Music:

Does anybody transform listening to music? IE does anybody get
REALLY carried away by music? Whatever style you like. If so, please share your experience. Please don't pit one group against another. Everybody knows I'm a RUSH fan, I'm trying to get a general concensus across the board. :wave:

Many friends and family find my absolute obsession (I like to call it a passion) for Dream Theater a little weird. You are highly unlikely to hear me listening to someone else. More recently I have been able to turn other stuff on, but I never get tired of DT. It is a bit ridiculous even to myself.

I love music though. Whether it be DT or any other band, I really enjoy listening to something. No matter what time of day it is, I have quality audio equipment to listen to whatever I want to listen to (large system @ compy, good headphones for night time, and good audio system in the auto). I too, really get into music. All of that and I don't play any kind of instrument. Many find that weird too.

-Cameron

RUSH was my first favorite band. I had all their albums back in the 70's and 80's. I've seen them in concert about 10 times. I've seen their best cover band (Animation) 100 times. The live version of "Xanadu" off "Exit Stage Left" is my all time favorite RUSH song.

After RUSH, Pink Floyd became my all time favorite band. Funny, because when my brother turned me on to "The Dark Side of the Moon" and "The Wall" albums when they came out in the 70's, I thought they were strange. It wasn't until I watched "The Wall" movie when I got hooked.

Songs with lyrics, tunes, melodies, harmonies, instrumentals, jazz, are alright & entertaining depending on the mood one is in...HOWEVER...

I REALLY ENJOY what I guess I would like to call music that's a "production" (I.E. Pink Floyd, Rick Wakeman's Journey to the Center of the Earth, Maggot Brain by Funkadelic, Andreas Vollenweider, classical as well, & such...).

Take some time, turn down/off the lights & light some candles (or LED candles ), or some RGB LED lights for ambiance & atmosphere...maybe light some incense...oh yeah baby! Guess you know what era I come from?!

Seriously though, I do love to RELAX & set aside some time to listen to some of the above & I guess just meditate a bit...too much stress, anger, & rushing around in this world! Tune in, tune out...REEeeeeeelaxxxxxx....Ohmmmmmmm

Ok and then of course this ripe old age man still likes to get his "ROCK ON" at times as well! :rock: That's typically when the family is gone and/or I'm in "my room" with the door shut & the tunes turned up!!

My addiction to music is something slightly different. I cannot stand the same old music played over and over no matter what the style. You know what I mean, right? Hearing the same songs played 4 or 5 times each, every single day on the radio will drive me crazy and on top of that I work in a place with Muzak. Even the best music wears thin if you hear it 4 or 5 times a day, every day, for over 30 years.

So, if I hear something new and different I can almost hurt my neck by snapping my head around to get a better listen.

I also like to find an artist and then see with whom they've played. By looking at the other artists on the same album I've been turned on to lots of new musicians and different styles of music.

An example: Back in the 60's The Yardbirds were a British blues band that had a few lame-o, hack guitarists who must have played with their thumbs I guess. I mean, none of those guys ever went anywhere. Bunch of old geezers with names like Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Jeff Beck. Nobody ever heard of any of those guys again. Well, OK, I guess maybe they eked out a living by playing with a few other really obscure bands and might have sold a couple of albums here and there between them.

Beck is my favorite of the bunch and his solo and session work covered a huge variety of other artists and bands as well as styles. So by following what he did I got turned on to lots of new acts over a lot of years. It's kind of a "stamp of approval" if Jeff Beck plays with someone.

Also, as lame as I find Fleetwood Mac for the past 30 years (hey, if you like them, fine, but it isn't my cup of tea and to each their own), before they had their "self-titled" album, they were a great blues band with a couple of amazing guitarists. Very few people realize that the Santana version of "Black Magic Woman" is a cover. It's originally a Fleetwod Mac song and I think the original version is actually better.

Sometimes it's worth it to dig into what's going on in the background or what the history of a band is all about.

chmsam said:

My addiction to music is something slightly different. I cannot stand the same old music played over and over no matter what the style. You know what I mean, right? Hearing the same songs played 4 or 5 times each, every single day on the radio will drive me crazy and on top of that I work in a place with Muzak. Even the best music wears thin if you hear it 4 or 5 times a day, every day, for over 30 years.

Click to expand...

I agree to that now. Although when I was a young kid, not having alot of money, I'd listen to whatever albums I had, and the radio. That didn't leave a very large selection. I think I listen to 2112 1000 times, before I got my second copy. When I got older and got a tape recorder, all my friends would exchange songs, which helped alot.

Today, I find myself listening to songs that didn't/don't play much on the radio, or that you never hear about (Thanks to XM, and the Internet). As for all the popular bands, I usually like songs, nobody else has heard of. When I play them at a party, people say, "Wow, great song, who is this?", or "I love this band, is this a new song?", while the song came out even before the band became popular. I also like live performances. A lot of times I hear songs live that didn't do much for me in the studio.

I also like to find an artist and then see with whom they've played. By looking at the other artists on the same album I've been turned on to lots of new musicians and different styles of music.

Click to expand...

+1 It's amazing how well you can find hidden songs and artists that way.

An example: Back in the 60's The Yardbirds were a British blues band that had a few lame-o, hack guitarists who must have played with their thumbs I guess. I mean, none of those guys ever went anywhere. Bunch of old geezers with names like Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Jeff Beck. Nobody ever heard of any of those guys again. Well, OK, I guess maybe they eked out a living by playing with a few other really obscure bands and might have sold a couple of albums here and there between them.

Click to expand...

Who's Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page? :thinking:

Beck is my favorite of the bunch and his solo and session work covered a huge variety of other artists and bands as well as styles. So by following what he did I got turned on to lots of new acts over a lot of years. It's kind of a "stamp of approval" if Jeff Beck plays with someone.

Click to expand...

I love Jeff Beck. I could listen to him all day.

Also, as lame as I find Fleetwood Mac for the past 30 years (hey, if you like them, fine, but it isn't my cup of tea and to each their own), before they had their "self-titled" album, they were a great blues band with a couple of amazing guitarists. Very few people realize that the Santana version of "Black Magic Woman" is a cover. It's originally a Fleetwod Mac song and I think the original version is actually better.

Click to expand...

Another good example is "Journey". Most people are familar with the voice of Steve Perry. However, when you play songs prior to him joining the band, nobody knows who it is. As a matter of fact they rocked before Steve Perry.

In 1970, at age 16 guitarist Neal Schon was offered, and turned down, to play with Derek and the Dominoes. Instead, he signed on with Carlos Santana for a while, before leaving and having Journey formed around him a few years later.

There are a lot of artists out there who are just so good, so capable, so talented, and so intuitive that they can practically make me shiver with the feelings generated by their musical performances. It seems to me more a matter of mood than style or type of music because I've been carried away by the likes of Boney James, Thelma Houston, The Doors, Frank Sinatra, Elvis, Three Dog Night, Katrina and the Waves, BB King, Carlos Santana, (and now my short-term memory is failing me) and I don't know how many others I hear daily while madly pushing the buttons on my stereo always searching for that better cut. It seems to me to be perfectly normal to be carried away by music. However, if you're carried away by Cat Stevens or the like, you've got a problem.

Nothing unusual about getting carried away by music. My wife and I have a cd of totally sappy love songs that we've put together, after a tough day we'll snuggle up together and put that cd on. It really helps.

I like a wide variety of music. I'm listening to Alicia Keys now, but I've also got Godsmack, the Dixie Chicks, Muddy Waters, etc etc etc. I vastly prefer acoustic or unplugged versions of songs(Clapton's "Layla" is great acoustic, but normally? :sick2, and the best songs an artist has are rarely the ones that made the radio.

:buddies:

I have everything from Bach to White Zombie, but I only listen to a few
different artists. Tangerine Dream, Kitaro, Moody Blues, Frank Sinatra
Bob Marley and a LOT of Blues from the 30's to the 70's mostly featuring
the great guitarists. I put a lot of music on cassettes (perhaps you've
heard of them) for cruising in the car. If anyone wants me to make a
compilation send me a list of several artists you like and I will try to
put something together. No Charge, it's something I Love to do. I am
retired so I have a lot of time. Sorry, I am low-tech, no MP3 or CD
burner.

BOBBYBOB said:

I have everything from Bach to White Zombie, but I only listen to a few
different artists. Tangerine Dream, Kitaro, Moody Blues, Frank Sinatra
Bob Marley and a LOT of Blues from the 30's to the 70's mostly featuring
the great guitarists. I put a lot of music on cassettes (perhaps you've
heard of them) for cruising in the car. If anyone wants me to make a
compilation send me a list of several artists you like and I will try to
put something together. No Charge, it's something I Love to do. I am
retired so I have a lot of time. Sorry, I am low-tech, no MP3 or CD
burner.

Click to expand...

I do that and give them to friends for b-day presents. I started with tapes, but went to CD's. Now everytime I go to their houses, I always hear music I like. :naughty:

I'm in my late fifties and more and more I'm into music from 20-30 years before I was born... I can't explain it beyond saying that I'm tired of over-produced -- post-production inhanced music.

I love many kinds of music that have a raw quality that is actually closer to the artist. That's really what I want to hear -- the artist.

I'm a searchaholic and a pathalogical archiver and I know how to find what I'm looking for -- and the vast majority of what I'm looking for is old enough to be in the Public Domain anyway...

A well performed cello concerto, e.g. Elgar's 85 in e-minor, or one of J. S. Bach's suites, will literally take my breath away.
Nothing else will do that, although I do enjoy a wide-ish variety of music.

I am absolutley addicted to the really "indy" stuff younger kids and teens listen to. I am only 23, but am pretty old fashioned myself. I dont really listen to it for the emotional lyrics and crap like that, I listen to it more for the unique sound. It's just something different, and there is plenty of it to listen to.

bobisculous said:

Many friends and family find my absolute obsession (I like to call it a passion) for Dream Theater a little weird. You are highly unlikely to hear me listening to someone else. More recently I have been able to turn other stuff on, but I never get tired of DT. It is a bit ridiculous even to myself.

I love music though. Whether it be DT or any other band, I really enjoy listening to something. No matter what time of day it is, I have quality audio equipment to listen to whatever I want to listen to (large system @ compy, good headphones for night time, and good audio system in the auto). I too, really get into music. All of that and I don't play any kind of instrument. Many find that weird too.

-Cameron

Click to expand...

Yep,I understand this as well. I just CANNOT seem to get enough of RUSH. Was just wondering if this happened to other folks with other bands. Also this happens with Queensryche too. :wave: As far as gear goes, JBL 4726X, 4718 X and believe me between these two your house is shaking, JBL's are THE BEST, 925's, 815's, Crest amplifiers,V900 and V1100, BBE 882, DBX 2231, DBX 120a Subwoofer Amplifier, Ashley XR 1001, Mackie VLZ 1604 the newest model. Oh and also 12 gauge wire and the newest interconnects, all in all about $15 k worth of gear. Great stuff, especially the JBL's.
Sony MDR-7506 Headphones ad infinitum, all I can say is it's ridiculous but it works. Halleluyah! I need to listen to Dream Theatre too!

I have a huge CD collection, mostly metal and progressive-metal. Very few bands really make go "holy crap!" anymore.

Dream Theater lost me when Kev Mo left the band

Never been a huge Rush fan

Some classical stuff is cool

Can't stand any pop music, most of it is computer generated with an "artist" with little or no talent, but with a "look". There are some exceptions, I.E. Alicia Keys was mentioned in this thread, and she is talented to the point of ridiculousness.

Country? yuck...dont like it.

Favorite of all time: Fates Warning's "A Pleasant Shade Of Gray"

--dan

It would take too long to explain what I like about each of these bands, so I'll just list 'em and if you like some of them then you might want to give some of the others a shot. I listen to a lot of music not listed here, but this gives you an idea of the rest of it. These are in no particular order BTW:

Madeski, Martin & Wood, Jeff Beck (the early stuff), Weather Report, Phish, Bela Fleck, Gypsy Kings, Jazz Mandolin Project, Herbie Hancock (the early stuff), Air
G. Love, Cake, Beck, The Black Crowes, Blind Melon, Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kula Shaker, Pearl Jam, Sublime, Weezer, Ween, The Raconteurs, Son Volt, The Flaming Lips, Old Crow Medicine Show, 311, Stone Temple Pilots, Ben Harper
Bob Marley, Yes (again, the early stuff), Frank Zappa, Led Zepplin, Pink Floyd, The Doobie Brothers, The Beatles, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Peter Tosh
The Chemical Brothers, Crystal Method

+1 for Rush... I LOVE the song Tom Sawyer!!!


I'm a huge doors fan but really like all walks of music. I would say carried away is with the doors. Singing... swaying LOL ya... I get inta it sometime

+1 on the "transformed by music" thing!

I love music and am very passionate about it and really "get into it". I listen to a great variety of different music, from J.S. Bach to Christina Aguilera. I'm still not into Country music that much, and not very much into rap, either, although I do have some. I'm a classical pianist (and piano tuner-technician) as well, and that shows in my CD library--lots of Bach keyboard stuff and lots of Beethoven, Chopin, and Shubert piano stuff.

What I really do not "get" is how there can be people who just really don't care about music, people who can take it or leave it, and who don't have a music collection at all, and who say they aren't really "moved" by it. That I just don't understand, at a personal level. Intellectually I can understand it--they're just not into music that much--but for myself, music is vital. I used to even jest that Bach alone would be enough to give meaning to my life. I don't think that's true, really, but it does express the kind of feelings I have for Bach's music. And it just deepens the more I learn, the more I struggle with a prelude and fuge or a partita. The GENIUS. The unfathomable brilliance of that music. It transports me. It "transcends" me. Amazing.