Sunday, August 14, 2011

The Musical Idiot

That's me.
I may talk big, but....
4 the past month or so I've bn playing the radio at work, nites, after I get all my side-work done & all I havta worry about is taking people's $$$ & putting on a happy face.
& it's worked.
I wouldn't say my work-related stress is completely gone, but a lotta the things about my job that useta make me crazy every single nite ... just kinda float away. Things people did that useta piss me off I now don't care about, cos I'm 2 busy bouncing around or singing along or playing air-guitar or drums 2 whatever's playing on the radio.
& sometimes I crank it up pretty loud. The louder the better. The louder it is, the less stress I feel & the louder I can screech along in 2-part harmony.
It's all good.
& it's so freakin' obvious that I now wonder why I resisted turning the radio on 4 7-1/2 years at the store.
I thot mayB it'd distract me. & that's true -- it's distracted me from some things I didn't wanna C or hear NEway.
I thot I wouldn't B able 2 focus. Well, that hasn't bn a problem, cos if I have trouble focusing I can always turn the music DOWN a bit. Actually, I think I'm focusing BETTER -- cos B4 on busy nites the store was sometimes just a massive spinning swirl of people & stress NEway....
& weirdest of all, at the end of the nite I don't feel totally dead. I still have some NRG left. I'm not totally stomped from Bing all stressed out.
It's pretty great, really. & it's so simple. How dumb could I B?
So far, nobody's complained. 2nite 1 long-time Regular told me: "Hey, having the music turned up really boosts the mood in this place!" & he's right. Why'd I put it off 4 so long?
Now, I have complained a coupla times here recently that EVERYBODY's playlist could B a little more open. But I'm 2 the point now where I almost don't care that I can hear "You Can't Always Get What You Want" 3 times in 1 nite. Or "Layla." Or "Stairway to Heaven." Or "Sweet Home Alabama." (OK, I still have some problems with that last 1....)
Sometimes it gets weirder than that. 2nite 2 diffrent stations were playing Heart's "Barracuda" about 15 seconds apart from each other. I could tune 1 station & hear the opening gtr riff, then turn 2 the other & hear it repeated again a few seconds later. It was wild. But also another Xample that playlists could B Xpanded.
I'm now bouncing around Btween 6 diffrent Seattle-area stations trying 2 find something good 2 listen 2. & it's not enuf. I joke with people who walk in while I'm scanning the dial that with Seattle radio you get "1 good song in a row." If you're lucky.
Sometimes if I get busy or get wrapped-up in closing down the store B4 midnight I'll just let the radio play -- & this has led me 2 re-hear some songs I dismissed YEARS ago. Coupla nites ago I heard Billy Joel's "She's Got a Way" & Cat Stevens's "Oh, Very Young," & they both sounded good. I hadn't heard Cat's song in possibly 35 years cos I thot it was lightweight when it was released -- but it sounded all right, especially his voice & the piano & those lighter-than-air women's choral vocals.
& there've bn a few suprises. 2nite's was The Beatles' "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite" -- Njoyed George Martin's "fairgrounds" production. Coupla nites ago they played Chicago's "Questions 67 & 68," which I hadn't heard in awhile. Heart's "Mistral Wind" & "Love Alive." Stealer's Wheel's "Star." & 2nite I got 3 from The Moody Blues & cranked it WAY up 4 "The Story in Your Eyes" & "Ride My See-Saw."
I also crank it 4 oldies like Bobby Fuller's rockin' "I Fought the Law" & Zep's molten "When the Levee Breaks," Van's "Wild Night," The Police's "King of Pain" & "Synchronicity II," Talking Heads' "Take Me to the River" (if they'd play "Road to Nowhere" I'd B a happy man), U2's "Beautiful Day," or even The Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me" (I'm a sucker 4 almost all "Girl Groups"). Our store stereo actually puts out a pretty good amount of bass -- but I wish it would go LOUDER B4 it starts distorting.
But it's not just oldies. I'll crank it 4 Nickelback's "Photograph" (the best thing -- only GOOD thing? -- they've ever done) -- U KNOW a nostalgia-monger like me is just gonna LOVE that. & who does "Rockabye"? Great choruses -- makes me think of my daughter, almost brings me to tears. & is it Green Day who does the rocker with the refrain "I'm not sick, but I'm not well...."? & who does "Closing Time"? Great.... Linkin Park's "Numb" -- great angry choruses....
There's still some stuff I Don't Get. I Don't Get hardly NE REM. I don't get what's sposta B impressive about them. I don't get why local stations R STILL playing the hell outta Coldplay's "Death and All His Friends," tho I admit it grows on me more every time I hear it. & who does that song with the keyboard-fanfare opening & the guy saying "I turn the radio off/I've got my red shoes on...." Sounds like he's gonna turn in2 a superhero.... I Don't Get that 1 either. But mayB I was not put upon this Earth 2 Get It....
NEway, the radio has made my nites a little EZer lately, so I hava little more NRG 2 blog more often. Music can actually B used 2 enhance yer life. Who woulda thunk it?
If this keeps up, I might make it another 50 years....

1 comment:

rastronomicals said...

Hey Tad

Thanks for putting a link to the tumblr.

It appears that Seattle radio is much better than Miami. Would you believe that Miami does not have a modern rock radio station? Also, it has only one "classic rock" station and only one "oldies" station. And the Classic Rock station has a miniscule core playlist--and plays no music between 6AM and 10. So at any given moment it's very likely that the best music on the air will be being played by the oldies station.

It's real pathetic, trust me, and a great reason to keep my iPod charged.

Not to be a downer or anything, I mean, more power to ye, but if Seattle radio is better than Miami's, it's still not saying much. "Sweet Home Alabama" may not be bothering you after the 40th time, but what about after the 300th?

The iPod or its generic equivalent is the greatest invention since the printing press--and you never have to listen to Lynyrd Skynyrd if'n you don't wanna.

You might have to get your computer situation in order but if possible I really think it's worth doing. Not to jinx the good luck you've had so far, bu relying on the radio to play something good can be a fool's mission.

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