(This project was originally posted on Facebook from October 1st, 2014 to October 1st, 2015)
09/30/2014
Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes. Today, I turn 39. That is a big number. But next year, that first digit gets a little bit bigger. As I have been thinking about the concept of growing older, it has made me a bit retrospective about my life and it has inspired me to try a new little project that I would like to share with each of you over the next 365 days or so. Today, in preparation for the big 4-0, I am announcing my Facebook Song of the Day Project. Music has always been an important part of my life. I truly feel like my life has a soundtrack, and so I would like to embark on a journey of sorts through my life with this soundtrack. It is the story of Paul. But, I think that many of you might come to realize that it is also the story of us, as many of my memories of y'all are also associated with a specific song. It is a story of 32 chapters and it begins tomorrow. I must admit, that I did not expect to be in Japan right now, so the first chapter is a bit out of order. But that's OK. In any event, we will start tomorrow with a Prologue. We will start tomorrow at the beginning, in 1986.
10/1/2014
Day 1: (Prologue) There is really only one right answer to the question of "where to begin?" I will being, naturally, at the beginning. My love of music really begins with my big sister, Dawn. Dawn was in college when I was just becoming interested in things that were being played on the radio, and I remember being very excited when she would be home for the summer. She would play board games with me and Jenni, and often times we would listen to one of Dawn's favorite albums that she brought home with her from MSU. One of Dawn's favorite bands, R.E.M., in a pattern that is often repeated between older and younger siblings, quickly became my favorite band. 1986's Life's Rich Pageant, quickly became one of my favorite albums. It still is today. So, I offer up for today the opening track on that very album: "Begin the Begin". Next Up, we begin with Chapter 1: Big in Japan.
Day 2: As the sun rises for me on the 3rd day of being 39, it rises for me in the land of the rising sun. After almost 12 years with Toyota, this is my 15th trip to Japan. While my first few trips were quite the shock to my system, I have really come to love this country. But, nonetheless, it is still hard to be away. Music is one of the ways that I help keep myself grounded when I am so very far from home. And so this chapter is dedicated to the songs that I tend to gravitate to when I am on the other side of the globe. Ironically, today's song, Alphaville's 80s classic "Big In Japan," doesn't necessarily fall into that category but you have to admit that it is appropriate for a 6'2" white guy in Asia. It has also been known to be used as the ring tone by certain coworkers of my who will remain nameless. In any event, what Alphaville says certainly is true: things ARE easy when you're big in Japan.
10/3/2014
Day 3: It is said that author J.K. Rowling had the entire Harry Potter series flash into her brain one day and she then proceeded to map out the entire 7-book series. However, when she got to the 4th book, she had to deviate from the original story a bit in order to make things work. Not to compare myself to a famous author or anything, but that it kind of how I feel today. I mapped out this entire project several months ago, from Day 1 to Day 365. However, as the beginning of this project approached and I sat here in my hotel room in Japan, I realized that there was one song that needed to be subbed in to best fit the mood and theme of this chapter: today's track, R.E.M.'s lovely Hidden Gem from 1991's Out of Time, "Half a World Away." As I go about my travels on this trip to Japan, quite literally half a world away from home, this song has been playing in my head for the past 2 weeks. I think that it is safe to say that, "my mind is racing, as it always will, my hands tired" and "my heart aches" and perhaps a couple of times, "I've had too much to drink." Oh well, my trip is almost finished, and I will be coming home soon. (and P.S. not every song is going to be from R.E.M. in this project!)
10/4/2014
Day 4: Today is the day that I head for home, and that means a very, very long plane ride. With any luck, I will likely spend most of that time sleeping. But if not, I will almost certain fire up today's song, "Transatlanticism," by Death Cab For Cutie up on my iPod. Several trips to Japan ago, this song came up on some sort of random shuffle. In the darkness of that airplane cabin, it really touched me on that particular day, and I will now forever associate it with long flights, whether over the Atlantic Ocean or not. The slow burn nature of the track is perfect for those in no rush for a song to end, and the lyrics towards the end of the song resonate perfectly to those headed far away from home (or those returning from far away places): "The distance is quite simply much too far for me to row. It seems farther than ever before... I need you so much closer." It will be nice to see Jen and Evy again.
10/5/2014
Day 5: The worst thing about going to Japan, other than being away from family and friends, is the jet-lag. Going from East to West (to Japan) is a piece of cake, but that return trip can be a killer. I struggled mightily the first trip with jet-lag that morphed into insomnia for a few months (although the stress of a new job certainly did not help). I certainly have developed strategies to deal with the jet-lag (sleep as much as possible on the way home with the help of Nyquil gelcaps), but it never is easy. So, for today's track, let's take the advice of one of my favorite bands, The Cure, who say, "Let's Go To Bed." I would certainly be remiss if I did not mention that this track comes from the 1982 album, Japanese Whispers. Nighty Night!
10/6/2014
Day 6: One of the most enjoyable things about visiting Japan is their absolutely amazing train system. Despite the fact that I am forbidden to drive there (and would not want to) and that I do not speak that much Japanese, I have had very little trouble going sightseeing on weekends, even if I am by myself. Part of this is due to a very helpful website (Hyperion) that if given a starting and ending point, will give you a detailed itinerary of trains and transfers, often complete with track numbers. If it says a train departs at 8:41 going to your destination of choice, well then you just have to make sure you are on the train that leaves at 8:41 (but not 8:40 or 8:42). For today's track, I have selected what I believe to be the greatest of all songs about train travel, R.E.M.'s spectacular "Driver 8". The entire album, actually, is devoted to travel in general, and was written at a time when the band was touring extensively (at least that is what I was told by the biography of R.E.M. that I read in late middle school / early high school). I distinctly remember listening to this entire album once while sightseeing solo down the Izu peninsula in Japan one weekend. Even in Japan, "we can reach our destination, though it's still a ways away."
10/7/2014
Day 7: Do you ever have the experience where in a certain situation you have randomly picked out a song or album and then that song is forever linked to that experience in your head? Some years ago, I had that experience with the Tori Amos album, Boys for Pele. I don't even remember why, but one trip to Japan I decided to pull up that album while I was prepared some presentations in my hotel room at the base of Mount Fuji. Now, that album, especially its primary single, "Caught A Lite Sneeze" is one of my go-to songs whenever I visit. I think that the haunting beauty has a kind of other-world feeling that is not so different that the feeling of being in a foreign land. Things are basically normal, yet at the same time they are not. And so, I leave you with this track as I close out this first chapter of my story.
Next up is yet another homage to Japan, I suppose. Chapter 2 is all about Karaoke!
Day 8: I am not going to lie. I love to sing. I am not really that good at it, but I enjoy in nevertheless. As you can imagine, I am therefore quite drawn to karaoke. My first experience with karaoke in Japan was actually during my first trip when, in the fine tradition of extreme hospitality of my Japanese hosts, I was taken sightseeing on a Saturday and then treated to dinner at my host's home later that evening. (My host, Mr. Ueno, also provided what has been a very valuable lesson over my career. His English skill was actually not great, but his communication skill was off the chart good. Because of this, we had little to no trouble communicating. Communication skill is WAY more important than language skill.) Anyway, after dinner, Mr. Ueno took me to what I can only assume was his favorite local bar, where I met several of his friends (none of whom really spoke English either). At some point during the very enjoyable evening, they started doing karaoke and when my turn came up, I nervously paged through the book trying desperately to find a song that a) was in English and b) I was familiar enough with to muddle through. When I hit upon this classic from the Clash, "I Fought the Law," I figured I was all set. So, I had them cue up the song, I powered through it with great gusto, and I returned to my seat. Everything was great, right? Well, mostly. As I returned to my seat, one of my hosts leaned over and said something to the effect of, "very good, Paul-san, but that song is most famous in Japan for being in ads for Honda." (wah, wah)
10/9/2014
Day 9: Karaoke is not just for soloists you know. Actually, Jen and I have been know to try to pull off a couple of duets before as well. Our favorite (at least MY favorite) is this little ditty from the Barenaked Ladies, "If I Had $1,000,000." We first broke this out at a one of Jen's company Christmas parties at a bar near Jen's previous office in downtown Detroit. It was a big hit for the environmental consultant crowd. A few years later, Toyota was holding its own Christmas party (this time at the Rock Financial Center in Novi, a slightly larger venue) and karaoke was one of the evening's entertainment options. The poor karaoke operator was struggling. No one seemed to want to participate (casino night was also going on, you see. That fake money wasn't going to lose itself.) So Jen and I, emboldened by our rave reviews at the previous party, decided to take pity on her and give our go-to song a try. So we got up there, sang our hearts and lungs out and turned to the host with a look of "you're welcome." But, instead of gratitude, we were met by some sort of rude comment to the effect of, "yeah, great... why don't you guys go gamble in the other room." Haters gonna hate, I guess.
10/10/2014
Day 10: It is always cool to have a friend that owns a karaoke system. It is even better if that friend also had an annual xmas party. The friend in question here is actually Jen's grade school friend, Steve Serra. For many years after we moved to Michigan, Jen and I would make the short trek to Battle Creek over the holidays for a fun evening of food, libation, and eventually karaoke in Steve's basement. It was always fun to hang out with my adopted gang from Marshall: Stephanie Livingston, Andy Elms, Abigail Powers, and from time to time, the likes of Amy Palmer, Margaret and Jeff Lori, and even Carol Smith. The only challenge on the karaoke side, as was typically the case, was to find tracks that I actually knew well enough to attempt. Today's song "Hash Pipe" from Weezer was one of those random tracks that was actually in Steve's playlist and that for several years, me and Abigail would often attempt together. It is a little harder to get together these days with the little one, but those nights in Battle Creek were always a good time.
10/11/2014
Day 11: Singing karaoke in the basement or a bar with your friend is certainly fun, but those that have traveled to Japan or big cities such as NYC have likely also experienced the novelty of the specialty private room karaoke establishments. After living and/or working Ann Arbor for a few years, we also came to discover that it also has a few similar karaoke establishments, most notably Blue Karaoke on Liberty, near downtown. There was a few year there where Jen and I and several friends would spend the evenings of our birthdays or other special events belting away in the Blue Karaoke basement. The experience was pretty authentic, all the way down to the non-sequitor Asian music videos that loop on the video screen. The playlist at Blue Karaoke was quite extensive, and today's selection "Karma Police" from Radiohead's fabulous 1997 album OK Computer, was one of my favorites to attempt to sing. As I remember, my rendition seemed to make an... impression on both Bonnie and Sarah (perhaps due to my insistence on attempting the falsetto part), but I am not sure if it was positive or negative. In any event, I am sure most will enjoy the original version more than mine.
10/12/2014
Day 12: Of all of my karaoke experiences, perhaps my most memorial took place in Marquette, MI in the UP the evening following the Michigan Brewer's Guild Fall Beer Festival in 2010. Jen and I made the trek, mostly so that we could say that at least one of us (Jen) had hit the MI Beer Festival Grand Slam by attending all 4 (at the time) events in the same calendar year. As it turns out, Jen went to high school with the people that own Dark Horse, and we would up spending the night with the owner's wife at a dive Irish Bar in Marquette. It was karaoke night, and this was a very serious karaoke crowd. I was determined to sing something, and I fretted over the book for quite a while before I hit on the B-52's classic "Rock Lobster". The fact the Fred Sneider tends to sing more in spoken word than anything resembling harmony made it a safer bet. When my turn came up, I sauntered up to the stage and knocked it out of the park... or at least hit a single. I think the track was just quirky enough, just retro enough that I got away with it. The looks I got from the crowd were what I would consider "I can dig it" with a hesitant nod. I now consider this to be my go-to karaoke number; just ask Serdar (if he still remembers his 40th). Well, this brings this chapter and the vaguely Asian portion of my story to a close.
So, where was I again? Ah, I remember, I started almost 2 weeks ago talking about the roots of my love of music. Let's return once again to that era, to 1986. After all, everybody loves a good Origin Story.
Day 13: I mentioned back on Day 1 that my original love of music came about due to my sister Dawn and the records (and they were vinyl) that she brought back with her from college during what was most likely the summers of 1986 and 1987. With this capter, I would like to explore some of these early influences on my own music library from Dawn, and also other people who would become my close friends. Since today is Monday, I thought that everyone could use a pick-me-up by way of Mr. Paul Simon. The epic 1986 album Graceland was another one of my favorites records to have Dawn spin during those summer days at Mom and Dad's house. "You Can Call Me Al" is just pure joy. What else can you ask for? Horn sections, funky African influences, and I video with Chevy Chase? If this song doesn't make you want to get up and dance a little, or at least smile, well... I think you need to check your pulse.
10/14/2014
Day 14: Another band that saw heavy rotation in those summer days of the late 80s was Phil Collins-fronted Genesis. As I remember, Dawn had a collection of 3-4 different album's of theirs that we cycled through. Perhaps their most well known album of the era (before Phil went solo) was 1986's Invisible Touch, and for today's selection I decided to go with the song that I feel has aged the best with the years, "Land of Confusion." The strange, strange video is certainly not kind to President Reagan, but all politics aside, I think that everyone can appreciate the refrain, "Well, this is the world we live in; And these are the hands we're given; Use them and let's start trying; To make it a place worth living in."
10/15/2014
Day 15: Speaking of Genesis, quick trivia question: who was the band Genesis' original lead singer? The answer to that question may relate to today's song. 1986 obviously produced a lot of great albums, and perhaps the best of all may have been Peter Gabriel's "So." From top to bottom pretty much every track is an iconic single. For today's selection, let's go with "Big Time." Everything really was bigger in the 1980s, and here Gabriel captures that grandious feeling, yet still finds a way to poke fun at it (and himself, in a way) at the same time. Plus, there's claymation in the video. Nice.
10/16/2014
Day 16: U2 was another band that my sister Dawn first introduced to me. During those summers of the late 80s, I believe we first started with 1983's War, but in 1987 along came a little album called The Joshua Tree. This album also saw heavy rotation during our epic battles of Risk, Clue, Scotland Yard, and Stratego. Much like some other albums that I mentioned this week, there are a multitude of now legendary songs that I could choose to highlight from this album, but I decided to pick a bit of a Hidden Gem with "In God's Country." I guess you could say that growing up in rural Ingham county where you knew all of your neighbors and the local church was your extended family was essentially "In God's Country." Perhaps that is why this track sticks out as I think back to those days. Perhaps it is just because I have simply heard it less that some of the other songs on this album so it seems more fresh. Perhaps it's just because it's a good song. Sometimes that's enough.
10/17/2014
Day 17: Ok, so let me get this straight. There is a song out there that starts with a sample from an old Star Trek episode (I, Mudd), there are lyrics about telepathy, and then another sample of Mr. Spock saying "Pure Energy" AND David Copperfield would use the song in his televised magic shows (for obvious reasons) AND it has a cool electronic beat. Yeah, I think the 13-year old verion of Paul is totally in. I spent much of this week talking about the influence that my sister Dawn had on my music collection. But, I think that I first caught wind of today's act Information Society through my sister Jenni and her record collection. I have always had a bit of a weakness for bands that fall on more of the electronic part of the spectrum, and I think it all traces back to this song. So, get up and dance to a little "Pure Energy." (You know you want to)
10/18/2014
Day 18: I don’t remember the exact time of year or occasion or whether the money came from my allowance or from a relative for my birthday or Christmas. But, I do remember that the first time I ever bought a tape of my own with my own money, it was R.E.M.'s 1988 classic Green. (I am also pretty sure it was at a KMart.) R.E.M.'s career was really picking up steam up this point. Their previous album Document got a certain amount of airplay, but a certain song called "Stand" from this album is what really seemed to put R.E.M. on the map for good. Looking back now, I certainly don't feel that this was the group's strongest album by any stretch, but it was my first. Thus, it will always hold a special place in my heart. For today's selection, it only seems appropriate to pick the opening track, "Pop Song 89" again as a kind of Hidden Gem pick. The "scandalous" video (including 3 topless women) was apparently banned by MTV (even after editing). But, I somehow wound up with a unedited VHS copy that I managed to make my own "edited" copy of for my friend Leo as a prank. It almost seems quaint now since it was actually difficult (impossible?) to find the edited version on YouTube. So instead, you get 3 minutes of the album cover. It is a family show after all.
10/19/2014
Day 19: It turns out that R.E.M. wasn't the only band that was making records in the late 80s from the college town of Athens, GA. I am not sure exactly how I first got acquainted with the B-52s, but I seem to remember discovering the album Cosmic Thing sometime during the 8th grade. Little did I know at the time that Cosmic Thing was actually a reunion album of sorts, and that the band's heyday was actually a decade earlier. No matter, though, as the B-52's quirky and light hearted style was a nice contrast to some of the other items in my burgeoning music collection. Today's selection, "Love Shack" is just a classic. Every time I go to a wedding, I am secretly waiting until this song comes on (and you know it will). Say it with me everyone, "Tinnnn Roof... Rusted."
10/20/2014
Day 20: I have already brought up R.E.M. as being one of my favorite bands of all time. Right around 8th grade was the time that I started branching out and being influenced in a musical way by people who did not live in my house. Over the next few years I developed what in my mind was my "Top 4" bands, and my introduction to those other 3 bands I can clearly give credit to a group of people who would become my close friends: Alvan, Bob, and especially Leo. If I remember correctly, I essentially met they guys through Larry Thompson's band class. In other words, music brought us together and music then made us friends. One of those key Top 4 bands that Leo introduced to me was the post-glam rock icons The Cure. Though formed in the late 70s, The Cure had just releases their best-of album "Starring at the Sea" right around the time I that was getting to know my new friends, and it was a nice introduction the band's first decade of delicious gloomy rock. For today's selection, I will go with the Cure first single, "Boys Don't Cry" It was already 10 years old when I first heard it, but I think that it still strikes a chord today.
10/21/2014
Day 21: Commercial radio in the late 80s and early 90s was… well let's be honest here. It was pretty terrible. Fortunately, there were a couple of places on the dial back then where decent music could be found and one of my favorites was MSU's own 88.9 FM The Impact (which is still going strong today). It was a great place to find new music back in the day. One evening, I was listening and heard today's selection for the first time. I never did hear the name of singer or track, so the next day at school I asked Leo, and he said, "it was probably Morrissey's 'Everyday is like Sunday'. I will let you borrow my tape." He did, and I was hooked. Morrissey went on to become the 3rd entry in my Top 4. I never liked country music, but Morrissey was able to capture that cathartic melancholy feeling (similar to the role that country music plays for many people) like no one before and no one since. He is in a category by himself, and this nearly perfect song is one of the reasons why. Come Armageddon, come indeed.
10/22/2014
Day 22: I am also reasonably sure that in that same original conversation with Leo, he probably also said, "oh, and Morrissey used to be in a band called the Smiths, you would probably like them too." And thus another set of tapes was exchanged. This was pretty common among my group of friends back then, we would borrow a tape for a few days and then give it back. Sometime in that period there might have also been the use of a very important piece of technology back then: the dual cassette recorder. Now, even back then, I had certain rules for myself. If I liked a tape enough, I would eventually buy it. But sometimes it takes a while to really decide if you like something enough to invest in it. I can't feel too sorry for the recording industry (back then at least) as pretty much every bootlegged copy I ever made I later purchased on tape, CD, or off iTunes. In anything, the dual cassette recorder made then MORE cash off me, as it exposed me to a wider array of music than I would otherwise have listened to. But, anyway, I digress. Today's selection from the Smiths (which I lump in with Morrissey as a part of the Top 4) "Panic" is off the fabulous 1987 album Louder Than Bombs, and it shows that The Smiths weren't always just about gloom and doom. At least this song about mass hysteria and hanging DJs sure sounds happy... hmmmm...
10/23/2014
Day 23: The final members of the Top 4 once again stretches that occasional itch that I have for music with an more electronic feel to it. That final member is Depeche Mode. Back in the early 90s, I didn't just get new music tips from my sister, my friends, or the Impact, I was would occasionally watch videos. Ah, music videos. It really is a lost art form in my opinion. But growing up in the country with no cable, it was really, really hard to get music videos. Until one day when I found that if you pointed the aerial antennae is just the right direction, I could pick up channel 9 out of Windows Canada. Somehow I figured out that they would air some kind of music video program, and had the VCR set for it. Most of the time it was questionable Top 40 stuff, but one day I caught the video for today's song, "Enjoy the Silence". In the video, lead singer Dave Gahan is wandering the English (I assume) countryside dressed a king carrying a lawn chair. The song was cool. The video was perhaps coolers. Again, I was hooked. Fortunately, I wasn't long before I discovered that there was this other way in which I could see video. Good videos, even though it would be years before cable TV reached the Fanson household. But that, my friends, is another story.
So today I would like to close out this Chapter on Paul's musical Origin Story. Tomorrow we start a new chapter where we learn that it is, in fact, possible to walk backwards into the future. Stay tuned.
Day 24: Let's Begin! So, the title of this chapter takes it's name from the "motto" of a certain 2 hours show that aired from midnight to 2 AM every Sunday evening on MTV. That show was 120 Minutes, and I was a little bit obsessed with it for the majority of my high school days. Now, as mentioned, the show was on MTV, so how did I get to see it? The simple answer is: friends with cable and VCRs, first Leo, and then Jovon. The regrettable thing about entire situation is that in retrospect, I don't think that I was particularly nice or grateful that my two best friends were kind enough to tape a show for me every single week for something like 4 years. In fact, I think that at times I was kind of an a-hole about it if for some reason I missed an episode (I did say I was a bit obsessed, right?) This chapter of my story deals with my love for that 2-hour slice of TV bliss. Today's selection is from the band XTC. I am not a huge XTC fan by any stretch (if fact, I kind of don't like them...), but the video for this track, "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" is one of my all time favorites. It is one of the those videos that tells a story in such a way that it enhances the song itself. The Peter Pumpkin head character is a generic martyr; an everyman who fought the powers that be but eventually paid the price ("but he made too many enemies of the people who would bring us to our knees"). The video appears to draw a parallel between JFK and Jesus Christ in a way that all politics aside is certainly interesting. Once again, "Let's Begin!"
10/25/2014
Day 25: Ah, 120 Minutes, how I loved you so. Receiving that VHS tape from my friend was the highlight of the week for me for a while in my high school days. I would pour over each episode making careful note of the position on the tape of any video that I really liked, and then I would literally go back through each episode and copy those videos to yet another VHS tape (because of course we had two VCRs set up to do that). I would up with an archive of roughly 35 hours of videos, all on VHS, and all still in my media cabinet, complete with a hand written index on notebook paper. Today's selection was one of the first video to go into that archive, a super fun track called "Stone Cold Yesterday" from the Connells, a band that 120 first introduced me to. I distinctly remember some sort of goofy intro to the video in which host Dave Kendell says something like, "what do I want to see? I want to see the Connells running through a field of daisies!" Uh... yeah you do.
10/26/2014
Day 26: One of the beautiful things about 120 Minutes is that even though I was starting my music collection from scratch, it allowed me from time to time to be the first member of my circle of friends to discover a new band or a new track. Or, in the case of today's selection, an old band with a new sound. In the 1980's the band Echo and the Bunnyman was a staple of college radio. They broke up in 1988 when singer Ian McCullough left the group, but parts of the band remained and in 1990, they release a new album Reverberation with a new lead singer by the name of Noel Burke. The video for the album's first single and today's selection "Enlighten Me" was another one of the first videos that I remember from 120 and one of the first tapes that I ever bought because of 120. I was probably also the first time that I got to share one of my tapes with the likes of Leo, Alvan, and Bob. History has not been very kind to this album (it is hard to replace a legend behind the microphone), but I still really like its funky, Indian take on early 90s alternative music. I mean, who doesn't want to hear a sitar solo, every once in while?
10/27/2014
Day 27: As I mentioned earlier, to me the music video is a lost art form. After all, there are so many different types of videos. Videos can simply show a performance, they can tell a story (either related to the subject of the song… or not), they can be artsy, or if they are like today's selection, they can just be off the wall weird and pretty hilarious. The band King Missile is perhaps best know for a later song about a certain part of the male anatomy that was detachable. But before that little ditty their singer simply professed that "My Heart is a Flower." This video has something for everyone: gardening, an organ, a dude in a bear suit, waffles, board games, dental hygiene, pedicures, and group shaving. It's 2:42 of zany awesomeness. Oh, and to the guitar soloist at the 45 second mark... you are on probation... you know what you did...
10/28/2014
Day 28: Sometimes I think those folks in the advertising business are on to something. Thinking back now on some of my favorite videos, the ones that still stick with me today tend to be the funny ones, like today's selection, "Don't Ask Me," by Public Image Limited. If memory serves, this track was one of those odd little new "singles" that gets wedged onto a best-of album such that a casual fan might consider buying the whole album. For me, I didn't have much exposure to the Sex Pistols until later, so this video was essentially my introduction to John Lydon / Rotten and his good (but not great) 2nd band. This video seems to fall into the category of the "story telling," but it does it with a bit of humor. Or, maybe it is just that British people all seem funny, even if they seem to be warning of the dangers of pollution. No matter. I was so amused by this video that in the early days of high school, I took once paused this video on my VCR, took a photograph of the screen with my 35 mm camera, and hung the photo in my locker after writing out a speech bubble that said, "I am so perplexed." Hey, I never claimed to be a normal kid.
10/29/2014
Day 29: Just for the record, I just want to say that my consumption of 120 minutes was not completely one sided. More than anything, 120 helped to grow by tape collection (and they were tapes), and I did attempt to share some of that music with others. We already saw evidence of a mix tape that I made for Lissa. I also remember I once made a mix tape for Heather, and I even cut together my own best-of video collection for Ryan. Both of the latter two compellations included today's track "Sexuality" from Billy Bragg. Upon reflection, this might be my favorite video of all time. Despite the provocative title of the song itself, for me this song is more about learning to accept yourself and others for who they are and, well, just loving each other. One of the first lines says it very well, "and even if your gay, I won't turn you away. If you stick around, I'm sure that we can find some common ground." But the bridge of the song has one of the greatest song lines of the 90s, "Safe sex doesn't mean no sex, it just means use your imagination." The video itself is just pure joy. I mean, who doesn't love a goofy British guy that sings in a thick accent. And hey, isn't that Johnny Marr on guitar?
10/30/2014
Day 30: One of the key draws of 120 Minutes was its charismatic creator and host Dave Kendall. Dave was the epitome of cool to the 16-year old version of Paul. Sadly, Dave decided to step away from 120 in 1992. He was replaced by some joker named Lewis Largent, and the show was never quite the same again (no offense to later host Matt Penfield, who was cool... but still not Dave). One of my last memories of Dave was a brief comment that he made just before airing the video for today's track, R.E.M.'s "Drive." Dave said, "Not to suggest that R.E.M. would every write a *bad* song, but this one is *really* starting to grow on me." I thought he nailed it. The slow burn, minimal nature of the song and the simple video of Michael Stipe crowd suffering in black and white does tend to creep up on you. Good stuff. I should also mention here that in one of the Stockbridge year books from the early 90s, there is a photo of me in Van McWilliams's class wearing a t-shirt with this album cover on it ("Automatic for the People"). For the record, I still own that t-shirt, and I have been known to break it out on casual Friday every once in a while (and for our 20th Year Class Reunion). Hey, if the shirt fits, right?
10/31/2014
Day 31: In the post Dave Kendell years and as alternative music grew in popularity and exposure, I slow but surely lost interest in the show. By the time I got to MSU, I had cable in my dorm, but I don’t think I watched it anymore. But every once in a while, my love of the music video will creep up on me once again. A few years ago, I ran across a link to a new website that contained an archive of old videos from the Cure. While on the site, I ran across the video for today's selection, "Pictures of You," and from the first few beats on the chimes, I was quite literally flooded with memories: memories of those old times in Stockbridge (some good and dome bad), memories of how I first fell in love with music, memories of many of you, pictures of you in my head, perhaps. The lyrics of the song speak more about a bittersweet longing for a lost love: "If only I'd thought of the right words, I could have held onto your heart." Looking back at your youth is also bittersweet, even for someone like me who doesn't really believe in regret (more on that at a later date). The whole experience just really touched me on that particular day, all due to a group of British guys paying in front of palm trees in a snow storm. It was magical.
And with that, I would like to close this chapter. From time to time, when I would look back at my music collection, it occurred to me that it essentially all started in 1979 with the first album from the Cure and the B-52s. I essentially ignore everything that happened before that. However, in rare cases, I will grant an exception to the 1979 rule, and that exception is the topic of our next chapter.
Day 32: I know that there are many of you out there that really love the music of the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I just really have a hard time getting into it. The Beatles? Shrug. The Stones? Meh. Led Zeppelin? Just OK. But there are certain bands that get a pass from me for putting out an album before 1979. I am not exactly sure when I realized this trend exactly, but I have a feeling that it happened while listening to the classic 1977 Fleetwood Mac album Rumors. This was another one of the those albums that Dawn used to play for me when I was a kid, although I don't think that it was in the rotation quite as often as some of my others favorites. But some years later, Dawn bought me this tape for my birthday or Christmas, and I rediscovered this 70s gem. I had to admit, even though it was 100% 70s, this album was pretty cool. And thus, the Fleetwood Mac Exception was born. The honor that exception today, I present the classic "Go Your Own Way." Oddly, this song essentially falls into the category of the unrequited love song, which is perhaps one of my favorite categories of song. Yet, unlike bands such as R.E.M., The Cure, or The Smiths / Morrissey, Fleetwood Mac manages to be defiant about the love that it not fully returned. All in all, it is not a bad way to go.
11/02/2014
Day 33: Now come on, who doesn't like a little Elton John every once in a while? I know I do, I suppose I would characterize this member of the Fleetwood Mac Exception club as a bit of a Guilty Pleasure, but seriously: "Rocket Man" "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" "Tiny Dancer?" You know that those songs are all awesome. I must admit that Dawn also played a lot of Elton John back in the day, but perhaps my favorite memory of Elton John was his performance of today's selection, "Crocodile Rock" on the Muppet Show. Much like the Muppets themselves, this song is just pure fun. The original performance seems to have taken place in 1977, so I assume that I saw it in reruns, but certainly in the early 80s, the Muppets had more street cred than any singer. Actually, they still might today, if I think about it. Kermit the Frog represents all that is good in the world, and if Elton is good enough for him, he is good enough for the Fleetwood Mac Exception.
11/03/2014
Day 34: A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I had developed a fondness for Paul Simon. Well, if Paul is OK, it only stands to reason that he was also OK back in the days of Simon and Garfunkel, right? I feel this "S&G" were also in the rotation in the days back at home, but I also developed more of an appreciation for them when I got to college and met Abigail and Jen. I remember one weekend during our Freshman year at MSU when several us of went back to Marshall for the weekend at Abigail's parents house. I don't specifically remember playing today's selection, "America" during that trip, but for whatever reason, that is the memory that I am linking to that song and to S&G in particular. Perhaps the theme of travel resonates ("Michigan seems like a dream to me now; It took me 4 days to hitchhike from Saginaw") even though the drive from East Lansing to Marshall was less than an hour. That was a fun weekend. I had a new friend, a new girlfriend (as Jen and I had just started dating), Abigail's Dad made us pancakes, and I even got to play Castle Wolfenstien with Nate and Ted. What more can a college freshman ask for?
11/04/2014
Day 35: As you can see, several groups to which I issue the Fleetwood Mac Exception can directly or indirectly be related back to those same early days at home with my big sister Dawn. But, today's selection is not one of them. I believe that my first exposure to today's exceptee, the ultra 70s Swedish act ABBA, actually comes by way of another band, the British electronic dance band Erasure. Back in 1992, Erasure issued a 4-track EP containing covers of classic ABBA songs. Their take was a 90s dance spin on the 70s classics, and they were pretty compelling. That EP cracked the door open. Many years later, after Jen and I moved back to Michigan, we joined the Livingston County Concert Band. During the summers especially, we would often play an concert band ABBA medley. What would you know, but those songs are just plain catchy. Then, the musical Mama Mia came to the Wharton Center... and then they made a move about it... At some point, I just had to admit it: I LIKE ABBA DAMMIT. So here you go, I offer up perhaps me favorite ABBA track, "Waterloo"
11/05/2014
Day 36: In the early days growing up at home, we did not listen to that much music, but there were some exceptions. We had a record player and an 8-track player, and especially on Sunday morning Dad would play some classical music, movie sound tracks, some gospel music from the Gaither Family, and a particular folk gospel record that I probably liked the best, but probably never knew the name of the group. (I remember Dad saying that they were from Australia...) It was also not unusual to watch Hee Haw and other variety shows with more of a country or (better yet) bluegrass feel. I don't specifically remember being introduced to Johnny Cash back in those days, but his mix of gospel and old country seems to fit in with those roots of my musical history. He was even featured on 120 minutes in 1994 for his album "American Recordings," so for me, he had cred. Shortly after he passed away in 2003, I decided that I really should own some of his music, so I bought a best-of CD. I had always heard that Cash was "The Man in Black," but I had never actually heard the song of that name until I purchased that album. This song simply blows me away every time I listen to it. It is clearly a protest song for a time of war, but it is so, so much deeper than that. Do yourself a favor and just listen to the words of the entire song. I could quote almost the entire song here, but as a sample, "Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose, In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes, But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back, Up front there ought 'a be a Man In Black" For me the song is about remembering those that are less fortunate, and about pushing yourself to do better, to be a better person, to help others more, and to work everyday to make the world a better place. It's a sad song, but it also brings hope. Because hope is never truly lost unless we give up, or unless we simply forget to keep trying. I think Johnny was right; we all need a man in black to help us remember that.
11/06/2014
Day 37: Yesterday, I spoke a little about Dad. Today's selection is for Mom. Mom has never been a big fan of popular music, but there is one singer that brings a smile to her face: Elvis Presley. Who am I to deny the Fleetwood Mac Exception to the King? Perhaps most appropriate to this project, Mom would often comment that she is wasn't strictly Elvis's music that she likes, but it reminds her of her days in nursing school in Kalamazoo, where the girls she knew would just go crazy for that boy and his swiveling hips. One year, I decided that Mom might like an Elvis best-of-CD for Christmas... and I decided that maybe I would like one too. So, I would like to close this chapter on pre-1979 music with the Elvis "remix" that I believe was used in the film Ocean's 11, "A Little Less Conversation." Over the past month or so, I have told my musical origin story, explored my love of the music video, and reached back in the decade of my birth and beyond. With the next chapter, I would like to take a deeper dive into that all-important time period when both my love of music and my tape collection exploded; that time when alternative music went from the underground to the mainstream. Everybody put on your black and orange and check the map for the intersection of M-52 and M-106. We're headed back to high school.
Day 38: High School. Ah, those were the days. They weren't all good days certainly, but time and distance do make the heart grow fonder. I certainly would not want to go back or to relive those days, but the experiences that we had in high school did a lot to carve and shape us into the adults that we all became. For me, music was a big part of that, and I would like to take the next several weeks exploring that era from 1990-1994. In late middle school and much of high school, I was involved in several activities including band, academic games, and science Olympiad. It seems like my friends (but not my only friends) and I would somehow find a way to combine some of these activities with listening to new tapes or CDs on a portable boom box. It was a great way to share and listen to new music and to simply hang out. During my freshman year, They Might Be Giants came out with "a brand new record for 1990" called Flood, and with it I was able to discover a whole new world of geeky musical glory. We listened to it A LOT Freshman year. I like the album so much that I even spent over my usual limit of $10 to buy it (I think that I spent $10.49 at a record store in the Jackson Crossing Mall). A lot of acts try to capture that quirky, funny spirit of TMGB, but no one can really touch them in my mind. I mean, who else can make an accordion work in popular music? No one, that's who. Who can get away with having music videos made by the animaniacs? No one. So today, "not to put too fine a point on it," let's remember that "brand new album for 1990" with "Birdhouse in Your Soul."
11/08/2014
Day 39: At first, I didn't really like Midnight Oil, and Leo couldn't figure out why. In the late middle school and early high school, my friend Leo was easily the biggest influence on my budding tape collection (other than 120, perhaps). Leo had me figured out. One day he passed his copy of Midnight Oil's outstanding album Diesel and Dust, and on first listen, I just didn't like it. "What?" he said, "I don't get it; this is right down your alley." As it turns out, he was right, Midnight Oil slowly grew on, and grew on me... but it took a while. (I just happened to be in a cranky mood when I first heard them). Midnight Oil's 1989 Blue Sky Mining was the album that changed my mind. Much like yesterday's selection, the album seemed to be on heavy rotation for some of our after school activities. Add to that, it seemed to be a favorite of the some of the upperclassman in band class, which certainly gave them credibility. I even remember that Ryan Knott had the CD long box of this album hanging in his locker. So, today I would like to highlight the title track from "Blue Sky Mining," one of the many fine examples of Australia's ultimate eco-rockers anthems to the environment and the working class, hey, hey, hey, hey! That opening sequence of guitar, organ, and signature harmonica bring me right back to Freshman year.
11/09/2014
Day 40: It is said that Jesus spend 40 days in the desert. I have now spent 40 days telling the story of my musical journey. Back in 1991, the band Jesus Jones had roughly 15 minutes of fame. But, oh, they were a good 15 minutes. I am pretty sure that I first heard today's song, the post-cold war anthem "Right Here, Right Now" on 120 Minutes. Despite the major changes that were occurring in geopolitical politics in the early 90s, there seemed to be a scant few songs that seemed to touch on topics such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, etc. I certainly can't think of any that approached the subject with such optimism for the future (please also note that not all the songs I like are depressing). The lyrics are retrospective and uplifting, "I saw the decade in, when it seemed the world could change at the blink of an eye...Right here, right now, there is no other place I wanna be. Right here, right now, watching the world wake up from history." In today's post-911/Tech Bubble, Great Recession era, the Jesus Jones' words almost seem quaint and perhaps even naive. However, the spirit of the song also echoed the sense of wonder that one has as a young person in the early stages of high school, when everything is new and everything seems possible. It really hits a chord with my generation, and hearing the song again is sort of like seeing an old friend for the first time in 25 years.
11/10/2014
Day 41: I have mentioned already that the first album that I every bought was R.E.M.'s Green. When I heard that they were coming out with a new album in 1991. I was… excited. Excited is not really the right word. The release of this album was perhaps the single thing in my life that I have anticipated owning the most in my 39 years. I saved a $10 in my wallet for its purchase for probably close to a year. I had the serial number memorized. I am sadly, not joking. When the fateful day finally arrived, I had a band commitment, so I sent my parents, God bless them, to East Lansing, with the specific $10 bill in hand, to purchase the tape from Wherehouse Records. Now, it was a little anti-climatic by then, because I actually already had a taped-off-the-radio copy of the album as The Impact had played it in it's entirety a few days before. But, it was tremendously satisfying to hold an actual copy of "Out of Time" in my hands. By this time, I had also already heard the 1st single off the album, today's selection, "Losing My Religion," as the now legendary video had debuted on 120 Minutes weeks before. I remember seeing the video and hearing the song for the first time and thinking (and even telling people), "I really like the song, but I just don't think it is going to be that popular or radio-friendly." I guess I just didn't think America was ready for a mandolin solo. As it turns out, this was perhaps the most incorrect thing that I have ever said in my entire life. The song itself is a masterpiece, but the thing that is perhaps the most interesting thing is that a lot of people don't really get the meaning of the song at all. Most notably the TV show Glee, as it circled the drain in a creative sense, had the late Corey Monteith (Finn) sing the song about a crisis of faith. But, the song itself has nothing to do with that. Variations of the phrase "I just about lost my religion" were a favorite of my Mother especially as a way to express extreme frustration. The meaning of the entire song, every single lyric, simply snapped into focus for me one day, like I was momentarily inside Michael Stipe's head. Losing My Religion is an unrequited love song, and perhaps the best one not written by Steven Morrissey. Lines like, "...the distance in your eyes. Oh no, I've said too much; I haven't said enough" speak directly to the frustration of trying to express your true feelings to someone, the fear of rejection, and the emotional rollercoaster of trying to decide the right course of action or inaction. So whether you are in the corner or in the spotlight, this song is all about love (or a lack of it), and it's one of the greatest of all times.
11/11/2014
Day 42: I am willing to bet that so far most of you out there have a least heard of the majority of the bands that I have mentioned so far. But today's selection may be a stumper. That, of course, was one of the joys of alternative music in the early days. Even if you were a geeky, not-terribly-athletic kid who was maybe 120 soaking wet, you at least had the card in your hand to tell someone, "yeah, I'm listening to this new British band right now, but you've probably never heard of them." It seems pretentious now (and probably was then), but that's life, I guess. The Trashcan Sinatras debut album Cake, was another album that comes to mind when I think back to Freshman year. In my early days, I wasn't so interested in some of the harder alternative rock, so their more mellow, British style really appealed to me. It almost seems like alternative bubble gum now, but back then, it was cutting edge. Today's selection is the first single "Only Tongue Can Tell," from that debut album. Even in alternative circles, the Trashcan Sinatras seemed to fade into oblivion shortly after this album, but this track really captures that signature sound of early 90s alternative for me. I hope you enjoy it.
11/12/2014
Day 43: When I first started to listening to new bands in my late middle school days, I really did stick mostly to stuff that was pretty mellow. Slowly but surely, I started to sprinkle in some bands with a little bit more of an edge to them. The band that I am highlighting today, another British band called Ned's Atomic Dustbin was perhaps a "gateway" band to some of the harder portions of my collection that I would collect in later years. Similar to the Trash Can Sinatras, Ned's burned like supernova, shinning brightly in their debut album, "God Fodder" but "obscurity knocked" just a few short months later. Also similar to the Trash Can Sinatras, Ned's signature sound, although somewhat harder, is one that I very closely associate with Freshman year, hanging out with my friend in the band room, the cafeteria, or somebody's house with a boom box. Their songs always had a great bass part, and in many cases the songs feel like they want to be speed metal, but the band is just too polite to really crank it up to 11. For me at the time, the balance was perfect. So, return with me to one of one early high school "Happy" places. If nothing else, the hair and clothes in this video REALLY take me back to 1991.
11/13/2014
Day 44: I imagine that many of you know that Mick Jones was the lead singer for the Clash, but I would guess that fewer of you know that after the Clash broke up, he formed a pseudo alternative dance band called Big Audio Dynamite. In their first incarnation, they even tried to start a new dance craze called "The Bottom Line." (Needless to stay, it was pretty B.A.D.) The second incarnation of the group called Big Audio Dynamite II put out the album "The Globe" in 1991, which contained today's super fun track, "Rush." Now, I am not terribly proud of this but the memory that I most associate with this song actually has to do with the SHS Panther Football team. As a member of the marching band, I attended pretty much every home game. In my day, the Panthers were not particularly good at football. Now the other thing that you need to know is that I really like puns, and I also like to come up with "alternative" lyrics to songs, pretty much to amuse myself. So even though I had a fair amount of school spirit, one Friday night at Stockbridge High mostly like while sitting next to Mark Woolcock and Lissa Steffey, I came up with the following, "situation no-win. Rush for the locker room. We cannot win, so let's give in. Gotta get ourselves right out of here." Sorry Panthers, I do feel bad, but "If I had my time again. I would do it all the same. And not change a single thing. Even when I was to blame."
11/14/2014
Day 45: In the spring time of 1992 (sophomore year) I had the opportunity to take a trip with the high school concert band to Toronto. It was really the first time that I was able to go on what was essentially a road trip with many of my closest friends (albeit a chaperoned one), and we had a great time. We went to the zoo, the CN Tower, a Bluejays game, and even found time for some shenanigans like when Mark, Eric, and I "broke into" Larry Thompson's car, took photos of ourselves behind the wheel and turned the radio and wipers on full blast (I think Larry learned to lock his car after that.) I suppose the band performed a few times as well. But, also during that week, The Cure released what would in all honesty be their last truly great album, "Wish." One of our outings on that trip was to a downtown shopping area, where several of my friends and I wound up in a record store. I remember posters on the wall saying "April 21, 1992: the day your Wish comes true." And it was. R.E.M.'s Out of Town was my most anticipated album release, but Wish was a close 2nd. That feeling of being in a big city record store just a few days after the release of one of your favorite band's best albums was a special kind of cool. The store was playing the record, and I am pretty sure it was the first time I ever heard "Friday, I'm In Love." Only Leo actually bought the album that day, but soon, we all had a copy. So, today, I would like to feature, "From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea," a 7:44 slow-burn Hidden Gem. This is a classic Cure track with an awesome intro and slightly dark, brooding lyrics about lost love. It's simply delicious.
11/15/2014
Day 46: There are two other things that you need to know about me. First, I am a trombone player, so I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the bass line. Second, I come from a family of very strong women, whether it is my mom, sisters, my Aunt Rose and Aunt Louise, or even my cousins Tricia, Nikki, and Sarah. So, I have also had a soft spot for high energy music with female lead singers. One day in 1992, while watching 120 minutes, I can across a song that checked both boxes. That song was today's selection, "Sheela Na Gig" from PJ Harvey. This song was like nothing I had ever heard before. It starts with a call little guitar riff, then Polly Jean's sweet voices comes in, and then that grungy, awesome bass line that transitions into a very energetic chorus. Listening to it was like taking a musical shot of espresso. I was hooked. The lyrics are somehow dark and funny at the same time: "Look at these my child-bearing hips... I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair; I'm gonna take my hips to a man who cares (turn the corner, another one there.)" The song was an underground hit such that at some point a few years later PJ Harvey essentially refused to play the song live anymore. To this day, if I every need a music pick-me-up, I usually tune my iPod to PJ Harvey.
11/16/2014
Day 47: Bands fronted by women don't always have to sound a little angry for them to make my play list. In many ways today's band the 10,000 Maniacs are the mellow counterpoint to yesterday's selection. My sister Dawn was also a fan of 10,000 Maniacs and I may have already owned copies of their previous albums "In My Tribe" and "Blind Man's Zoo" in 1992 when the album "Our Time in Eden" came out. It was a real game-changer. This was right around the time when alternative music was starting to break into the mainstream, and this Natalie Merchant led act was one of the main catalysts. They were already a well-established college radio favorite, and the new record was just a notch more accessible to an audience that was craving something different. Today's song, "These Are Days" became a bit of an anthem for my generation. It was the type of song the Senior classes used in montages summarizing their high school years. I think Tricia even used it in a photo-video montage for Jen and my wedding shower. Looking back now, I don't think the 10,000 Maniacs have aged quite as well as some other bands, but it does make my smile to hear this song again. After all, the song seems to be about living in the moment and reliving that you "are blesses and lucky." It can be a tough world out there, and maybe we all could use a reminder that life is pretty good after all.
11/17/2014
Day 48: One of the fun things about my high school days was the chance to get to know some of the older (and younger students) through extra circular activities. During my first few years of high school, some of the older kids also would wind up influencing some of my musical tastes. Today's selection, "I Wanna be Sedated" from the classic punk rock act The Ramones was a track that Susan Charlevoix first introduced me to. Susan was a bit of a big sister type of influence on me I suppose, as she was one of the chemistry specialists in Science Olympiad, our band Drum Major, and also my predecessor as Quiz Bowl Team Captain. I cannot remember the exact event the prompted my introduction to this track (were we being rowdy one afternoon in band?) But I do remember that for one year at the State Science Olympiad State Finals up at MSU, this song got stuck in my head and became at least my theme song for the event. As a type of tribute to Susan, I went so far as to request the song be played by the Impact while we were killing time somewhere in Well's Hall between events. If wasn't until many years later that I actually bought a Ramones best-of CD (likely just after the death of one of the band members). They may always use the same 3-4 chords in their songs, but the Ramones always got me moving and put a smile on my face. So thanks, Susan, and I hope this picks up everyone's Monday morning.
11/18/2014
Day 49: As my friends and I started to transition from underclassmen to upperclassmen, it certainly did feel like the musical landscape was changing around us. We would still often be the first ones to discover new bands, but some bands, like The Counting Crows seem to spark and catch fire almost immediately. Their debut album "August and Everything After" seemed to be everywhere, especially their debut single "Mr. Jones." The song was so ubiquitous that I think the band itself even got tired of playing it in concerts. But, even though that particular song suffered from over saturation, the brilliance of the entire album cannot be understated. By the time this album came out, my friends and I could all drive, and to this day when I think back to driving around Stockbridge with Leo, I imagine / remember this album paying on the tape deck. I have never been blown away be anything the Counting Crows have done since, but this album remains a mainstay of my playlist. Today I would like to highlight the opening track from that great album, "Round Here," another slow burn gem that hooks me from the opening guitar progression. For me, this song has always evoked thoughts of growing up in a small town and both the wonder and fear of discovering what lies beyond the boundaries of the shire. As I read through the lyrics, I don't think that is what Adam Duritzz meant at all, so maybe I was projecting the feelings of my own 17-yr old self on the song. That's OK, though and perhaps more that is the beautiful thing about music. Each person experiences it a little different, and even if it is "wrong" it is still meaningful. Round here, that is all the matters.
11/19/2014
Day 50: As I have mentioned, extra curricular were an important part of high school for me, and band was one of the more important one. I was very fortunate to have had the chance to attend Band Camp up on MSU's campus both my Freshman and Senior years. The contrast in the experience when one is 14 and when one is 17 is quite stark. When I was a freshman, all I remember was almost losing my contact lens in the sink and having a Senior boy named Darren bail me out. I also remember impressing Senior girl Alexis Dyer by having the order of the tracks on an R.E.M album memorized. By the time we were Seniors, we were the ones pulling pranks but also the ones making sure the Freshman were getting lined up properly and had the correct technique for marking time. But both times, I remember the fun on hanging out in Akers Hall cranking out tunes on someone's boom box. Senior year, I believe that I roomed with Mark, Bob, and Eric, and Mark introduced me to a band like nothing I had heard before: Rage Against the Machine. As I remember, even as a senior I didn't care for it much, but over time, it certainly grew on me. Getting the chance to battle with Tom Morello on Guitar Hero certainly didn't hurt. When I think back to that week, today's song "Killing in the Name" is the one that always comes to mind. The energy of this song as at an 11, and the shear defiance of the ending of the song (sorry about the language) struck a chord with us Seniors to be, so close to "adulthood" but yet 9 or so very long months away. It was an awesome time.
11/20/2014
Day 51: I imagine that there are some of you out there that will see this song and know exactly the story that I am about to tell. Sometime during our Senior year, the school held a lip synch contest ("Mock Rock"?) They year before, a group had attempted the Primus song "Tommy the Cat," which made quite a splash, and this emboldened some of my friends and I to also attempt a performance. It took a while to figure out which song to do, and after some debate we settled on today's song "Cannonball" from the Breeders. There was only one problem: the lead singer for the Breeders is Kim Deal, a women, and we did not have any girls that were part of our little conspiracy. So, I volunteered to dress as a women for the performance. I managed to find a wig, a skirt, and a couple of inflated balloons, and I was able to barrow a bass guitar from one of my friends, and bingo our fake band "Gerbil Theory" was ready to go. (I believe the name was something that I misheard someone say in Van McWilliams physics class.) When the day finally came for the performance, I found myself up on stage with Alvan, and I believe his brother David and Eric. I have never been prone to stage fright, but as the song started, I did feel a bit of panic set in. I inched over to Alvan next to me and shouted my concern in a freaked out tone, "I can't hear the song! I don't know when to come in!" Alvan replied, "It will be OK, JUST KEEP GOING!" And.. it was! Once I got my footing on the sound, I found the intro, and we plowed through the track with bravado. Alvan gave me perhaps the biggest high five of my life after we finished. I will always remember those words of encouragement from a friend at just the right time. It made all the difference. I believe that Gerbil Theory banded together one additional time for a performance at some band event at the end of the year (which allowed my parents to confirm in person that I apparently resembled my sister Dawn while in costume), but I never felt that we could create the same magic as that first performance. As for the song itself, I never really felt the Breeder were anything close to as good as some of the bands from which the members derived (The Pixies and The Throwing Muses, specifically) but this song is pure, mindless fun. If that opening bass line doesn't put a smile on your face, well, I can't help you.
11/21/2014
Day 52: One of my favorite extra curricular activities in high school was quiz bowl. I have always enjoyed trivia, and my official competitive career started in middle school in 4-H with "Dairy Quiz Bowl" along with the likes of Tricia, Aaron Graf, and Jamie Snow. The beautiful thing about Dairy Quiz Bowl was that all 900 or so of the questions for the county and state competitions were printed out in a binder and distributed to each team ahead of time. Now, I have never been an expert in the fine details of farming, but I have a good reaction time and I always been good at memorizing things. As a result my team was able to tear through competition and earn a spot in the National competition in Louisville (where we were defeated easily in 2 matches). But, we interest was piqued and once I entered High School, I immediately joined the Van McWilliam's Quiz Bowl Team. As the years went on, I eventually became team captain, and the team got better and better. By my Senior year, we were pretty good, thank you very much. All four years we competed in WKAR's Quiz Busters program, and my Senior year we made it all the way to the "Final Four" before losing in what I consider to be an upset to Potterville (I still hold a grudge against the town, incidentally :)). But, our team's ultimate achievement came in the official state of Michigan finals that were held that year in Port Huron. It was a fun road trip up I-69, and today's song "Spoonman" from Soundgarden was our unofficial theme song for the trip. I have never been a huge Soundgarden fan, but this track was one of those fun, high energy ditties that really gets your foot tapping (or your head banging, perhaps). Plus, there is an actual spoon solo (how cool is that?) It pumped us up as we prepared to go into battle. Oh, and battle we did. The group of Josh Matthews, Josh Gerhard, Ryan Bentley, and I burned through the competition, making it all the way to the Final match against are arch nemesis, Haslett. We eventually lost and had to settle for the title of runner up, but run in Port Huron was perhaps my proudest moment as a Panther. I can't hear a spoon solo without thinking of it!
11/22/2014
Day 53: I think that it is natural to begin to get a little retrospective once you start to near the end of a major period of life. As I approached graduation day, I certainly got that way. For some reason, today's song, "Regret" from New Order is the song that comes to mind when I recall those days. New Order is another one of those more electronic acts that I like. They have phenomenal singles, yet strangely average albums (Just buy their best-of CD, trust me). But, somewhere along the lines I acquired their 1993 album Republic and listened to it a lot my Senior year. I mentioned a few days ago that I don't really believe in regrets. I believe that is our life experiences, both negative and positive, that shape who we are. To look back and regret is partially to deny ourselves of the experiences that define us. There can be no comedy without tragedy. I think that this song helped me to understand that about myself. The song itself is kind of hard to figure out (it seems to be somehow about finding love and losing love simultaneously), but there are several of the lyrics that I really like, such as the opening: "Maybe I've forgotten the name and the address, of everyone I've ever known, It's nothing I regret." Or in the middle: "You may think that I'm out of hand, That I'm naive, I'll understand. On this occasion, it's not true. Look at me, I'm not you" Or towards the end: "I would like a place I could call my own... Just wait till tomorrow. I guess that's what they all say." It is a song that spoke of both no regrets and the desire the move on, but not quite being able to yet. To the 19-year old version of myself, it really rung true.
11/23/2014
Day 54: As I draw to a close this almost 3-week long journal through my High School years, there is one band and one song that still bears mention. When MTV or VH1 or Rolling Stone do some of their count-downs of things like "the best song of the 90s," and so on, the song at the top is usually today's selection: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" from Nirvana. I cannot deny today that I like Nirvana and that the album Nevermind was one of the milestone albums of the 1990s. But, I really did not care for them when I was in High School. I just sort of tolerated them. I remember seeing the video on 120 Minutes for the first time and thinking the cheerleaders with the anarchy symbols was a clever idea, but otherwise the song was just noise. But there was one incident that really sticks in my head about this song. The time was Lissa Steffey's 16th birthday, and she had invited several of us over to her house for a party. Towards the end of the evening, we all staged a sort of dance party in the basement and some of my friends decided to unleash this new track on the group to see how it went over. I am sure it was the first time most people in the group had heard the song. It did not go over particularly well. "That just sounds like heavy metal," someone said. Some of us just weren't ready yet. But a few years later, most of us probably remember when they heard the news that Kurt Cobain had committed suicide (I was driving in East Lansing with Jovon), and most of us probably recognize that the song became the anthem of our generation. So, with that I would like to close this chapter of my story on High School days.
Tomorrow, much as I did in 1994, I would like to move on the next chapter of my life, one with a much more green and white color scheme.
