So I’m sitting here, sick…with a cold…Not Swine Flu…and of course, cannot sleep due to a stuffy nose and sore throat. Thoughts of the great records that have influenced me and my music crossed my mind. So, here they are from a musicians stand point. And their meaning to me.
1. Nirvana Nevermind- This record was the very beginning for me. When I was in grade school, all I listened to was christian music, christian rock/R&B. This was the record that caught my ear and brought me to the secular side of things. It was raw, real, and said the things that I’ve been wanting to say for some time. Although I still am a fan of a lot of christian music (i.e. Newsboys, DC Talk, Shaded Red, Jars of Clay) it just never said what I was truly feeling inside. I’ll never forget when I bought this record. I remember every single thing that happened that day. Want to hear about it? Too Bad, you’re going to have to. I was in 7th Grade, and we went up to a bigger town (Broken Bow) in Central NE for a Jr. High band conference. I think then I played Trumpet in band? Anyways, we were in Broken Bow and my dad had just bought me my first guitar. A fender Squier Strat. Speaking of which, don’t ever let your friends borrow an old guitar for a halloween costume…you will never see that guitar again…Back to the point. So we were driving in my friend’s mom’s car, and the trunk popped open, and out flies my new guitar, laying in the middle of the street. We pulled over, and we had to run out in the middle of traffic to get it. We then did the band competition and whatever. We then packed up and headed to a bigger town in NE called Grand Island. It was my buddie’s birthday, so we went to the arcade or something. Anyways, I was at Wal-Mart, and wanted to buy some new cds. Nevermind was there. This is going to sound really lame, but the reason I bought it, was becuase I saw the music video of Wierd Al’s remake of Smells Like Teen Spirit. So I bought it, and smuggled it back into my house, hoping my parents wouldn’t catch me! I would listen to that cd all day, everyday for that entire summer. It was mind blowing that much raw energy coming out of a record. I have to say that this is my number one. It inspired me to play guitar.
2) John Mayer- Continuum
Most of you know how big of a Mayer fan I am, but this record was mind blowing to me. I specifically remember this night as well. I went to WalMart….god…i got a wierd pattern with Walmart in this blog…I went to Walmart to pick up some carpet deodorant…Yes…Carpet Deodorant. We just had a huge keg party, and the carpets smelled terrible…So i picked this up. I was walking by the electronic section, and saw an ex girlfriend of mine developing pictures. I stopped to say hello..I then saw Continuum…I wouldn’t have picked it up, but my buddy the night before was learning the song Gravity on Guitar. So I did. I remember driving back out to the house, and the first song that hit me like a ton of bricks was belief. I hadn’t heard guitar playing like this on a pop record, especially from John Mayer. (Refer to Quote in the Lincoln Journal Star of me saying that I hated the song Your Body Is A Wonderland). Just that one instant, the one lick leading right into the guitar solo….you know the full step bend with the Stevie Ray Vaughan Vibrato…Boom I was hooked. I listened to that record all day, everyday while I was at work. And still continue to listen to it at least once a week…
3) Jonny Lang- Lie to Me
This record is the first to ever truly turn me on to blues. I was in my Junior year of High School, and my band teacher says to me…”Man, I got the real shit right hear, you’ve got to hear this cat.” So I listened, sure enough the first track, Lie to Me, was blazing through my head the entire rest of the day. I bought it off Half.com that night. Real Talk…
4) Jonny Lang- Long Time Comin
This is the record that inspired me not to play the guitar…Remember, that was Nirvana. But to REALLY learn how to play the guitar, and take it seriously… Although not for a couple more years…I was too concerned with Drumming. I believe it also inspired the tone of my voice, with the soul aspect. Where did I buy this one…Oh, again it was in Grand Island, NE at Hastings Bookstore. Haha, I remember this one as well. It was my Junior Year as well, and my girlfriend and I went to catch a flick…I believe it was the Passion of Christ..I know, talk about a Romantic One..And we just got in a fight about something stupid, like we always did. It was surreal to me, because we were sitting at a Red Light, and the song Red Light came on…I said this is really strange…She was pissed at me, so she didn’t acknowledge my thoughts on this…but then we got TCBY Icecream and she was happy again.
5) Tool- Laterallus
This was my routine in High School. Go to school, come home, Drum for several hours. That’s all I did. This record changed my view on drumming. I was completely blown away by the 5/4 time signatures. I vowed to learn this entire record by the end of high school. It was really cutting it close, but I did just that. I learned this album inside and out, and although I don’t get much drumming in these days, I think I could still drum the entire thing. I remember when I bought this one as well, Me and my buddy Weaver were driving up to Kearney, NE (another bigger town) to pick up a new snake I just bought for my recording studio. We were driving back and were listening to the song Laterallus- The fretless bass in the middle/end of the song was mind boggling. I was hooked.
6) Michael Jackson- Thriller
Do I really need to say anymore? My favorite song on this is still Human Nature. It will be and always will be my favorite MJ Song. Freaking Amazing.
7) Fuel- Sunburn
This record is fantastic. If you haven’t heard it, please go buy it. This was Fuel’s first major release and I still own this cd. I’ve bought like 5 copies of it throughout the years. I still listen to it off and on. I remember I saw the music video for ”Jesus or a gun” on some late night VH1 countdown. Where I grew up, we didn’t get MTV so we had to deal with Vh1. The next day me and the folks went to Colorado for something, and I bought it at an ALCO somewhere in the sticks. I listened to it the entire way to Colorado, and back. LOVE IT.
Candlebox- Self Titled
When my sister Susan was back from college, she always thought she was cool and had mix tapes of a bunch of different tunes. So, I’d drive around and listen to the music she had..most of it was terrible, but…Candlebox’s Blossom was one of those songs. I loved how they combined the Grunge style, with the lyrics and melodies of a great singer songwriter. I’ve also bought this record like 5 time, due to the first one being worn out, second getting jacked, along with my ENTIRE collection, etc. Wonderful Record.
9) Pearl Jam- Ten
I’ll never forget sitting at my aunt and uncle’s on Christmas Day when I was in 7th grade. I was watching MTV and there was an interview with this cat named Eddy Vedder. Talking about some song named “Jeremy”. After the interview they played the video. I was in awe, and purchase it the next day with my Christmas money. Jeremy is still 100% my favorite Pearl Jam song of all time. This album had it all with tunes like Black, Evenflow, Porch, Alive. My, Oh My.
10) Red Hot Chili Peppers- Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic
This is one of my favs and one of my most influential because it introduced me to funky flavors. I owe all of the funky drumming/guitar licks to Chad Smith and John Frusciante. It was very intense listening to this album the first time all the way through. It showed that bands have the opportunity to morph into anything that they feel they have grown into. With songs like Could Have Lie (One of My Favorites) and the Title Track Blood, Sugar. It had to be on this..
So there you have it, this was my late night rambling of useless knowledge to plug into your brains. It’s late, i’m out. If you’re in Lincoln tonight, make sure to stop by the Zoo Bar, JHB is going to be goin all night!
Lata…Playaz
Josh
