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MUSIC THAT CHANGED YOUR LIFE

I bought a couple of remastered CD's this week that brought a flood of memories back to me and well I knew I wouldn't be alone in having pieces of music that shaped or echoed various era's of my life.
It's also the reason I got into this hobby....
At 13 I got seriously into music,me amd my friends who sit around for hours picking tracks and blasting out music,this was my intial golden era.
However some 8 years later in '85 I'd moved on a bit,I was semi-grown up,been made redundant from my first job,worked in retail for a while and was back studying at college.
My interest in music had diminished a little,the 80's seemed a little facile,a lot of the music raved about somehow didn't do it for me.
I was pretty broke too,staying at home and well a little down and self obsessed as a 21 year tends to be.
One day I came across a new record just released,I liked the cover,the titles of the songs and I'd seen the band on TV a few times.
It was This Is The Sea by The Waterboys.
I was blown away,a big rock sound,epic but not overblown,a great lyricist and songwriter in Mike Scott and the music became my beacon in a gloomy time.
I followed up the previous releases by them,the live tapes,all the stuff you do.
Now I wouldn't claim this record was the greatest ever made but I wore that vinyl out,even today I could probably write you down the lyric of every song on that record,I doubt I've ever listened to any record more than that one.
It might be saying too much that it saved my life but Mike Scott's music reflected the bleakness of Britain at that time but it also uplifted me.
That winter was tough but that record kept my spirits up.
It started too a search for those who had influenced him and opened up my mind to Dylan,Van Morrison and made me realise the importance of early Blues,Country and Gospel music.
Simply put it restarted my love affair for music.
So when I listened to the first two Waterboys albums this week I was transported back to that time and despite some of the music having dated the essence of Scott's positve message still seemed as powerful some 17 years later.
The subsequent releases by The Waterboys were never as strong to me but that record had such an important impact on my life that I'll never forget it nor the times it got me through.
That's part of my story,now tell me yours.............
ben_campbell
fmpnd
481 posts
 
I was a young trumpet player in the late 60s early 70s. I began to play professionally at the age of 16 touring the country in a jazz/rock band of the Chicago, BS&T, Tower of Power ilk.

As a result of the most incredibly fond memories of my life from age 14-23, I can tell you that the music of the follwing bands/LPs in that era have had the most moving, sentimental and largest impact on me and still do today:

1. Tower of Power (self titled LP and Back to Oakland LPs are classics for me - I have 5 copies of each)

2. Ides of March (their main hit "Vehicle" is used right now on Chevy commercials)

3. Blood Sweat & Tears (first 5 are the best, the 1969 Grammy Award winner is a classic, with the other 4 not too far behind, including the much less heralded Child is the Father to the Man)

4. Cold Blood (First Taste of Sin)

5. Chase (best jazz/rock chops in history, Bochawa has to be one of the most powerful songs ever recorded)

6. Puzzle ("On With the Show" from their first LP)

7. Lighthouse (the One Fine Morning LP is one of my all time favorites)

8. Earth Wind & Fire (early stuff)

9. Gino Vannelli (Powerful People, Storm at Sun-up, Gist of the Gemini, Pauper in Paradise)

10. Rufus (Once You Get Started)

11. Dreams (band with Billy Cobham, Randy & Michael Brecker)

12. Ten Wheel Drive

13. Santana (Abraxas, Welcome);

14. Average White Band (early stuff - White Album, Cut the Cake) and

15. Chicago (the early stuff is also classic)

That's a few. I also like from that era, early Elton, Brian Auger, Gary Puckett, Guess Who, Mandrill, Funky Nassau, BarKays, Malo, Lee Michaels, Sugarloaf (Green Eyed Lady), Yes (Fragile), Deodato, Temptations, Four Tops, Marvin Gaye , Smokey, the Dramatics (hey, I'm from Detroit).

Wow, what a nice nostalgic ride that just was! Can't wait to get home and slap on some vinyl!
marakanetz's avatar
marakanetz
5,473 posts
 
I've got my first jazz motivation from the album of Chick Corea "Mad Hatter" 10 years ago.
Recently German progressive/krautrock had become a part of my life. There is NO listening session without Roedelius or CAN period.
garfish
1,840 posts
 
Ben; nothing to compare to your story, but music didn't mean much to me until Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Elvis, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Rick Nelson, The Everly Brothers, Gene Vincent, Carl Perkins and many others invented ROCK and ROLL (of course it grew out of Blues). There weren't many women Rock performers in those days, but a year or so later, Wanda Jackson's "Let's Have A party" was fantastic.

I was 13 years old in 1956; raging hormone storm going on too, and saw Elvis perform on the Ed Sullivan TV show--waist up only of course-- he was great. And my two year older sister pretty much wore out a 45 record by Gene Vincent-- "Be Bop A Lula", on our parents Zenith portable record player (it had tubes:)--and I helped. I KNEW I had to have a guitar-- specifically electric, as a result of all this. Well, many guitars later I still love early R&R music and its progeny;>) I play my stereo system much better than I ever played guitar though-- but still, a life-long love affair with R&R. Cheers. Craig.
rosstaman
455 posts
 
Good thread, Ben. I think one of the LP's that changed my life musically was, East West by The Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Prior to its release in the mid-60's, I was listening to all the top 10 music on the radio, most of which was known as the "British Invasion" and some great Motown tunes. East West introduced me to the blues. Actually, I was hanging out in Greenwich Village and attended the Battle of the Bands concerts in Thompson Square Park. The Blues Project (Al Kooper's original band) vs. The Paul Butterfield Blues Band (Paul Butterfield, Mike Bloomfield, Elvin Bishop, Mark Naftalin, etc.) After that I was hooked on the blues. Then came the John Lee Hooker and Canned Heat (Hooker-n-Heat) concert at Carnegie Hall. It was the first "rock" concert at Carnegie Hall. I became hooked on boogie woogie. Then there was the Earth Day Festival at UC Davis in the late 70's and Bob Marley and the Wailers played. My life has never been the same! Multiple addictions!
klhender
43 posts
 
Ben-this is a hard one and I may change my mind but Chicago VI comes to mind right away. I'll never forget seeing Brian Auger at Ohio State spring of 74'. I was walking in the mall when I heard one song from "Born to Run", had no idea who the band was but 3 minutes later the guy in the record store knew...end of story.
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