10. The Ocean.
When I was young I found a lot of peace in and around the ocean. It got me through a lot of hard times when I was very young. It's always there. Always gonna be.
9. Women
They look good and smell good too. And they've always been extraordinarily nice to me. To quote Mr. Dylan, "I can't help it if I'm lucky..."
8. Driving
I didn't start till I was in my 20s, well, not officially or legally, anyway. I spent part of my youth in the front seat of my father's car, which is weird if you're a New Yorker. I always liked it. Which brings me to number...
7. The Radio
Sitting in the front seat of my dad's car, I was always playing the radio. And when I was little, it was AM radio, and it was goooood. the Beatles, the Stones, James Brown, Elvis, Sly and the Family Stone, the Supremes, Motown, bubblegum stuff, and top twenty kind of stuff. Just amazing. oh yeah, Elton John...
6. Elton John
When I was little, I was obsessed. I listened to him every day. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" was the soundtrack to my early grade school years. That, and "Honky Chateau". I love Davey Johnstone, the whole band, the songs. I wanted to be Nigel Olsson. But I was more Davey.
5. Jimmy Page, Mick Jones, Steve Jones, Mick Ronson, James Williamson
OK, I'm cheating. These guys (and about 20 others) were the people I looked up to and thought about when I was little, and thinking about what I wanted to "be" when I grew up. or, didn't grow up.
4. Electric Guitars
They just captivate me, still. Even "ugly" ones. People take it all for granted nowadays, they're just everywhere.
When I was a kid, you'd sooner see a unicorn than a really cool electric guitar. I would go see bands just to be around "real" gear. My first Les Paul was "lucky", my black beauty... that I still am fortunate enough to own. When I saw her, I bought her without ever playing her. I saw her hanging on the wall, and I just said, "I want that one!" She just looked like we belonged together. There's nothing like a Gibson Les Paul.
3. The Sex Pistols
I was in public school in Queens, really into Led Zeppelin, the Stones, Kiss, Aerosmith. And a little later, I heard the Pistols. It was the greatest sound I had ever heard, since I had first heard the Beatles. Just everything about it grabbed me. The look, the feel, the attitude. But especially that sound. "Never Mind The Bollocks" is brilliant, Steve Jones is brilliant.
2. The Beatles
Without whom, for better or worse, I would have never picked up a guitar. My mom let me take the "White" album out from the library, I never returned it...I was 6. My dad bought me the "Red" and the "Blue" albums, and I was off and running.
1. New York City
I love it, I hate it. I was born there, my great grandparents came here 130 or so years ago, all lived in Harlem and the Lower East Side. I guess it's just part of me. The biggest, best city in the world. They're trying to kill it off, but it still is beautiful to me sometimes. I can't shake it. Home.
When I was young I found a lot of peace in and around the ocean. It got me through a lot of hard times when I was very young. It's always there. Always gonna be.
9. Women
They look good and smell good too. And they've always been extraordinarily nice to me. To quote Mr. Dylan, "I can't help it if I'm lucky..."
8. Driving
I didn't start till I was in my 20s, well, not officially or legally, anyway. I spent part of my youth in the front seat of my father's car, which is weird if you're a New Yorker. I always liked it. Which brings me to number...
7. The Radio
Sitting in the front seat of my dad's car, I was always playing the radio. And when I was little, it was AM radio, and it was goooood. the Beatles, the Stones, James Brown, Elvis, Sly and the Family Stone, the Supremes, Motown, bubblegum stuff, and top twenty kind of stuff. Just amazing. oh yeah, Elton John...
6. Elton John
When I was little, I was obsessed. I listened to him every day. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" was the soundtrack to my early grade school years. That, and "Honky Chateau". I love Davey Johnstone, the whole band, the songs. I wanted to be Nigel Olsson. But I was more Davey.
5. Jimmy Page, Mick Jones, Steve Jones, Mick Ronson, James Williamson
OK, I'm cheating. These guys (and about 20 others) were the people I looked up to and thought about when I was little, and thinking about what I wanted to "be" when I grew up. or, didn't grow up.
4. Electric Guitars
They just captivate me, still. Even "ugly" ones. People take it all for granted nowadays, they're just everywhere.
When I was a kid, you'd sooner see a unicorn than a really cool electric guitar. I would go see bands just to be around "real" gear. My first Les Paul was "lucky", my black beauty... that I still am fortunate enough to own. When I saw her, I bought her without ever playing her. I saw her hanging on the wall, and I just said, "I want that one!" She just looked like we belonged together. There's nothing like a Gibson Les Paul.
3. The Sex Pistols
I was in public school in Queens, really into Led Zeppelin, the Stones, Kiss, Aerosmith. And a little later, I heard the Pistols. It was the greatest sound I had ever heard, since I had first heard the Beatles. Just everything about it grabbed me. The look, the feel, the attitude. But especially that sound. "Never Mind The Bollocks" is brilliant, Steve Jones is brilliant.
2. The Beatles
Without whom, for better or worse, I would have never picked up a guitar. My mom let me take the "White" album out from the library, I never returned it...I was 6. My dad bought me the "Red" and the "Blue" albums, and I was off and running.
1. New York City
I love it, I hate it. I was born there, my great grandparents came here 130 or so years ago, all lived in Harlem and the Lower East Side. I guess it's just part of me. The biggest, best city in the world. They're trying to kill it off, but it still is beautiful to me sometimes. I can't shake it. Home.
As nobody has left a comment I will. Not a completely obvious top ten, thank feck - it's so easy but one that speaks volumes - just like D Generation. Cheers Danny!
ReplyDelete