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Calvin the Rock Star (sans pics)
Oct. 3rd, 2007 09:22 pmOkay, I haven't taken pictures yet, so I still need to do that and post them here.
Anyway...
I love music. I can't noodle a bit on bass guitar, but otherwise it is purely musical appreciation on my part. It is no mistake that I went into radio. My dream in my teen years was to be Casey Casem, Wolfman Jack, or whatever radio fantasy filled my head from childhood viewings of WKRP. To this day, my dream job would be to program an independently-owned radio station. I would easily quit any job to live that dream. Alas, part of me feels that my time as music director at WVUA at Bama was that moment and I won't get that back again.
In the meantime, I just hope that one, if not both, of the boys shares my appreciation of music. I'm not picky about what music, other than the fact that the only country music I can stand listening to is stuff older than 1985 (basically, country lost me after Ronnie Milsap, Kenny Rogers, and Dolly faded from the radio). I play anything and everything else for the boys - pop, R&B, rock, bluegrass, jazz. Granted, I would still have music going nearly constantly in the background w/o the kids in my life, but the habit inherits a certain importance with them around.
It took me next to no time to realize that there are very few children's songs/artists that I can stand to hear for more than 3 minutes (thank God for TMBG doing kids' CDs and for Laurie Berkner - imagine if Ani Difranco was a breeder). Calvin prefers fast, uptempo songs. His ideal song is along the lines of the Go-Go's, New Pornographers, Von Bondies style of power-pop. While Calvin's favorite song was "Making Plans for Nigel" for a while, he's moved on...and I'm to blame. I introduced Calvin to Duran Duran. "This is Mommy's favorite band," was the only reason why I played the greatest hits CD one day. It was love at first listen for the boy (more evidence that he's his mother's child).
I would not be shocked to find out when he grows up that he had a childhood crush on Simon Le Bon. It was right after I introduced him to Duran Duran that he started borrowing DD CDs, playing them VERY LOUDLY in his bedroom, and singing & playing along with them. A few days after that, he started dressing up in various costumes while performing. This past week he started turning his tabletop lamp to shine on him to he can dance and see his shadow on the opposite wall.
I've also established a favorites folder for him in YouTube. At first it was just to show him a couple of videos for songs he liked. After he saw a few bands perform at the Concerts in the Park this summer, I've encouraged him to watch live performances. Totally against my expectations, he often prefers to watch live performances to the official video for songs. Performing songs has become something that he seems to study. He will stand in front of my computer watching Duran Duran at Live Aid or some of the other live performances in his folder and mimic what Simon and other people are doing. It is uncanny how he picks up on some of the choreography and how he sometimes prefers the live pacing and inflections than the studio version.
INXS soon followed DD (I heard "Need You Tonight" more last month than I did in the 80's). Van Halen videos are popular (particularly "Panama" and "Jump") but he prefers to listen to "Hot for Teacher" when we are listening to 1984 (JD busted me showing him the video and I've been warned not to do it again). Peter Gabriel recently came into the picture. Calvin and Nigel can't get enough "Sledgehammer." I have Secret World on DVD and Calvin loves to watch "Come Talk to Me," "Shaking the Tree," and "Sledgehammer."
I would love to find some concerts to take him to, but there is one major obstacle. Calvin doesn't like loud noises...okay, he doesn't like loud noises that he isn't making. Taking Calvin to a concert will require that we take acoustic ear muffs (his ears are too small for my collection of ear plugs) and that the initial song doesn't scare him away. Since Calvin's walked out on two of the three movies we've taken him to because they were too loud, I'm not particularly encouraged to spend the money on a concert ticket for the boy. The selection of music coming through H'ville doesn't exactly help, either.
Until then, Calvin will remain the Rock Star in his bedroom.
Anyway...
I love music. I can't noodle a bit on bass guitar, but otherwise it is purely musical appreciation on my part. It is no mistake that I went into radio. My dream in my teen years was to be Casey Casem, Wolfman Jack, or whatever radio fantasy filled my head from childhood viewings of WKRP. To this day, my dream job would be to program an independently-owned radio station. I would easily quit any job to live that dream. Alas, part of me feels that my time as music director at WVUA at Bama was that moment and I won't get that back again.
In the meantime, I just hope that one, if not both, of the boys shares my appreciation of music. I'm not picky about what music, other than the fact that the only country music I can stand listening to is stuff older than 1985 (basically, country lost me after Ronnie Milsap, Kenny Rogers, and Dolly faded from the radio). I play anything and everything else for the boys - pop, R&B, rock, bluegrass, jazz. Granted, I would still have music going nearly constantly in the background w/o the kids in my life, but the habit inherits a certain importance with them around.
It took me next to no time to realize that there are very few children's songs/artists that I can stand to hear for more than 3 minutes (thank God for TMBG doing kids' CDs and for Laurie Berkner - imagine if Ani Difranco was a breeder). Calvin prefers fast, uptempo songs. His ideal song is along the lines of the Go-Go's, New Pornographers, Von Bondies style of power-pop. While Calvin's favorite song was "Making Plans for Nigel" for a while, he's moved on...and I'm to blame. I introduced Calvin to Duran Duran. "This is Mommy's favorite band," was the only reason why I played the greatest hits CD one day. It was love at first listen for the boy (more evidence that he's his mother's child).
I would not be shocked to find out when he grows up that he had a childhood crush on Simon Le Bon. It was right after I introduced him to Duran Duran that he started borrowing DD CDs, playing them VERY LOUDLY in his bedroom, and singing & playing along with them. A few days after that, he started dressing up in various costumes while performing. This past week he started turning his tabletop lamp to shine on him to he can dance and see his shadow on the opposite wall.
I've also established a favorites folder for him in YouTube. At first it was just to show him a couple of videos for songs he liked. After he saw a few bands perform at the Concerts in the Park this summer, I've encouraged him to watch live performances. Totally against my expectations, he often prefers to watch live performances to the official video for songs. Performing songs has become something that he seems to study. He will stand in front of my computer watching Duran Duran at Live Aid or some of the other live performances in his folder and mimic what Simon and other people are doing. It is uncanny how he picks up on some of the choreography and how he sometimes prefers the live pacing and inflections than the studio version.
INXS soon followed DD (I heard "Need You Tonight" more last month than I did in the 80's). Van Halen videos are popular (particularly "Panama" and "Jump") but he prefers to listen to "Hot for Teacher" when we are listening to 1984 (JD busted me showing him the video and I've been warned not to do it again). Peter Gabriel recently came into the picture. Calvin and Nigel can't get enough "Sledgehammer." I have Secret World on DVD and Calvin loves to watch "Come Talk to Me," "Shaking the Tree," and "Sledgehammer."
I would love to find some concerts to take him to, but there is one major obstacle. Calvin doesn't like loud noises...okay, he doesn't like loud noises that he isn't making. Taking Calvin to a concert will require that we take acoustic ear muffs (his ears are too small for my collection of ear plugs) and that the initial song doesn't scare him away. Since Calvin's walked out on two of the three movies we've taken him to because they were too loud, I'm not particularly encouraged to spend the money on a concert ticket for the boy. The selection of music coming through H'ville doesn't exactly help, either.
Until then, Calvin will remain the Rock Star in his bedroom.
