Well, the end of another year is upon me. Upon us. This is that time where columnists, wanna-be journalists, and yes, even part time bloggers churn out those annoying "Top 5" lists. I've always been fond of them, myself, thanks mainly to John Cusack in "High Fidelity". A good buddy of mine, Jason Loreti, and I kept up to the minute lists of our top 5 bands. Truth be told, I still do. But....this is not my top 5 band blog. This is a series of blogs, sermons, if you please?! My personal top 5 music moments of 2015. A combo platter of stuff pertaining to me on a personal level, and stuff that's more...universal? My musical "years" are generally nowhere near....legendary status? I don't travel the country, or the globe, in search of the epic show, by the epic band....in the epic venue. Not that I wouldn't mind doing that stuff. I'm definitely envious of some of my u2 family who galavant across the pond and back to see the boys in the Emerald Isle. Or, even the ones who see them not just in their hometown, but the hometowns of like a dozen of our mates? Hats off to them, but I just never have had the means or the right set of circumstances to take the summer or fall off? My aforementioned friend Jason has had years that would summon the term "epic". Bonaroo, huge outdoor festivals, venturing to see obscure bands in obscure places....no, I have to downsize my parameters quite a bit. That being said, 2015 was a pretty solid year.
With no further delay, my #5 music moment or event of the year is.....The Rolling Stones. This will sound crazy, but 2015 was the year I discovered them. Uh, yeah...I just said that. I never really got into them. All the years of musical enlightenment and I just never dug the vibe. Something about Jagger's voice prohibited them from making a dent in my musical pantheon. Fast forward to 2015. The "zip code" tour. And Minneapolis was one of the lucky few stops. My son Morgan, who has even more diverse tastes/loves than I do, badly wanted to go. So, tickets were bought. Muey expensive I have to add. In prep for the show, at "The Bank", on the campus of the university of Minnesota, I dove into the Stones deep catalogue. And, a love affair was cultivated. I listened to, and fell head over heels with the bands early efforts. My father grew up in the hey day of the stones, and listening to Satisfaction, Jumpin Jack Flash, and Paint it Black did what great music does. It took me to that time when my dad was a young and impressionable kid making his way in the 60's. I watched documentaries and was awed by just how big they were. The stones were the devil to the Beatles angel? I was blown away by the magnitude and importance of their shows. Altamont speedway. Wow. Rock and roll should have some edge. Some danger. And the stones personified that bad boy image. I'm sure there were countless parents who were outraged that their daughters were holed up in their rooms blaring the Rolling Stones, all the while entertaining sexual fantasies with Mick and Keith.
When the time came for my Virginal Stones show, I was more than ready. Better late than never? Oh how fun to go back in time and jump into the peace and flower loving fray, but seeing the "nursing home" version would have to suffice. Who doesn't love the spectacle of a rock show. And wow, what a spectacle that we were privy to on a rain soaked summer night. The pyrotechnics, the lights and imagery, the diverse crowd. I saw A veritable history of the band on the backs of the crowd. Tshirts from every tour, motorcycle clubs showing up adorned with stones garb. But, what made the night was the legend that is and will always be mick Jagger. Adam Levine croons about "moving like Jagger"? Mick is mind blowing live. He was everywhere. If I'm feeding myself at 70, it'll be welcomed. Mick held 55,000+ in the palm of his hand. By the time the final song of the night, you can't always get what you ask for, was being sung with the accompanying local choir, church was in session and I was a disciple. So yeah, I discovered some band called "The Rolling Stones" in 2015. I think they have a bright future.
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