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MUSIC
Hells Bells....where do I start? Okay, one of my earliest memories was getting up first in the morning and putting on this pink dress with 2 frills near the bottom, pulling out a hairbrush and playing 'Uptown Girl' full blast whilst singing my little heart out to my 'audience' !! (I must just point out for my younger readers that 'Uptown Girl' was actually written and sung by Billy Joel and its this version I'm referring to...not Westlife, lovely boys though they may be!) I guess thats where it all started for me. Billy Joel...although I also used 'the Wombles' tape in the same sessions! My dad used to play guitar to me a lot and so truth be told, my dad is my first true inspiration. I taught myself to play guitar at around 8 (badly, so don't be too impressed!) and then we had a piano given to us when I was 10 and I taught myself that pretty much straight away. My first memories of writing music was at around 6 when I wrote an entire exercise book of Rap on a journey to London! What I wouldn't give to read that book now! My next masterpiece was called ...wait for it.... seriously, its worth waiting for..... 'The Children of Ethiopia' Priceless huh? Sad fact is, I still know all the lyrics and all the music (and backing/harmony I might add!)...and from that point on...I craved music and still do!
I carried on writing about anything and everything and age 10 seemed to be the major year! I managed to get a band together (my sister and her friend) and we actually played a few gigs shock horror! My dad was my greatest fan (and still is!) and believed in me so much he paid for studio time! Such was his confidence that he ordered 250 tapes of Sofiney's first demo's (there's 249 left I think!!)..I did debate uploading the 4 tracks here but I don't think Im quite ready for a public disgrace just yet!! Sofiney split in erm...did we ever split? I recorded one song alone when I was 12/13 but I don't remember ever splitting up! Hey, maybe there's a future here....nah! Watch this space anyway...maybe I'll attach the tracks one day No.....
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watch this space!
Technically, there has never been
a 'solo' venture as such but I've never stopped writing. I have considered
recording the later stuff but the problem is that when you write a song
at 10, everyone says it great just cos you're 10 and therefore its special!
Songs I wrote as an adult are not gonna get away with 'Awh, but she's young!!'...you
never know though! One things for sure..Writing and playing any type
of music is therapeutic and whether you share it or keep it for when you're
alone...its a gift and not one I take lightly.
God, there's been so many!! I'm gonna try to just keep it to a few main ones! Billy Joel was my first true love and if you read all of the above, my earliest memory of actually choosing to put music on. He's an amazing song writer of the highest calibre and I will never tire of listening to his music. I could never pick a top 5 of his stuff but in the top would deffo have to be 'Uptown Girl'..'This Night'..'Summer Highland Falls'...'She's Got A Way'...and all the rest!! My 3rd child would only sleep if listening to either 'Uptown Girl' or 'This Night' for the longest time (see what I did there?! Clever huh?!) Squeeze were a MAJOR influence on me and pretty much got me through puberty! Get in from school, chuck your bag wherever, run upstairs, close the door and stick on a Squeeze vinyl album. Those were the days! I saw them 3 times on tour and I've seen Glenn Tilbrook the last coupla years on his solo tour too. Outstanding stuff. They will always be magical to me. I had the privilege of singing on stage with them one year..my sister was on Difford's mike and me with Glenn...he gave me his plectrum!! Oh, the memories! Bruce Springsteen has only come into my life in the last few years and I will admit that I wasn't a believer in the beginning! Gradually he has made it onto my best ever artist list though and rightfully he holds that place. His lyrics and music are second to none and coupled with the intensity and pure genius of the E Street Band...just outstanding. My 4th child was born to 'Hungry Heart'!! Who says you can't train them young?? Dean Friedman...don't anyone dare say "Who?" !! I only got into Deano in October of last year but I'm already a major fan and have seen him 4 times now. Each time just gets better. With golden hits like 'Lucky Stars' and 'Ariel'..he's rightfully earned a place in music history. Its a real shame that his later stuff hasn't been as well recognised. He has a natural gift for marrying quirky lyrics with catchy tunes whilst still keeping that original innocence and charm as only Dean can. If you check out his website, you may well recognise one of the regular posters on the 'chat' section!  Ian Hunter came into my life in May this year (2004 - just in case this site actually runs for longer than a few months!) and he literally blew me away. I was lucky enough to see him 3 times on this tour and I will never forget it. This guy knows how to Rock!! Busted
are just awesome. I'm not a big fan of modern music and I don't hide
the fact but Busted have a star quality. They write their own stuff
and imho they do a brilliant job of it for their ages. They just
have that 'whatever it is' which make them strangely compelling!
There hasn't been a track of theirs yet which I haven't loved. I
saw them early this year and they were fantastic live. They have
a real talent and appear un-manufactured which is something in itself nowadays!
Like I said above...I could go on all day about all the people and music which I have loved over the years. There's the obvious ones like The Beatles who I grew up listening to....Brian Wilson who I saw 2 years ago and had the pleasure of meeting afterwards. There's no words for that one.....Robbie Williams, who I think has made some outstanding music etc etc etc....I could really go on forever! All you music lovers out there will know what I mean. Nuff Said! xx
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