When did you become passionate about music?

[sisyphus]

I was chatting with my friend Elisha the other day, and we were dredging up our old memories on how we first came to aquire our music tastes, and I came to a startling and somewhat embarassing realization: columbia house. seriously. let me elaborate:

Aside from my first 6 years as an army brat, I grew up in two very small towns with no record stores, and under the somewhat opressive umbrella of religon (which meant no mtv, too). As a kid I loved my daddy's music. Bye Bye Miss American Pie stands out as the most nostalgic song from that time period.

When I hit middle school, I became interested in The Cure and REM. My mom took away any Cure albums I got my hands on, so I pretty much stuck with REM. (Don't know why that didn't get filtered out, honestly...) I had no older brothers or sisters to learn from, and my friends were all listening to the likes of Debbie Gibson and Tiffany. Needless to say that although I went along, I had no idea what kind of power music would hold for me at that point, because I hadn't really been sparked yet, although REM gave me a taste. Art was my bag, and music was just my socks. By Junior High I had added a little Counting Crows, Toad the Wet Sprocket, et cetera. Ugly Kid Joe, Nirvana, Primus, and the Chili Peppers were somewhere on the periphery there, but my Mom managed to wipe those out with the rag of religion pretty quickly. Also, lest I forget, I was an incredibly depressed middle-schooler who didn't spend much time socializing and learning about music from other kids. Instead, I spent my time raising little brothers and sulking about my mom's love life and her audacity in trying to replace my dad.

By the time I was 15, though, I had discovered Columbia House. I didn't have to have a car to drive to the city and buy what I wanted, I could order it by mail! My first batch of columbia house cds contained The Talking Heads, Radiohead, New Order, Weezer, Simple Minds, Blur, and I don't remember what else. Radiohead changed my life, though. Seriously. That's when I got passionate about pursuing music. It wasn't long before I could drive and finally catch up on the s-pumpkins, blind melon, bush, pearl jam, and all that other shit we kiddies were listening to.

[sisyphus]

so anyway, what are your stories? what got you started?

[Adam]

My passion started the moment college went underway. Before then I was into a healthy dose of classic rock and a little metal but it didn't really take off until 2 things happened: I enrolled into a Music Appreciation course (my first) and I discovered a great independent music store in the town I was studying, called Blue Meanie Music.

The course opened me up to all the famous composers, works and eras (it flirted with jazz near the end and didn't touch any further than that) and got me interested in wanting more; it did its job.
The store had a wide selection of any genre but I caught up big time on 90s rock, country and classic rock. (80s and 90s indie rock as well, but that occured in the junior and senior years) A lot of great albums purchased there for low prices: first 5 Pearl Jam albums, all Jane's Addiction albums, Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys, The Clash's debut and London Calling, Tool's Ænima, NIN's Pretty Hate Machine and The Downward Spiral and on and on and on.

Both the course and the store laid the foundation for my need ever since then to scour used cd bins and music stores in general, reading rock criticism books (Lester Bangs, Richard Meltzer, Bob Christgau) and reference books, taping and watching Ken Burn's Jazz series (which led to greater appreciation of the genre).

However, a major factor is the Interent of which I acquired during all years of college. Before I knew about allmusic.com I had to rely on other sources but the message boards of RS.com (98/99 - 03) were filled to the brim with people even more passionate who gave suggestions to me when they weren't aware of it. Some of them are still posting on this board, in fact.

[upinkzeppelin2]

Great thread idea, sisyphus. Thanks.

Growing up I listened to the absolute worst music imaginable. In other words, I listened to whatever was popular on the radio or VH1 or MTV. I started getting into hair metal in the 6th grade and continued listening to that and Top 40 music all the way until the 9th grade, with some Christian Thrash Metal coming into play in middle school. And then I was changed forever.

I had a new neighbor in the town my family had just moved to who I thought was really strange because all he listened to was old rock music from bands like The Doors, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones etc. He became my weightlifting partner and I agreed to let him play his music for half of the time while I played my so-called music the other half. I don't remember liking his music at all at first. But one day I came in from lifting weights and fell asleep on the couch. My brother started maturing musically before me and was into U2 a lot. I thought U2 sucked and mocked him for listening to them. Then when I woke up on the couch that day, my brother was watching Rattle And Hum, the movie and I woke up right at the beginning of "Where the Streets Have No Name." I had never truly experienced great music before until that moment. In a sense, I was reborn. It was that very day that I stopped listening to the radio. I started listening to U2 constantly, and before long I was digging most of the stuff my neighbor was playing for me(he introduced me to the Pixies, Jane's Addiction and Sonic Youth). I got hooked on Led Zeppelin hard. Then I met this really cool girl at my church who turned me on to the Grateful Dead, Bob Dylan, Fleetwood Mac, CCR and much more. Between my neighbor and this girl I now had a lot of great music to listen to. The high school fraternity that I pledged to (like an idiot) was a bunch of hardcore Jane's Addiction fanatics. I learned of more music from these guys, including Dinosaur Jr. and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

The transformation for me all happened the minute I woke up to my brother watching Rattle And Hum. And to this day, there is no band that I would put above U2.

[limitdeditionlayla]

Its nice reading about how/why people got into music

I can't really pinpoint a specific time in my life when I realised I loved music. My sisters & I have just always had it around us growing up & I guess it was a natural progression from being fanatical about the Beatles as a 6 year old to eventually seeking out music that wasn't available in my parents' vinyl collection.

One of the nicest memories I have of being a kid is a day when my dad took me on a short trip with him in his truck, about 8 hours there & back. My dad is actually a mechanical engineer, but he took a job as a truckie when I was a kid & fell in love with it. And truckies hardly ever get short trips, so I was thrilled to get to ride in the cab with him. I was about 7, I think, maybe 8. Anyway, it was hands down the best day of my life as a kid. I got to eat ice-cream AND McDonalds, I was allowed to steer the wheel for two minutes & honk the horn (best thing ever).

And Dad had dozens & dozens of tapes for trips, so we spent that 8 hours listening to Zeppelin, Cream, BB King, Pink Floyd, Paul Simon, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Eagles, just everything. It was the best. We spent the whole day just listening to good songs & singing along & eating ice-cream. And I remember I was in love with Creedence Clearwater Revival. What 7 year old girl loves CCR?

So I think it would've been impossible for me to not fall in love with music & discover more of it for myself. This is why I don't get people who rag on Zeppelin, b/c they're the soundtrack to my childhood & I had a great one. And its also why even though music is one of the big sparks in my life, I can't ever take it so seriously that I lose that sense of fun.

[limitdeditionlayla]

When I was 8 I also knew all the words to every single song on 'Born in the USA'. I was a rockin little kid. I think I had more cred as a child than I do now...

[Ryosuke]

I was abducted by aliens when I was 12, and they implanted a chip in my brain. The rest is history.

[Kensterberg]

ryosuke said:

I was abducted by aliens when I was 12, and they implanted a chip in my brain. The rest is history.

I just about fell off my chair laughing at this post. POTD, Ryo, POTD.

[sisyphus]

limitdeditionlayla said:

When I was 8 I also knew all the words to every single song on 'Born in the USA'. I was a rockin little kid. I think I had more cred as a child than I do now...

we share'd this ability at 8

[sisyphus]

ryo, that's the only way it should happen.

[wayved]

yeah this is a cool thread. All the responses are cool.

Heres my "boring" story:

I always loved sound. I remember what albums were played when I was f87king FIVE on a road trip to florida with my brother sister mom and dad. (Wings-Speed of Sound)--it was a Christmas trip--and I got a radio shaped like an apple and a little portable tape recorder! The first thing it played was THE CARS-LETS GO. That was probably it.
I remember my dad repairing Johnny Winter and Jackson 5 eight tracks cos they broke.

I remember the first records I remember hearing was my moms 45s (they had a stacked turntable where you could stack em all up and they would drop and play), This is the Moody Blues (I was obsessed with that record-the label kicked ass), Mountains Avalanche, and Led Zeppelin II (which scared the ever living shit out of me--I thought the dude was getting kicked out of an airplane and was gonna die)....I remember once when I was like 6 or some shit they had some Elton John (Here And There-"Border Song" if I remember right) while we were moving and the U-Haul Fucked up and we wound up in a ditch.....

My dad played drums for a band called the Country Squires. Man I would love to hear that stuff now--I remember being in this club when I was really young and see my dad KICK ASS on drums. He was no fucking slouch. He would practice in the living room. That drum set was kick ass too--a Ludwig black and silver swirl set. He sold it when he knew raising three kids and being in a band werent gonna mix....


--later on I used to steal my moms 45s. I dug vinyl even as a little kid. The labels. I would make up my own stupid songs for them. They finally bought me a turntable for christmas--one of those self-contained units--two speakers....That kicked ASS! My brother got some kind of Hot Wheels thing.....so I used to throw on any record I could find cos that was the only solace I had while playing cars and trucks with my bro....Everytime my family went to K-Mart or some department store my brother and sister would go to the toy department--I would go directly to the music section. I was and still am completely obsessed.

My aunt would bring me records. STACKS of em! She would sneak in Zappas Absolutely Free, The Monkees, and alot of classical stuff. I ALWAYS had music going. UNTIL I got older.

If I misbehaved I would be GROUNDED from MUSIC. I would be forced to hang out with my friends and ride bikes outside. (which was cool but I usually had a transistor radio or a tapedeck or something to take along)

As a young "adult" if I got bad grades the music would go. That didnt happen often plus I had a hidden walkman and a few tapes to get me by. I have worked at record stores and been in numerous bands.
I even got told off by a "serious" girlfriend in high school ("get a life!") and she called me a couple years ago wanting to know if I was still married. I was always a pretty quiet kid. But I had alot of friends. music was atmosphere. Im not just content to drive down a road in silence. Cos I would probably make some song up on my own if the radio/cd player/cassette deck didnt work....

There is no reason why I guess. Its an addiction. I tried many times to break free. I cant do it. I dont like TV much unless Im forced to watch it--I read sometimes, but its usually books about music. I want to change somewhat but Im too far in.

Ryo is probably correct. Some alien jacked me and said YOU WILL GIVE THE MUSIC INDUSTRY YOUR SOUL.

I could write a big ass boring scattershot book. But yes. The question is WHY ARE YOU PASSIONATE? I dont know.....

[upinkzeppelin2]

Glenn,

I figure that by the time I'm 70 years old (if I live that long), I might have finally listened to half of what you've already heard today. My friends think I know a helluva lot about music and they say I listen to way more than them. And still I bet I haven't heard 10% of what all you have. Lately I've actually been wondering to myself what it would be like to be very familiar with thousands more songs than I already have memorized now. I wonder if it would cause my brain to explode. It might not be unhealthy in the least. Just a wierd subject I was pondering yesterday.

[wayved]

melaun-I doubt that you are right. There are alot of people on this board that know alot more about music than I, big time! I know virtually nothing about World Music, Classical or Opera, and country (past 1974) -- you have a great amount of knowledge yourself!

[Paul]

ryosuke said:

I was abducted by aliens when I was 12, and they implanted a chip in my brain. The rest is history.

Fucking awesome post Ryo!

[ScottsyII]

I really became passionate about music when I was about 15 or so... I was just starting to seek out more complex themes and ideas in reading, writing and listening, when REM's "Out of Time" struck me like a ton of bricks...

Then my passion and interest in music kinda took off when I left High School, got more money, went to University and had more time on my hands - I flourished into a musical fanatic listening to likes of Early Genesis, Peter Gabriel, anything at by either of the two Finn Brothers, Midnight Oil and whole stack of smaller time Australian bands...

Then I discovered the Australian Youth Network, Tripl J, which played a whole heap of cutting edge stuff - My CD collection exploded to the 1000 or so CDs I have now (boy were those a fucking bitch to transport from Australia to the US)

Nowadays i am still equally passionate about music listening and appreciation, but I do admit, i have much less time - with a family of my own, there are always many things to do, so many things that begin to take priority because you realise they are more important - BUT... I still get that pang of excitement when a new album comes out, when the first few bars of a new song by a long loved band plays through the speakers... I am, underneath everything, still a MASSIVE rcok geek, I am, indeed, proud of this!