More than a month later the journey through the music of my past continues...
The journey began with a mish-mash of corny artists and lip-sync opportunities. We will now travel into the realm of people in my life who helped my love for music grow more and more.
Of course I should start off with my parents. Although their taste for music might not have been hip at the time, I know they had a love for music. My father would always sing songs in an operatic voice that would compete with the 3 tenors, even though he is a macho booming bass. Outbursts of the Christmas song "O, Holy Night", filled our house all year long. To this day he really believes that song was written for his voice. And let me tell you, it was!
Does anyone else remember their elementary school music teacher? I'm not sure if many do, but when she hauls around an accordion all day and sings impromptu songs about what we are doing, who could forget. The one phrase I can vividly remember, while she expanded and contracted the billows of the accordion, "Hello boys and girls!", followed by a response from the class "Good Morning Mrs. Conlin!". The class was also filled with amazing musical enhancing activities such as playing with small sticks and doing rhythm exercises that involved saying words like "TA TA TICKA TICKA TA TA". I advanced so quickly in that class. So quickly that I was able to play the tambourine one day. Boy did I feel special.
In the 5th grade I joined the Salt and Pepper singers which was an after school choir. Talk about being the shiz! I was one of two boys in the choir I think. All the ladies wanted me. That's what happens when you're a rock star. "You can be the ugliest sad sap around", but when you're on the risers with all the ladies, "people worship you, man!" --taken from the words of Jack Black.
Honestly, I think that had a big impact on my popularity for the remainder of my elementary and secondary schooling days! I was so cool! To counter act the effects so that I didn't get too popular too fast, I decided to take private drum lessons in the 4th or 5th grade. I started taking lessons in the garage of a mean old cuss named Hank Houst. I remember being beaten on the hand by a drum stick when I would mess up. I loved it! My love for drums and percussion grew so much that I wanted to be in the school band. Although, my 5th and sixth grade band didn't have percussionists, so I played the trumpet. It was a hand-me down from an older brother and smelled of mildew because it wasn't cleaned for its entire existence. That same trumpet was handed down to my youngest brother, who treated it just as good as the rest of us, until it broke. That didn't stop it from being used though. After enduring the life of a trumpeter swan, I was finally allowed to play my dream instrument in the 6th grade on a couple songs, that's right, the drum pad. I think every band needs one. Of course you can't hear it at all above the other instruments, but still a must-have.
Hank's teachings paid off when I was invited to play the drums on a beach boys song for a 6th grade music program. My padawanship with Hank lasted until about the 8th grade when my Jedi Master became my uncle, who first learned from Hank as well. It's like if Qui-Gon Jin were still alive and training Anakin and then Obi-Wan Kenobi just stepped in and took his place because Qui-Gon cost money and Obi-Wan was free. Of course this is not an economics blog nor a Star Wars blog, so, what the heck am I talking about? Back to the topic at hand...
Uncle Rick taught me that no matter how old you are, it's still okay to ROCK on occasion. The man is in his forties and still attends high voltage rock concerts such as REO Speedwagon and Santana.
After a year of playing percussion in the Fairmont Junior High band for one whole year, I decided it was time to take my singing career serious again and decided to join the choir in the 8th grade. My director, Mrs. Block made a big impact in my life and encouraged me to progress both my vocalizers and my mad drum skills by auditioning for Falcon Jazz, the elite choir of the junior high. I auditioned with both my manly bass voice and my drum skills. My 9th grade year I played drums in the jazz combo and sang in the choir as well.
I need to also contribute many if these great memories of choir to my friend, Jefferson. Although we have kind of gone our different ways, he has had a big role in my love for music. He got me into choir and we were in it together clear through high school. I know I am not being funny right now, cuz high school choir wasn't fun, it was pure hell. Talk about having no life outside the choir room...okay, I did, I wasn't as bad as some people. Throughout high school I still had my hands, and feet, into drumming. My uncle continued to give me drum lessons, and my love/hate relationship began to blossom with my choir director, Mrs. Linda Elliot Schmidt. She was mean mostly when we weren't performing to our potential. We didn't get along a lot of the time but she still has a big impact on my musical life.
For my high School graduation my dad bought me an acoustic guitar, a Yamaha. My interest in the guitar started many years before but was really peaked when I met Preston Dean, a fiend of my brothers who lived with us for a while. Preston was no Jimi Hendicks but wrote fun, silly songs and performed classics that caused me to want a guitar of my own. Since then I have been more or less self taught. I tried guitar lessons once, but the guy was a failure. So that man will not be in my list of musical influences. Who ever you are, no thanks to you.
And last but not least, i need to mention my older brothers who have had a big part of my musical upbringing. Both of them together introduced me to classic rock. I can vividly remember being in the Dentist's office, of which I have always hated (but that's another story), and I had some headphones on. While I was surfing through the stations I landed on the song, "Carry on my wayward Son" by Kansas. I came home and asked my brother, Perry, if his ears were ever exposed to such beautiful organ and guitar soloing before. He then introduced me to a wide range of classic rock. My oldest brother introduced me to CCR, Steve Miller Band and Fleetwood Mac. My love for classic rock began there and has flourished ever since. Thanks Bros!
This will conclude part II of my musical life.
