Always something there to remind me...

I'm not someone who necessarily looks that deeply into how music is produced or even conceived, although I possibly should bearing in mind that I was studying to be a sound engineer many moons ago. That dream sadly never came to fruition, but being the inquisitive person that I am, I still have a fascination with all things music and am resigned to understanding it as best as I can. I am currently reading the book ‘How Music Works’ by the brilliant David Byrne and am looking forward to gaining some insight into this world via his prose. In the meantime though, my mind is still actively questioning. 

I was recently on a train journey to London and, as always, I was carrying my trusty notebook and pen so I could write down anything that came into my mind as a possible new article. Staring out of the window and seeing the familiar scenery approaching the outskirts of London, I remembered growing up there and had various other memories of days gone by. I then had an idea. So into my notebook I wrote the words ‘music and memory or association’. I also wrote some other bits and bobs around this and did a bit of googling. It was the start of a train of thought (literally) and the thought was this. Why does music link to memory and what does this mean?

We all have certain songs that are related to events in our lives. For example, when people get married they have a first dance and this song then becomes intrinsically important to their lives from then on. It will always be ‘our song’ because of that. You may remember that a specific track was playing the first time you saw ‘x’ across a crowded dance floor and suddenly realised that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with them. It may well be why ‘Saturday Night’ by Whigfield means so much to you, but who am I to judge?

Anyway, this thought also reminded me of a recent radio show that I had been listening to where the host, Claire, asked folks to get in touch and tell her which song related to various events in your life like your first crush, when you were a teenager or when you left home etc. I had a ponder and ended up joining in. This also got me reminiscing about when I was younger and the various reasons why my songs choices were important to me. Claire had asked for the song that represented your first crush and mine was ‘If I Can’t Change Your Mind’ by Sugar. The reason I picked this song is because it was on a mixtape that my first real crush made for me when I was about 19. It’s still a firm favourite with me and I have to say that when I listen to it now I am always reminded of him. It’s quite odd really as I haven’t seen him in person for nearly 20 years, but when I hear the jangly guitar of this track I can see his face as clear as day. And that’s what makes the link between music and association so very interesting.

Also in my notes was a line that said ‘Glenn T – cowboy films’. I'm sure this will mean absolutely nothing to you, so let me try to explain my thinking around this bizarre notation. I am a big fan of the band Squeeze and in particular Glenn Tilbrook. Glenn has released some solo albums and also recorded a tour video when he travelled around America in an RV. As I was thinking about memory related to music, I recalled Glenn telling a story on his tour video about how when he was a small child he used to like watching cowboy films. Not very interesting so far, but just bear with me. He said that his memories of the films were linked to the sounds he heard in them rather than the picture he’d seen on the screen. He would hear the sound of metal on metal and place this as a cowboy scraping a spoon across a metal plate while eating beans. He did not recall the colours or what was in the background picture, it was all about the sounds that were being made. I find this fascinating.

I read about ‘Music-related memory’ on Wikipedia and the opening paragraph says this:

Musical memory refers to the ability to remember music-related information, such as melodic content and other progressions of tones or pitches. The differences found between linguistic memory and musical memory have led researchers to theorize that musical memory is encoded differently from language and may constitute an independent part of the phonological loop. The use of this term is problematic, however, since it implies input from a verbal system, whereas music is in principle nonverbal.

Interesting stuff, but not really what I was aiming for. Looking at savantism or child prodigies who can play 10 instruments at the age of 6 is a bit beyond me. I also read an article on some new psychology studies around the link between memory and music. Again, not quite what I wanted to delve into, but worth a read none the less. Check it out here.

I think what I am more intrigued about is the relationship between music and how it messes with your emotions. Why does hearing certain pieces of music make you happy or sad and why do we feel the need to attach certain feelings to it? I also wonder why I can remember the lyrics to songs I haven’t heard in years, but I have no idea what I did last week? It’s a strange thing that you can recall all the words to a random song like ‘Snooker Loopy’ by Chas and Dave and yet I can’t remember to pick up milk on the way home. It must perhaps be related to the part of your brain that holds what is basically useless information.

It could be that music is such an emotional tie because it’s more important to certain people. I would class everything music related as a hobby of mine so I am always focused on learning about it, be it a new artist, reading about it or a new way of obtaining songs. Perhaps if you don’t consider this to be an area of interest to you it wouldn't have such an impact. Although I'm pretty sure that going back to Claire and the song requests on her radio show, that we all have records that mean something to us for whatever reason. It could well be that the bands your grew up with when you first started to take an interest in music have stuck with you throughout your life. I know that I attach my adoration for my hero Neil Finn to the fact that I discovered the music of Crowded House when I was in my teens and at the age where I was looking for something to speak to me about my life. I found that with Neil and his band and he has been something of a constant companion to me ever since.

I used to travel by train a lot in my early twenties and back then I didn't have my beloved iPod with me as they hadn't been invented yet (yes I am that old). Instead, I used to take with me my personal CD player and one of those CD holders where you could just carry the discs in a zipped pouch. The effort of picking only a few discs to take along was torture, but I always seemed to have ‘Ether Song’ by Turin Brakes each and every time. When I listen to tracks from that album now, I can still sense those old train journeys from London to Liverpool and I remember how it made me feel. That album is my travelling friend and when the first track ‘Blue Hour’ opens with the drum machine, I associate it with the train pulling out of Euston station and heading up the railway tracks northwards. I haven’t made that particular journey for well over 10 years now, but I'm transported back to those days whenever I play that record.

I suppose it’s easy to say that this is just human nature or memory working in the usual way. The same thing happens with more or less everything around us such as food we've eaten at specific places or certain books we've read. What makes the link with music so interesting to me though is the feelings that it brings with it. I mean, I can probably recall the first time I tried Chinese food, but it doesn't really bring out any emotion in me. It was no doubt very nice and I still like it now, but does it make my happy thinking about it? Not really, no. When I hear that song by Sugar playing though, now there’s a completely different story. I find myself smiling and thinking about the person that made me a tape a very long time ago. And that’s the power of music. The images it conjures up and the feelings it brings with it are something wonderful and I really do hope the things I am listening to now will continue to have this effect on me for a very long time to come.

Band On The Run...

So, I wrote a post a while ago about the concept of an album changing your life. It was an interesting piece to consider so I have decided to take this a little bit further and talk about the bands that have had an influence on my musical experiences over the years. We all have a favourite band (or group if you like), but why are they your favourites? Have they changed your life completely or do you just buy their albums because you feel obliged to as a fan even though sometimes you may think they may have sold out? Let's ponder those thoughts a little bit.

Bands, bands, bands

I have mentioned my all time favourite band numerous times, but for those of you who don't know it is and always will be Crowded House. As a band they have bubbled under the surface since they formed nearly 30 years ago and it does seem to me that folks are embarrassed to admit that they dig their music. Neil Finn said recently "I have written some good songs. Don't ever apologise to your hip friends for liking them. They'll be singing them in a karaoke bar someday". I would never apologise for the fact Neil has written some down right amazing songs or for the fact that he is my hero. When someone has been in the music business as long as he has (don't forget he joined Split Enz in the late 70s) I think he deserves the utmost respect for his songwriting ability and longevity of his career. The band have been through some changes over the years and we've seen different line ups, but they will always remain in my heart as my all time number 1. Why? Well, because for starters Neil is a true master of his art. I watched him in awe on his solo tour earlier this year commanding the stage (and a rather large stage it was too) while he sat and played the piano completely alone. Not many artists can hold the audience completely spellbound in that way, but Neil does it with ease. One of the many reasons why I will never tire of the music he produces with or without the band.

I have to admit, I now struggle to name a second favourite band as honestly, I like so many others I don't think there is a clear winner. My taste has changed over the years and I'll get into a new band (like recently Alter Bridge) and then immerse myself in their back catalogue (if they have one) and get to grips with their style.

For many years I would always name Barenaked Ladies as my second choice, but now I'm not so sure. They are definitely up there, but I have to admit that after Steven Page left the band my interest faded slightly. His was the voice I tuned into and as much as I love the output from the rest of the band, it was his voice that drew me to them in the first place. Without him it just hasn't been the same. Don't get me wrong, I've still been to see them live without him and thoroughly enjoyed it as they are great performers, but it was just missing that something. His solo work is not too bad, but didn't really set the world on fire, although his album does have some really great tracks on it and I enjoy listening to it when it pops up on my iPod.

Fall Out Boy are another band that feature heavily in my playlists. I got into them when 'Folie A Deux' was released and once again it was the voice of Patrick Stump that hooked me in for the long haul. I was a background fan for many years, liked their stuff, but didn't go overboard with them really. This was until the made their comeback from hiatus and released 'Save Rock and Roll' last year. It was a well received album and they have been on the up ever since winning awards and gaining a whole new fanbase in the process. Interestingly though, just last week I was sent an interview that DJ Annie Mac gave where she informed the public that she couldn't stand FOB and that she actually found them 'offensive'. No idea why she feels this way, and although everyone is of course entitled to their own opinion, to say they are offensive is a bit much. They don't have rude lyrics, swear or degrade people so it's a bit much to state such a fact if you ask me. Anyway, during their enforced break Patrick released a solo album and EP which are both very good. Unfortunately the public didn't seem to agree and the album wasn't met with much success. I've never really understood why it didn't do better than it did as it's actually a really great piece of work. He did absolutely everything himself and you can tell that it's been lovingly put together. I was lucky enough to see Fall Out Boy when they played the Download festival this year and they do give a great show. Let's hope there's more to come from them next year.

Behold, the greatness that is Fall Out Boy

The last post I wrote on this blog was about the return to my youth in the 90s and my continuing love affair with the Bluetones. They therefore have to feature on this list as a band that mean something important to my life. They are nothing if not a quandary for me though. Massive success when they burst into the British charts in the mid 90s, followed by some lows, then success again and finally the sad conclusion that it was all over. I still find this hard to take and feel that perhaps the public weren't paying attention hard enough cos you know what? They were bloody awesome! Lumped in with the whole Britpop scene (which they weren't at all) they hit us with the jangly guitar of the wonderful Adam Devlin and lyrics which were something to behold. I followed them through their career, but was never fortunate enough to see them play live which is something I will always regret bitterly. I have, however been lucky enough to see lead singer and all round top bloke Mark Morriss play his solo material live (and Adam was with him so it was 2 for the price of 1!!) and I am doing so again very soon. Both Mark and Adam are kind enough to put up with my stupid ramblings on Twitter and I feel very privileged to be able to communicate with them both especially as I have been a fan of theirs for nearly 20 years and will continue to be for the foreseeable future (or until they get fed up of me pestering them)...

What platform for the last train to Clarksville guys?

So, who else? Other bands I've followed from the start include Counting Crows, The Gin Blossoms, Hootie and the Blowfish, Ben Folds Five, the list goes on. Lots of American acoustic style rock bands seemed to be my genre of choice in the 90s/00s. From a British point of view I love bands such as Squeeze, Genesis, The Divine Comedy, Teenage Fanclub, The Smiths, Del Amitri and the wonderful Turin Brakes.

It was being a fan of Turin Brakes which earned me some cool points a few years back as a ex mate of mine was trying to appear 'down with the kids' and asked me to name some good music so she could impress her workmates. I reeled off a load of stuff including the aforementioned Brakes and she told me she was greeted with "that's impressive actually, maybe she does know a thing or two". Yes, I certainly do thank you very much indeed.

I'm actually listening to a lot of Turin Brakes at the moment to be honest as their latest album is fab (We Were Here - check it out) and lead singer Olly Knights has a solo album called 'If Not Now When' which he lovingly put together in his own home using a very unique and personal recording style. I watched a documentary on the production of this album and it was a moving and inspirational journey for him and made me consider that perhaps not all music is constructed by faceless producers for the masses. This was a labour of love for him and a legacy that he could be proud of. It made me hopeful for the future of the industry and confirmed to me that there are still musicians out there who care about what they do on a higher level and these are the people we should be following with interest. Watch the documentary below.

I guess there are also the 'classic' bands that most people like (or say they like cos if you don't you appear to be an idiot) like the Beatles, Queen, the Rolling Stones, Led Zepplin etc. I love all of these by the way. We also have to give consideration to other such bands as Guns 'n Roses, Oasis, and even Coldplay and U2. Yes, bloody Coldplay and egomaniacal carnival ride that is U2. People seem to buy their albums and get them to the top of the charts, but whenever I speak to anyone, no-one actually seems to like them! So who is buying their bloody music then?? It can only be because people feel they 'should'. I never buy anything just for the kudos of it. It has to be something I am interested in and enjoy listening to otherwise what's the point? My CD collection is for me and no-one else and I don't feel the need to impress someone with my choices so they'll think that I'm cool. I mean, come on. Everybody already knows that I am...

Anyway, there are are tons and tons of other bands that could be mentioned in this post, but it would then go on forever and I have other things to do. I'm sure you all have your favoutites and that there are reasons why you particularly like them so think about it, chat about it with your friends and keep the conversation going. Or tweet me about it if you want. I'm always up for the debate.

I will now sell five copies of "The Three EPs" by The Beta Band...

I read a great article the other day by Patrick Stump (yes him again) about the 10 records that changed his life. It's a very good piece and it got me thinking about my own musical journey and whether I could actually say there was an album or albums that changed my life in some way.  I made some notes, pondered on it and did nothing.

I was then watching one of my favourite films of all time, 'High Fidelity', and this brought the question back to me again. John Cusack's character, Rob, talks about his top 5 records for certain circumstances in this life and I wondered if I had a short list of something regarding music in me. It certainly seemed more plausible than 10 albums anyway so I had yet another think.

I don't think I can honestly say an album has necessarily changed my life. I have certainly listened to some that have made me change the way I feel about music or have been significant at a certain point of my life, but changed it. I'm not so sure. Bearing in mind I have always had a lot of music around whilst growing up, I don't really consider albums as being time sensitive so I can't catalogue it in this way. If you look at what I'm listening to at the moment, it's as much old as new. In fact as I'm writing this I have been listening to 'Frampton Comes Alive' which was released in 1976 and makes it as old as me. This doesn't influence me in any way and I go backwards as well as forwards with my musical taste.

If I had to choose an album that stands out as a defining moment of my life, I guess I would have to say 'Woodface' by Crowded House. It was the first album of theirs that I heard and bought and it started my ongoing love affair with them which has never waned. They are still my favourite band of all time and without this album I would never have been as dedicated as I am. This was the album that got a lot of people into their music due to songs like 'Weather With You' and I guess it came along at the right time for me when I was looking for something. It was 1991 and I was still at school. I wasn't one of the cool kids, but I wasn't one of the picked on kids either. I was somewhere on the outside, not really fitting in anywhere. I guess music was a way to escape for me and I kept it to myself.

It had a big influence on what I wanted to do with my life and I made the decision that I wanted to be a studio engineer. Ideally I would have liked to be a musician, but my talent was somewhat lacking so I looked at getting into it from another angle. My college courses were based on this, but sadly I dropped out due to the pressure and my dreams of working on some top albums died with it. Speaking to a friend recently who is a session musician, he tells me that studio engineering is very different now to how it was back then. I had to go off and learn about physics and mechanical mathematics as you needed this type of understanding for the job, but now it's all about computer programming. How times change.

This hand should belong to me...

So did Woodface have any bearing on this? Maybe, or maybe not. I can't say for sure. It opened me up to a new sound and type of music and it was definitely a defining point for me, so maybe the answer is yes. When I have thought about what to write in this post it has been more about the music that started something for me. Something that I heard that stood out to me and made me think about things in a different way. The next album I can honestly say that about is 'Little Earthquakes' by Tori Amos.

I was never really into female singer songwriters much, but when I heard this album it was like a wow moment and something resonated inside me. I had never heard anything like it before, the voice, the piano, the lyrics, it was amazing. I think it was probably 'Silent All These Years' that I heard first and it hooked me in. She is still my favourite female singer songwriter and I have most of her albums. Strangely though, I can only find 1 or 2 people that enjoy her work too which I think is a real shame. One other female singer that I very nearly included in this post was Bjork with her album 'Debut'. It's a similar story with this one, although I was introduced to it by a friend so it doesn't stand out to me in the same way. A great album though with some fab tracks on it.

Go and listen to this album

I have been introduced to a lot of music over the years, but I think it was during my late teens that this happened the most. I was working at my first job (which I hated), but I had a friend there who was older and liked a lot of the same things as I did. He taught me a lot about music and made me a tape (yes a tape!) of amazing tracks which included bands like Sugar, Stereolab, The Blue Aeroplanes and many more that I had never heard of. I think it's only now that I realise the meaning behind giving someone a compilation tape, but unfortunately that ship sailed a long time ago and in fact said ship married someone else. Anyway... One of the other bands I was introduced to was The Divine Comedy. It was at the time their album 'Casanova' was out and on a whim I bought it, mainly to impress him. I had no idea that I would in fact grow to love it so much and they became one of my favourite bands. I've seen them live and still have their songs on my iPod today. Defining moment? Maybe.

So far all these albums have been in the past, but what about recently music? I considered if there was anything that I bought not long ago which I could say changed my outlook on music. The one that stands out to me the most is 'Solaris' by Elliot Minor. I'm late to the party with this band, and in fact I'm so late that they have just played some final, goodbye concerts. Fuck it. I can tell you exactly why I listened to them and it was all because of Twitter. They followed me on there and, as I always do, I went off to find out what they were like. I had no idea what they were about, they looked like some boy band with guitars and I didn't hold out much hope, but I am nothing if not interested and willing to give anyone a chance. I found them on YouTube and the first song I listened to was 'The Dancer'. As soon as it started I knew this was different. They were strings involved for fucks sake. A rock band with string arrangements, WTF was I listening to. I was blown away and have been ever since. Albums were purchased and I have also got my friend Paul into them too. He said the exact same thing as me when I played their music to him "Why have I not heard of this band before?". It's a great shame that we are so late with this one, but am I glad I have them in my record collection? Hell yeah! Did this album change my life? Well, no, but it certainly cemented the fact that there is new music out there to be discovered and that in this time of social media and online marketing, Twitter is a great way to find cool music. So much so, that this is going to be the basis of my next post.

But back to life changing records. I guess hearing 'Brothers In Arms' by Dire Straits was another moment I can remember. Maybe they are not such a cool band, but it was the guitar solos that got me. My brother came back from camping and told me that he had heard it there and liked it so much that he'd brought the tape. I listened to it with him and could see why it appealed to him. I haven't listened to it in a long time, but I can remember hearing it back then and thinking it was important. It could well have been this that got me into the guitar as a leading instrument, I don't know. Say what you like about Dire Straits, but man, Mark Knofler can play the guitar.

Speaking of guitars, I asked my friend Paul whether an album had changed his life in any way.  This is what he told me:

"It’s 1986, I’m 13 years old and just discovering music. I remember it clearly, I was at home and on the radio I heard ‘Friends Will Be Friends’ by Queen.

Although the song was catchy, and the vocals were impeccable, it was the guitar that caught my attention. I was already learning to play classical guitar, but this was different, the tones, the warmth it exuded and the melodic playing, it was if that guitar was actually talking to me, and then it changed, another tone, and then another with a different feel and it made me think (and that was unusual for me). How can one instrument do all that in the space of 3 minutes??  I knew from that day on that I needed an electric guitar.

On purchasing the album ‘A Kind Of Magic’, that the song was taken from (gatefold vinyl) I heard a plethora of tones, sounds, squeals, harmonies and chunky rhythms all from Brian’s Red Special and my love affair with Queen, and perhaps more importantly the guitar had begun.

Now it was 3 years later that I finally persuaded my parents that classical guitar wasn’t the instrument for me and they agreed to buy me an electric one, a Marlin Slammer cheap beginner’s package with amp, lead, strap and plectrum!

It didn’t stay in tune, the tone was awful and I couldn’t play anything that wasn’t offensive to the ears. But I loved every minute of it.

Many years later, I have bought, sold, given away, broken and acquired many guitars, amps and effects pedals. I have played in numerous bands, played full venues that seated thousands of people and recorded albums. I have met some great people and some not so great people in the eclectic world of music.

Would I have done all this if I had not discovered ‘Queen’? I honestly don’t think I would.

I believe I can honestly say that ‘A Kind Of Magic’ changed my life". @PaulCooper01

I guess I could go through my record collection and pick out my favourite albums, but that isn't what this is about. It's about whether I can say certain albums have changed my life. I'm still not sure if I can, but I can look at my musical journey and say that some things stand out more than others. They may not be cool or popular choices, but they mean something to me. 'August and Everything After' by Counting Crows was the first album I wrote a review about. 'Sheer Heart Attack' is my all time favourite Queen album and the first one I bought on vinyl. 'Greatest Hits' by the Eagles was one that I stole off of my dad and copied. 'Rubber Soul' is the only Beatles album I own. I could go on, but I'm sure you get the idea.

When Rob in High Fidelity rearranged his record collection, it wasn't by chronological or alphabetical order. It was autobiographical and I can totally get that. In fact, it might just be the way to go...

Not my vinyl I'm afraid

Private Universe

Every now and again I have a period where I will only listen to one band / singer on my iPod to reconnect with them.  I usually do this when perhaps I haven't listened to them for a while or maybe they have released something new and I want to totally immerse myself in their music from beginning to end.

I recently did this with Crowded House as apart from an odd song here or there I hadn't really had a lot of their songs on my playlist.  This is surprising really seeing as they are my all time favourite band.  In my defence, I always have Neil Finn's solo material on my playlists as he is my hero!

It was actually Neil that made me have a 'Crowdies' day this week as I was watching his recent webcast and remembering why I adore him so much and what makes his music important to me.

I got into Crowded House when they released Woodface in the early 90s.  I was still at school and I can remember hearing their music and knowing that it is something special.  I was lucky enough to see them live not long after when they toured with Woodface in the UK.  It was an amazing concert at the Hammersmith Apollo and it connected me totally with this band of amusing and highly accomplished musicians.  Anyone who has been to a live show will know that Neil is the ultimate crowd pleaser and his interactions with the audience are amazing.  He is extremely funny and sarcastic and brings a feeling of connection between the band and the fans watching.  If you ever get a chance to see him live, rush and take it with both hands as you will not be disappointed.

So, I have been listening to them for over 20 years now and their early music still sounds as good to me today as it did back then.  I particularly enjoyed listening to 'Into Temptation' this week as its such a beautiful and lyrically perfect song.  The music completes it totally and pulls at your heart right up until the bass ends and the music fades out.  Breathtakingly beautiful.

I have seen Crowded House around 5 times live and also Neil about twice with and without his brother Tim.  I consider myself to be very fortunate that I saw the original Crowded House ensemble before Paul Hester left the band.  He was an amazing drummer, a highly amusing man and he left a massive hole in the universe when he passed away.  I remember reading it on the news and the tears rolling down my face as they are now as I'm writing this.  Such a loss.

When the band split I was devastated, but knowing that they would continue with other projects was comforting.  Neil's solo work is amazing and his first album 'Try Whistling This' is a beautiful piece of work.  Listening to songs like 'Sinner' and 'Souvenir' make you realise how crafted his song writing is.  I think I listen to 'King Tide' on a daily basis and the rawness of the guitar never fails to move me.  I sometimes wonder how I stop myself from singing out loud on the bus to work in the morning!

It was a great day when the band got back together and released 'Time on Earth'.  It was a new version of the band with a new drummer, but the music was just as good.  I love this album and especially the songs 'Pour Le Monde' and 'Silent House'.  It was a long awaited comeback and it met the challenge very nicely.

Next came 'Intriguer' which is another great record.  Stand out tracks for me include 'Either Side of the World', 'Saturday Sun', 'Amsterdam' and 'Twice if Your Lucky' which is so, so beautiful to listen to.  Perfect vocals and spine tingling music with amazing lyrics.  Bliss.

I think I will definitely have more Crowded House only days as this week it actually lapsed over into 2 consecutive days.  Perhaps I'll dedicate at least one day a week to listening to just them and see what happens.  I'm thinking of making it a Tuesday...

Check out Neil's webcast here and hear some new tracks from his upcoming new album 'Dizzy Heights' which is out soon.