Musical Inspirations : 01

Music – a new category I thought I'd add here.  Ever since I was a kid, music has been a big part of my life.  From the days of listening to the extensive vinyl collection my parents had, to the latest digital tunes you can take with you wherever you go.  Music is everywhere and it's of course a great means of expression.  From the classic vinyl albums of Zeppelin, Hendrix, the Rolling Stones and even Def Leppard that I picked up from my dad, to the favorites of Fleetwood Mac, The Beatles and yes, Rod Stewart that I inherited from my mom (which probably attests to why I can’t stand good old Rod, as I heard him so much growing up).

As I've gotten older, my music habits have changed.  I've always been into "alternative rock".  Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Nine Inch Nails, Incubus and Linkin Park are just a few of my favorites off hand.  The 90's produced some of the best music in my opinion, led by the likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam.  To me it's just not the same today, with a lot of cookie-cutter music that all sounds alike.  That may be part of why I’ve gotten into techno music within the past few years, but more on that later.

My favorite band without question is Oasis.  Close friends of mine know this to an extensively exhausting degree.  I've seen them live in concert five times – basically every time they've come to Detroit.  I wanted Gina's and my wedding song to be an acoustic version of Slide Away (but we couldn't pull it off correctly).  Our wedding party walked in to an Oasis track (which I’ll have on the home page next week).  If you don't know Oasis, I can't do them justice by talking about them here.  Since their beginnings, they've basically lit a fire under everyone claiming to be better than the Beatles (a nearly impossible task), but if you listen to their music, you know they have a great respect for them which resonates in their songs.  Oasis’ no-nonsense and perhaps overly confident presence has cost them popularity in the U.S., but that’s part of what I love about them, in addition to their overall sound and exceptional song-writing.

The track currently playing on the homepage was done by Noel Gallagher (the core of the group).  It has a techno/electronic sound to it, which plays similar to a track he did with the Chemical Brothers (titled "Setting Sun") years ago.  It has an intense feel to it, which I find very cool.

However one of my favorite Oasis songs has been "D'You Know What I Mean?"  It’s off their third album titled "Be Here Now".  It has a kick-ass sound and I love the message.  You can hear a sample of it here and below are the lyrics:

D'You Know What I Mean

Step off the train all alone at dawn
Back into the hole where I was born
The sun in the sky never raised an eye to me
There's blood on the trax, and they must be mine
The fool on the hill, and I feel fine
Don't look back cos you know what you might see

Look into the wall of my mind's eye
I think I know, but I don't know why
The questions are the answers you might need
Coming in a mess, going out in style
I ain't good-looking, but I'm someone's child
No-one can give me the air that's mine to breathe

I met my maker,
I made him cry
And on my shoulder he asked me why
His people won't fly through the storm
I said "Listen up man, they don't even know you're born"

All my people right here, right now
D'You Know What I Mean? yeah, yeah
All my people right here, right now
D'You Know What I Mean? yeah, yeah
All my people right here, right now
D'You Know What I Mean? yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah

I don't really care for what you believe
So open up your fist or you won't receive
The thoughts and the words of every man you'll need
Get up off the floor and believe in life
No-one's ever gonna ever ask you twice
Get on the bus and bring it on home to me

I met my maker,
I made him cry
And on my shoulder he asked me why
His people won't fly through the storm
I said "Listen up man, they don't even know you're born"

All my people right here, right now
They Know What I Mean yeah, yeah
All my people right here, right now
They Know What I Mean yeah, yeah
All my people right here, right now
They Know What I Mean yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah