The Winds Of Change

My musical tastes have developed and broadened over the years - age can either free you or blind you.

Take for example, the mid-to-late 90's - a time of musical disruption that has not been seen since.

I am referring to the advent of what was to become grunge and gansta rap... two evolutions (devolution?) that had to occur, in the same vein that punk charged through the rock dinosaurs of the 70's - the younger generation displacing their ageing parents.

When I travelled in the car with my father I use to cringe at his love of country music - he would play Jim Reeves, Charley Pride, Hank Williams and Johnny Cash - over and over - wearing out those cassettes in a big way. (Little did I know that those infectious melodies were creating a blue-print in my brain, but that would surface at a later date.)

When I was growing up my music differed and reflected my older siblings, as well as the music of the day - I can clearly recall the Star Wars (disco) theme, the Nolan Sisters and Paul McCartney and the Wings and 'Mull Of Kintyre.'

My musical punch for my (local) generation was Rap music - Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel, Afrika Bambaataa and company, followed by Break Dancing - yes, I use to do back spins and dolphin dives...

But like most things, it got watered down to become more accessible, and for our sins we got MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice - but things took a different turn as time advanced... Gangsta Rap. For me, living in Glen Innes/ Panmure/ Pt England and a whole world away from the American Ghettos, I responded in an unexpected manner. Where my original heroes of Rap gave me an insight to their way of life and strife through clever social commentary, the new breed embraced and advocated this lifestyle - something that never sat comfortably with me.

This was also closely followed by the sudden earthquake that was Nirvana - blowing aside the stale safe rock of the 80's and bringing a grittier nuance to our generation. But where Kurt Cobain, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and the others that followed were aware of the musical vacuum left by the Beatles, Hendrix and Dylan - those that carried the torch on to today missed what made their music so unique - the hook. Much of the music that has followed is just as digitally/ sonically bloated as the musicians they had displaced.

My son listens to a lot of modern music - the love affair and dreams that carried the musical revolution of the 80's and 90's bravely to the forefront of popular culture has again been watered down, with no acknowledgement of past achievements of how they got where they are now.

I am wondering what type of musical revolution (are there any left to explore?) is waiting in the wings to kick-start a new love of music for what it really is - pure expression that makes you and moves you - and not some wet dream of Simon Cowell...

Sibling (Musical) Rivalry

When I was growing up in Glen Innes I was living in a family home with three older siblings - an older sister and two brothers.

Each member brought their own musical preference - and each preference based on the musical changes of the 70's.

The oldest was my sister - and she loved disco and reggae, where my love of Bob Marley started - in fact, I was with her and her boyfriend when the news broke on the radio (no internet here, folks) of his untimely passing.

The next youngest brother loved Heavy Metal - classic British bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath.

The next brother was into New Wave and Punk - and though much of the material I re-discovered in my later years - his musical difference was noted in my youth, such as the Jam, XTC and the Buzzcocks.

Throw into the mix an even older brother (nine siblings in total) who played guitar and had a love of early sixties (inspiring us all to pick up a guitar), and my father and his country music, and you produce my skewed vision of tasteful music.

Of course, when I was growing up my musical tastes were early hip hop - an influence I rarely cite when writing music (probably just as well as I rap pretty poorly), but I still have a soft spot (and deep appreciation) for Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five.

The battles around the household in my fomative years was heated and unresolvable - but it was a love affair none-the-less - each with their own desired affiliation that carries through to today. In a strange way, you could say music brings us together to pull out the worst in us.

But rivalry is a dynamic that keeps my creativity charged - no difference between the Beach Boys, Everly Brothers, Oasis, Black Crowes etc.

Family and music does not always mix, and when it doesn't - it's magic...

Like My Mama Always Says... (May 2014)

Like My Mama Always Says...

'Son... how can you claim such deep and profound insight - when you're as blind as a bat...'

The Fine Art Of Aging Without Grace

I was out the other night, at a Fender Guitar Import Presentation at the Tuning Fork in Auckland, and having a wonderful time.

Before the show commenced, my wife and I were enjoying a cold beer and soaking up the atmosphere - when over the venue speakers came the magic sound of Bryan Adams singing "Run To You."

I watched with some mild amusement at an aged man - definitely in his mid-to-late 60's - lost in his own world and without concern for appearance, rocking back in forth in his seat and mouthing the words to the song in perfect unison.

I was about to turn to my wife and say - 'Look at the old fella... rocking out' - not in a demeaning way but in a 'possum in my headlights' kind of way - when a terrible realisation suddenly dawned on me.

When this song was released back in the 80's, he was my age now...

Isn't life damned depressing? Well, the beer was nice...