Christmas by the Ames Brothers had been my holy grail of music for many years, while travelling the state taking the boys to swim meets with Janet I would wander off to the local record stores in search of it and other treasures. Janet found it on ebay and gave it to me for Christmas in 2005. While researching this I see it is now available on CD as of 2006, I’m very happy that Janet got the LP version for me before the door was closed on my quest by the digital demons, part of the memories of vinyl are the snaps and pops of the stylus tracking the grooves. The gentleman we bought it from on ebay included a CD of the LP, so the album is being preserved, but I can still enjoy the noise of the needle drop at the beginning and the swirling noise of the seeking needle at the end which would not be on the 2006 CD release! Anyway, why is this album important to me, I think it was most likely the first recorded music I heard. The LP was released in 1957, I was born in August of 1958 and my parents were probably very busy with a young family and did not play many records until the holidays. So this infant childs first exposure to recorded music is accompanied by the glitter, lights and wonder of the season! This is the first time I’ve put all the pieces together and figured out why it has been so important to me to find that piece of my history. (5/3/2009)(thanks Jen for prompting me to do this, and thank you Janet for what I am realizing is one of the most important and special gifts I’ve ever received!)
Mitch Miller, wow … I never knew what he basically did was the “Anthology of American Folk Music”, but kind of the “K-tell” version. Home on the Range, Rock of Ages, Battle Hymn of the Republic, When Johnny Comes Marching Home, Goodnight, Irene … hell, I could go on and on, just click on the link and listen! … I haven’t heard these in over 40 years, wow talk about a memory rush! I remember marching around to these as a kid. Again I didn’t know why “Sing Along with Mitch” popped into my mind, now I know, it was my introduction to “folk music”. I’m not gonna spend alot of time here, I haven’t even got to my 15 yet, might come back here some day.
Now I have to add another catagory, “45’s”, Herb Alpert’s “Delights” album was released in 1965 (and yes I listened to it), sometime after that, probably ’67 I started buying 45 singles.
I remember when I went to buy “Ride Captain Ride” I bought Joe Cockers “Space Captain” by mistake, they would sell 45’s by song title and I had no idea who sang the captain song just that the name contained “Captain”. It did introduce me to Joe Cocker, the other side of the single was “The Letter”, I didn’t get into it at first but it was a great mistake!
I don’t know where all our 45’s went to, I don’t have any, I’ll ask my sister Ann but I doubt she would have kept them. I do have every LP I ever bought! … well not all, John Thomas (who’s kind wife, Cindy Green, was my first friend on Facebook) broke my KISS albums in high school, he was a music connoisseur back then and is to this day, he has more than made up for it by turning me on to all kinds of music, thanks John!
John Thomas, KISS album smasher .. then(1976) & now(2009)
Holy Rosary Acadamy 1965 My grade school years of music include the folk music we were exposed to by the younger nuns, I went to a private Catholic school, “Holy Rosary Academy”. Specific songs/artists are not coming to mind at the moment, but I remember folk records being played.
Albums:
grade school (7th & 8th grade):
1. Jimi Hendrix – Rainbow Bridge (1971)
Jimi Hendrix “Rainbow Bridge” LP At the end of the school year in either 7th or 8th grade we had a “schools out” party in the classroom. Mark Brennan brought in his brothers stereo system and record albums. (I had my first cigarette with Mark “Sparky” Brennan and Charles “Chip” Bush, Chip lived half a block away from Holy Rosary and at recess we would go to the side of his garage where he had a pack of Winstons hid and pass around a fag.) We set the system up in the back of the room and cranked it up! Jethro Tull’s “Aqualung” and Jimi Hendrix’s “Rainbow Bridge” impressed me. Prior to those albums I had collected only 45rpm records. I remember going to Kresge’s ‘5 & 10’ Store in downtown Bay City with my sister and brother, we each bought an album. My sister got the Carpenters album, my brother The Partrige Family and me, Jimi Hendrix. I remember as we were all in line checking out that I thought the sales clerk would think I’m the only cool one of the three! When I got home to play it I discovered it was not “Rainbow Bridge”, I had bought “Cry of Love” instead, I was going by what the album cover looked like, I wasn’t sure of the name of the album just that it was Jimi Hendrix with his picture on the front. So my very first album I bought did not get much play, it was the wrong one, to this day it is in excellent condition. I did learn to appreciate it, in fact probably like it better than “Rainbow Bridge” today.
Jimi Hendrix “Cry of Love” LP
2. Jethro Tull – Aqualung (1971)
Jethro Tull “Aqualung” LP I asked for “Aqualung” for Christmas that year, my parents got it for me. I recall after opening it my Dad was reading the album cover and had my Mom read it also. They then sat me down and asked if I believe the words of the songs, I wasn’t sure what they were talking about, I just liked the music and that’s what I told them. It did prompt me to start paying attention to the words of song much closer. Merry Christmas!
What my parents read on the “Aqualung” album cover.
3. Neil Young – Harvest (1972)
Neil Young “Harvest” LP “Harvest” was my gateway into the music of Neil Young, my sister bought the LP because of the radio play of the song “Heart of Gold”. The album really caught my ear, something about his voice, it wasn’t a polished pretty voice, it was real with emotion and feeling. The words caught my ear, “Out on the Weekend”, “There’s a World” and “Words”, they seemed to be speaking to me, I could relate … “he tries to speak and can’t begin to say” “Look around you. Has it found you? Is it what it seems?” “If I was a junkman selling you cars, Washing your windows and shining your stars,” … and the tone of the guitar, hearing Neil play the first notes of “Alabama” is to this day one of my favorite song openings! My sister Ann bought “On the Beach” next, I don’t think she liked it because it was rarely played like “Harvest” was. I liked it, it emphasized all the quirkiness that I loved on “Harvest”, Neil said: ” ‘Heart of Gold’ put me in the middle of the road. Traveling there soon became a bore so I headed for the ditch .” “Tonight’s the Night” brought the “quirkiness” to an even higher level, his voice could not be more “real”. “Borrowed Tune” is a favorite song of mine … “I look out on peaceful lands with no war nearby, an ocean of shakin’ hands that grab at the sky.” “Borrowed Tune” is one of a handful of songs that whenever I hear it a snapshot pops into my head, the location is Stone Island Road south of Bay City that runs by Squaconning Creek, a small bridge, ditches, railroad tracks and farm fields. “Zuma” with songs “Dangerbird” & “Cortez The Killer” “American Stars ‘N Bars” with songs “Like A Hurricane” & “Star Of Bethlehem” “Comes a Time” … the song “Goin’ Back” “Rust Never Sleeps” album has the song “Thrasher” … “Down the timeless gorge of changes where sleeplessness awaits” … “Headed out to where the pavement turns to sand with a one-way ticket to the land of truth” … “Just another line in the field of time.” “Thrasher” is another snapshot song, I’m taken back to my college days heading home, driving east out of Mt. Pleasant on Broadway Road where the pavement turns to sand, literally, and through Isabella Indian Reservation land. I take back-roads whenever possible, a much more interesting drive. I could go on and on, Neil Young has uncannily provided me with the soundtrack for my life, his latest album is “Fork In The Road” … that’s where I’m at. (May 16, 2009)
high school (1973-76):
4. The Who – Quadrophenia
What can I say about Quadrophenia .. Townshend spoke to the angst of adolescence … coming to terms with the realities of the world. “can you see the real me” .. “why should I care” .. “my old man he’s really alright.” When we had nothing better to do my friend Paul and I would sit in my basement listening to LPs and watching an old black and white TV that was once my grandmothers. Usually it was uneventful and just a way to pass time. But one night with the aid of substances that enhance creative perception it was found that the music of Quadrophenia was in sync with an old 1950’s black and white movie. Both Paul and I had this experience, so it was not imagined. The TV action went along with the music, when there was a lot of action the music was fast, when things slowed down so did the music. One scene that I vividly remember is when there are sounds of rain playing on the record a man wearing a fedora was hurriedly walking in a rainstorm down a street in front of a row of brownstones. I will always think of that synchronistic phenomenon encountered on that night of youthful inner exploration when I listen to Quadrophenia. And this was long before knowledge of the sync between “Dark Side of the Moon” and ”Wizard of Oz”! … Do you think two “high” schoolers discovered that? If I could only remember what movie it was. I think there was even a hotel scene during the song “Bell Boy”. “is it in my head?” (May 16, 2010)
5. Traffic – Low Spark
The title song… a beautifully interwoven dance of piano, sax & drums… and Hammond B3… awesome. I first heard this music from an 8-track tape that I borrowed from Mark, a high school friend who had a band, many nights were spent in his basement watching KMJ perform. He must have played it often and so did I while I had it… because the tape thinned and broke, I opened the case and spliced it back together and gave it back to him… at some point it must have broke for him too… oops! The piano, saxophone and flute on this record lead to a pursuit of music containing those instruments and my increased appreciation of jazz music… the jam at the end of Rainmaker is one of my all-time favorites! It’s funny how you can remember a particular moment of listening to something, for the Rainmaker jam it’s sitting in my car with friends in the high school parking lot, we just came back from our “lunch break” and the music was turned up and we were turning heads of people walking back to class… I can only imagine it was in appreciation of the music we were playing. (January 7, 2011)
6. Van Morrison – Moondance
college (1977-80):
7. Frank Zappa – In New York
8. Tom Waits – Small Change
9. John Hartford – Mark Twain
10. Jean-Luc Ponty – Imaginary Voyage
young adult:
11. Van Morrison – No Guru, No Method, No Teacher
older adult:
12. Fred Eaglesmith – Things is Changin’
13. Bob Dylan – Time Out of Mind
last few years:
14. Ryan Adams – 29
rotating current release:
15. Neil Young – LeNoise
some individual songs:
high school:
1. Stranger In A Strange Land * LISTEN * Leon Russell
Roscoe Dialogues 