So necessary : An introduction

I don’t write about music very well. In fact, I don’t write very well at all. I don’t even write music. So, I write about music. Fewer words have gone to describe imperfection but here I’ll write a few more to describe everything in between.

My earliest musical memory is Raffi but even then I knew it was mere novelty. The iconic memory though isn’t when I heard music, but saw its potential; the album cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Born In the USA.” Yes, that’s correct, Bruce Springsteen’s ass in all its tight perfection. I held the CD in my hand, entranced by its simplicity, the braggadocio and the honesty.

And so I sat with oversized headphones, uncomfortably close to the stereo, age 9, with the title track on repeat. “Born in the USA, I was, born in the USA, I was, born in the USA.” That was the first and last time I listened to Bruce Springsteen willingly and dotingly. Supposedly Springsteen ranks in the superhero class of American songwriters along with Dylan and The Rolling Stones. I could have cared less. Coincidence? Probably not, but I still wish I could cite it as precocious foresight.

Not long after I bought a cassette player, Green Day’s “Kerplunk” and the Spin Doctor’s “Pocket Full of Kryptonite.” The two choices are nearly as illogical as Bruce and his butt, and I listened to those two tapes religiously. Equal parts pop and grit, I began a young boy’s adventure in trying to reconcile the two. I continue such search, and I offer you my musical diary.

I’ll forgo the preceding chapters, one entitled “From Jamaica to Vermont in a 7th Grade Year,” but I’ll hint that it might involve Phish, the most prolific and least critically acclaimed touring band ever. Especially now that I read Pitchfork, they may be by default my favorite band of all-time. You don’t even know the half, much less me.

All context aside though, I like music. Love is a strong word I don’t quite understand the meaning of, but synonyms of that word might describe said commitment. I offer you that, and an idea or two. From Britney to Bassline, I’ll be bringing it double time! So check the rhyme: it’s so necessary, even songs without clout, it’s so necessary, a blog with out doubt, is it necessary? Yes.