I think I figured out how I got inspired to become involved in rock music journalism. Besides the fact that I loved music and I read Creem Magazine (and Circus and Hit Parader) and its zany journalism – like short stories about nothing in particular posing as Judas Priest album reviews … besides all these things I think a light came on a day or two after a big party. I didn’t put the pieces together at the time, of course, but it makes sense now.
There was this new kid that moved to Edwards Air Force Base at the start of my senior year (or perhaps the end of my junior year) named Dana Smith. He moved from Okinawa after his dad was transferred from there. This kid had been able to purchase the most excellent and loud rack stereo system I’d ever seen – at half price, of course. Since electronics were made with excellence over there, it was state of the art. This thing had a rack to hold all the components, like a turn table on top, receiver, amplifier, cassette tape deck and an equalizer with cool little blue lights on the end of each frequency slider. I might have left out a component or two, but the thing was awesome. If I recall, it cranked out an incredible-for-its-time 100 watts per channel. The thing could blast the plaster off of walls.
So, one night when Dana’s parents were out somewhere there was a party at his house. At one point near the end of the party Dana put on one of our favorite albums (it might’ve been a cassette that I made of the album) by Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush, simply called Live. This must’ve been near the end of the party, because this album was loud and has one of the best live guitar solos ever on side two of this thing. It’s not the type of album that you play when there’s girls there who want to enjoy nice music. This is kind of a guy’s only blast our brains with a sonic assault heavy music. If you put it on in the middle of a party, anyone that wanted to talk or girls that wanted to dance and chill out – they would probably all leave. This thing sounded great coming out of his stereo at super “impress your friends” loud volume. Side 2 finishes up with one of the band’s better songs, “Talkin’ Bout A Feelin'” and segues into a medley of sorts that touches on the Doors’ tune, “Who Do Ya Love” and then goes into a dive-bombing instrumental called “Electric Reflections of War” and then “World Anthem” and then an encore of “Purple Haze.” It’s glorious in a loud, blues-inspired rock and roll sort of way. Anyone that later learned to love Stevie Ray Vaughan should probably try to find this album (not the Double Live album, though it’s good). Frank Marino is just one of the best unheralded players around.
So, it was a day or two later and I was hanging out with Mark Meeks and we were talking about the party and Dana’s stereo. Mark was blown away by an album and I think he wanted to know who it was that he was listening to. Hearing his description was amazing, though. I still remember the moment. I wish I could remember his exact words. He had no reference point or names to drop, so he described what he heard. “…all this feedback during the most amazing guitar solo I’ve ever heard. I was blown away. I didn’t think it could get any better, but then it was followed by this massive drum solo. The audience screamed it seemed like forever and then they came out and finished with “Purple Haze.”
I knew exactly what album he was talking about and I was glad to inform him of who it was, but it was hearing his raw, relying-only-on-the-sounds-he-heard description that gripped me. It was an unadulterated and outsider’s perspective that shed a new light on the album for me. It was exciting to hear someone describe the thrills of a great musical moment. Imagine someone describing a roller coaster ride to someone who’d never ridden one before. You couldn’t bring up The Texas Twister or Space Mountain or Colossus or some other existing ride. You’d just have to describe what it felt like and how it moved. There was an added dimension by not leaning on the familiar.
Looking back on that moment, which I was reminded of this morning as I attempted to rouse my kids out of bed by playing Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush Live at volume 37 on our home entertainment system, I think it was probably a defining moment for me that I later tapped into. All this without ever really realizing it, probably.
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