First thing’s first…
You might be wondering a few things. “Am I really going to have the time or patience to read this?” or “What’s the point of another music blog?” … “Where am I?”
In order; I‘m not sure, research suggests people barely read a lot of what they see online. I do hope you stick around, though.
The point is to shed light on the less-exposed features of music — what inspired the artists creating it, what might have been going through their head, and other interesting facts that contribute, holistically, to the whole atmosphere around a track that can become the stuff of legend. To have a central outlet for these stories, music recommendations, discussions, and celebration to call home.
Finally, you are here! Think about that for a second. Thank you for taking the time to read, and welcome to the blog.
So, why me? Why now?
I’ve always been fascinated with the backstories of music I enjoy, and I credit my father for a lot of this. From a young age, I remember sharing his appreciation for this sort of music trivia, and began to revel in it. Like him, I wanted to be that guy who could play a song for someone and be able to back it up with a story; something about where the band was when they recorded it, or why the singer’s voice sounded that way, etc. Music is storytelling, and understanding the context is crucial to a full appreciation of all stories.
Our bookshelves growing up were filled with old rock n’ roll biographies, which my dad read voraciously (I know what you’re thinking, and yes, I promise to limit big, pompous words in this blog. Honest.) From “Exile on Main Street” about the Rolling Stones, or “No One Here Gets Out Alive” about Jim Morrison and The Doors, to the straight-to-the-point “Led Zeppelin Uncut”, there was no shortage of backstories to the music that shaped my father’s youth just as they did mine. This was part of my ‘rock n’ roll education’, in his words.
From this classic rock foundation — The Beatles, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix and others — my curriculum expanded. Tastes evolved as I grew up to include harder rock, metal, punk, grunge, alternative and more experimental stuff — Van Halen, Black Sabbath, Ozzy, ELO, Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Genesis, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Radiohead, Linkin Park, System of a Down, Metallica, David Bowie, Third Eye Blind, Rise Against, Avenged Sevenfold, and so many others.
Throughout my teen years and time in college, I grew to appreciate all kinds of other music; a brief screamo phase in High School, then pop-punk, discovering hip-hop, finding my love for electronic music through Daft Punk’s ‘Alive 2007’ record, listening to Mozart while studying in school because I thought it might give me an edge, even learning to tolerate country.
(Continued on Side B)
Tumbling Rock 