Muirsical Introduction
"Music was my first love, and it will be my last.
Music of the future, and music of the past..."
Those lines from the classic 1976 hit 'Music' by John Miles is, in all honesty, a little overstated and not entirely accurate from my perspective but it does help summarise how important music is in my life.
I always wanted to be involved in music in some capacity and only two things restricted me from doing so as I shut the School gate behind me and wandered down the path of life - limited talent, and lack of discipline.
Yes you're right, well spotted - they are pretty large stumbling blocks, with the latter being a far bigger problem than the former in my opinion (I'm a firm believer that self-belief and determination are far more important than overall ability in just about every facet of life).
I was brought up in an environment where pop, crooners, big band, light jazz and musicals were all part of the mix, and while my father was comfortable in the knowledge that there were no writers or singers quite like the Berlin's or Sinatra's respectively of his own era, my mum was more likely to be singing along to fifties or sixties pop. Both my parents could certainly hold a tune.
I had the knack of being able to pick up tune by ear and play or 'mimic' it back quickly, and could also hold a beat on a drum kit or play a bass line fairly competently, yet when it came to say the guitar or piano... forget it.
What I did have to my advantage when I was very young was what are sometimes referred to as 'heightened senses' such as 20/20 vision, and perfect pitch (as regards hearing if something was wrong almost immediately, and I could actually hear that pin drop).
As I grew older however those senses diminished (where did I put my driving glasses?) and amongst the aches and pains of aging is tinnitus which, as any sufferer of that ailment will tell you, can be blocked out but it's always there. Yet tests I took not that long ago showed I still had the full spectrum of hearing and can still tell immediately when pitch is off or someone or something is out of tune.
My musical involvement these days is listening to it, writing about it, or talking about it (with like minded friends and musicians alike) and for the record my favourite artist is Todd Rundgren, followed by a host of others including Pat Metheny, Pat Travers, Cheap Trick, Joe Bonamassa, Vital Information, Wolfstone, Popa Chubby, Journey (original fusion and Steve Perry periods), Yes, Francis Dunnery, Rush, Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks, Peter Frampton, IQ, Santana, Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra.
I'm also a fan of specific musical periods or the 'classic eras' of many rock bands (including Uriah Heep, Styx, Kansas), the original line-up of others (The Alarm and It Bites are two examples), and many more who have either long since disbanded or whose musical careers and lives ended too early (such as Slade and Rory Gallagher respectively).
It's a continuing list within a fairly large and eclectic collection that runs the 'muirsical' alphabet from A(bba) to Z(z top), through rock (including progressive, heavy and melodic), pop, and a selection of the classic crooners, blues, traditional jazz and classical.
Bottom line - from Mendelssohn to Emerson Lake & Palmer, Dream Theater to Miles Davis... it all 'rocks' in some form for me.
A lot of Moody Blues is in that mix too, but that comes primarily from my wife Anne and her love of 'Moodies Music' and Justin Hayward.
There are a number of musical forms you won't find in that mix however, including Rap, Sampling, Electronica and Techno.
I don't even recognise the latter styles as any form of music, and to me it's simply a 'pulse' for the younger or newer generations, and not one that sits comfortably with my own (musical) biorhythms.
I am a 70's rock boy at heart, and very much a product of my own musical era.
I certainly don't apologise for that and indeed still maintain and believe it to be the most creative musical decade for many genres, and rock in particular (progressive, mainstream, heavy rock, fusion, etc).
Ironically however when bands or artists from 'classic' eras become 'brands' decades later, and retain a name whilst continuing (or reform) after losing their signature sound and/or key personnel I tend to have zero interest (while acknowledging that keeping a name does contractually and financially make most sense for many such bands, and in some cases is their only viable option).
I would end this little Muirsical Introduction by touching on that very word that I use to describe my various commentaries and thoughts on music...
My good friend Jason Galu, who contributed to 'One in a Million' and certainly knows a B flat from a C sharp having sung lead in a production of Jesus Christ Superstar in his native New Zealand, actually came up with the 'Muirsical' description. It never occurred to me until Jason started using it.
Jason also sends me any of his demos or works in progress to be evaluated or critiqued as opposed to passing them to any of his fellow musicians or music tutors, which is both an honour and quite humbling.
So, as it turns out, I do still get to be 'involved' in music other than listening to it, writing about it or talking about it.
Thanks, Jason.
"To live without my music, would be impossible to do.
'Cos in this world of troubles, my music pulls me through".
(John Miles, 'Music' 1976)
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"Music was my first love, and it will be my last.
Music of the future, and music of the past..."
Those lines from the classic 1976 hit 'Music' by John Miles is, in all honesty, a little overstated and not entirely accurate from my perspective but it does help summarise how important music is in my life.
I always wanted to be involved in music in some capacity and only two things restricted me from doing so as I shut the School gate behind me and wandered down the path of life - limited talent, and lack of discipline.
Yes you're right, well spotted - they are pretty large stumbling blocks, with the latter being a far bigger problem than the former in my opinion (I'm a firm believer that self-belief and determination are far more important than overall ability in just about every facet of life).
I was brought up in an environment where pop, crooners, big band, light jazz and musicals were all part of the mix, and while my father was comfortable in the knowledge that there were no writers or singers quite like the Berlin's or Sinatra's respectively of his own era, my mum was more likely to be singing along to fifties or sixties pop. Both my parents could certainly hold a tune.
I had the knack of being able to pick up tune by ear and play or 'mimic' it back quickly, and could also hold a beat on a drum kit or play a bass line fairly competently, yet when it came to say the guitar or piano... forget it.
What I did have to my advantage when I was very young was what are sometimes referred to as 'heightened senses' such as 20/20 vision, and perfect pitch (as regards hearing if something was wrong almost immediately, and I could actually hear that pin drop).
As I grew older however those senses diminished (where did I put my driving glasses?) and amongst the aches and pains of aging is tinnitus which, as any sufferer of that ailment will tell you, can be blocked out but it's always there. Yet tests I took not that long ago showed I still had the full spectrum of hearing and can still tell immediately when pitch is off or someone or something is out of tune.
My musical involvement these days is listening to it, writing about it, or talking about it (with like minded friends and musicians alike) and for the record my favourite artist is Todd Rundgren, followed by a host of others including Pat Metheny, Pat Travers, Cheap Trick, Joe Bonamassa, Vital Information, Wolfstone, Popa Chubby, Journey (original fusion and Steve Perry periods), Yes, Francis Dunnery, Rush, Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks, Peter Frampton, IQ, Santana, Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra.
I'm also a fan of specific musical periods or the 'classic eras' of many rock bands (including Uriah Heep, Styx, Kansas), the original line-up of others (The Alarm and It Bites are two examples), and many more who have either long since disbanded or whose musical careers and lives ended too early (such as Slade and Rory Gallagher respectively).
It's a continuing list within a fairly large and eclectic collection that runs the 'muirsical' alphabet from A(bba) to Z(z top), through rock (including progressive, heavy and melodic), pop, and a selection of the classic crooners, blues, traditional jazz and classical.
Bottom line - from Mendelssohn to Emerson Lake & Palmer, Dream Theater to Miles Davis... it all 'rocks' in some form for me.
A lot of Moody Blues is in that mix too, but that comes primarily from my wife Anne and her love of 'Moodies Music' and Justin Hayward.
There are a number of musical forms you won't find in that mix however, including Rap, Sampling, Electronica and Techno.
I don't even recognise the latter styles as any form of music, and to me it's simply a 'pulse' for the younger or newer generations, and not one that sits comfortably with my own (musical) biorhythms.
I am a 70's rock boy at heart, and very much a product of my own musical era.
I certainly don't apologise for that and indeed still maintain and believe it to be the most creative musical decade for many genres, and rock in particular (progressive, mainstream, heavy rock, fusion, etc).
Ironically however when bands or artists from 'classic' eras become 'brands' decades later, and retain a name whilst continuing (or reform) after losing their signature sound and/or key personnel I tend to have zero interest (while acknowledging that keeping a name does contractually and financially make most sense for many such bands, and in some cases is their only viable option).
I would end this little Muirsical Introduction by touching on that very word that I use to describe my various commentaries and thoughts on music...
My good friend Jason Galu, who contributed to 'One in a Million' and certainly knows a B flat from a C sharp having sung lead in a production of Jesus Christ Superstar in his native New Zealand, actually came up with the 'Muirsical' description. It never occurred to me until Jason started using it.
Jason also sends me any of his demos or works in progress to be evaluated or critiqued as opposed to passing them to any of his fellow musicians or music tutors, which is both an honour and quite humbling.
So, as it turns out, I do still get to be 'involved' in music other than listening to it, writing about it or talking about it.
Thanks, Jason.
"To live without my music, would be impossible to do.
'Cos in this world of troubles, my music pulls me through".
(John Miles, 'Music' 1976)
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