When I was a young kid I heard all kinds of stuff on the radio. Pre-1950 I heard the Glenn Miller Band (with The Andrews Sisters!!! Ooo-la-la!!!) and Benny Goodman. Swing music is part of my soul. I was also, I guess, a fan of Bing Crosby because he had played in a band with my Uncle Carl in the 1920's and my Dad could imitate him pretty well. Also loved The Sons Of The Pioneers and for some reason, a song called "Blue Tango" by LeRoy Anderson really got inside me. That lopsided beat was captivating. (LeRoy Anderson also wrote "Sleigh Ride", which I recorded as a banjo piece on my Chrismas Album.)
As a 10 and 11-year old, I was quite in awe of my Uncles Carl and Wayne. They were banjo kings and the jam sessions they had at my grandparents' house were inspiring. I was thrilled when I got to the point of being able to play along with them. And one of their contemporaries who had made it big with plecturm banjo was Eddie Peabody. I really wanted to be as good as he was, but I don't think I ever will be. Met him once as a kid and he even let me play his banjo. He had the fingerboard greased up so he could fly all over the thing, but about all I could do was slide around - couldn't hold my hand in one place.
Later in the 1950's, and because we watched "Ozzie and Harriet" every week, I really liked Ricky Nelson. He was cool and the girls loved him. What early pubescent kid wouldn't identify with that? So the very first 45's I bought were Ricky Nelson. (Still have 'em, by the way.)
I remember when "Tom Dooley" hit the airwaves. I had been playing banjo for awhile by then and I was able to figure out the chords for that song. So I'd play along with it when it came on the radio.
On the heals of that I started getting interested in other folk groups. My Dad bought a Limeliters album in the early 1960's, and I loved that group. My school buddy, John Eads, and I formed a duo called "The Kinsmen" in Jr. High School (now known as "middle school") and we were deep into The Limeliters. We also did a lot of Chad Mitchell Trio stuff, a few Kingston Trio tunes and Tom Paxton.
When I went to college at UCLA, everybody was into The Beatles. I remember buying each of the latest LP releases when they came out and rushing back to the apartment to play them over and over until we had every song memorized. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band - the best produced album ever!
In the 1970's I got hooked on reggae. Bob Marley, mon - got de rasta vibration goin'. I have Marguertaville preset in the car on Sirius radio and they be playin' de reggea lots, mon.
My musical tastes are pretty eclectic. I really like salsa and Latin jazz, and most other forms of jazz as well. Also big band swing, Dixieland, ragtime and '30's and 40's pop tunes. I can listen to bluegrass for about 3 songs before I get bored. Not into rap at all and opera is also pretty boring for me. I had my fill of classical music in college, so I hardly ever listen to that anymore, tho I'm not opposed to tuning into a symphony broadcast on the radio occasionally.
Denver has the greatest jazz station on the planet. When I lived there I always had KUVO on in the car. And I know your question was about my early influences, but my tastes have evolved over the years to the point where I really surprised myself recently. I was watching some show that the Guitar Center has on DirectTV and a duo from the east coast was on: Phantogram. Don't ask me why, but this group hypnotized me. The chick singer is a fantastic performer and there's something mesmerizing about their music. It's sorta based on hip-hop, very heavy on electronics and the chord structures of their songs are fascinating. Beyond that, the production is very interesting. Really put me on a different planet to discover this group. Check 'em out. Phantogram - they're on youtube and they have their own site too.
And what will tomorrow bring? Maybe I'll get hooked on those elephants that play keyboards with their trunks.
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