High School & College Years

I am continuing today with my early musical influences. In the early 1970’s, as I entered high school, the popularity of the “long play” album began to grow. Along with the album came liner notes and inserts. I really loved to read the inserts and the liner notes. It often gave insight into the making of the music on the album. There were some great albums that come out from 1970 to 1975. Aqualung, Machine Head, Can’t Buy a Thrill, Derek and the Dominos, Paranoid, Tapestry, Madman Across the Water; I could go on for hours. I really enjoyed how the songs fit together and began to appreciate the concept of developing an album.

When I went away to college the opportunity presented itself to be a DJ at the college radio station. That was a great experience! We had so many songs in our library and so much information about music and the performers at our fingertips. Two times per month all DJs were required to pull the midnight to 6 AM shift at the station. These were the only times we were on for 24 hours, normally we signed off at midnight. On these shifts we would play nothing but album sides. This would give you about one half hour at a time between album sides. I would take my school books and study but I also spent a great deal of time reading the album covers and liners. We also had large three ring notebooks filled with rock and roll trivia, facts and other information. I would often read these by the hour. By doing these things I learned not only the lyrics to songs but often the composer and other facts about the recording of the song. This knowledge has stayed with me through the years and I still enjoy learning the inside facts of rock and roll music.

If you would like to share your thoughts or experiences I would greatly appreciate it and love to hear them. Until next time, Merry Christmas and peace on earth.