My Musical History
I can't say what music I first heard because radio or television played constantly at my granny's home, which housed my mom and me, three aunts, and, depending on military commitments, dad and an uncle. My first musical memory involved hearing The Crabby Appleton Theme while watching Tom Terrific cartoons from a wooden playpen in the middle of the living-room. At the time (probably 1958) we lived in a log cabin at the intersection of Oak Grove and Hiwassee roads. I remember sitting with my youngest aunt on the high bank that led from the front yard down to Oak Grove road as she practiced marching band songs on clarinet. One evening during a storm the whole group, with me on granny's lap, sat around the living-room listening to our huge wooden cabinet radio until a power surge fried the electronics and permanently turned it into furniture.
Later that same year, Granny moved into a new house on the Old Athens Road beside the western entrance of Greenwood Circle. The music there came from a 25 inch Philco b/w television, unknown brand radio, and a Phillips Electro 45 rpm record player. As long as my teenaged aunts lived in the house (the youngest one left in 1963), I listened to their records and watched whatever the grown-ups watched on television. After seeing Elvis, I started carrying around a plastic, toy guitar strung with four red nylon strings that I plucked while singing mostly disparate lyrics and moving my legs in a way (which I referred to as Elvising) that resembled the Funky Chicken. Everyone in the family seemed to get a big kick out of it, so I did it a lot. While visiting a friend in the hospital, I slipped away from mom, who later found me doing my act in the room of some poor fellow recovering from the resent loss of his legs. Mimicking The King's songs and moves always made me feel good, so I wanted to spread that around.
My newest synth.
No comments:
Post a Comment