12345

You know it is funny. With all the music that has been created I have only been exposed to very little and most of it in recent years after getting over some religious mind sets. Music is something
I love more than most things yet I have only experienced very little in comparison to a lot of people. Out of all the little experiences I have had I think that Switchfoot has impacted me the most. Most times when I listen to music I really only hear the music and not the lyrics but, with Swithchfoot their lyrics have taken me through some tough parts of my life. Not to mention I still think that have a very unique and distinct sound compared to most.

Howard Jones - New Song

Howard Jones (or "HoJo" as those of us called him back in the 80's) was a hero and inspiration to me as an 80's teen. The 80's brought synth music to the masses and made playing a keyboard a cool thing. Howard Jones defined that coolness to me with his funky hair, baggy pants and Jupiter keyboard. It was this song on a 12" single that made me take notice of this wild-haired synth-guy from England. He's still a hero to me!

Vangelis - Chariots of Fire (Theme)

This song changed my life, literally. I loved the synth instrumental style of music by the early 80's. This song just blew me away! I was a piano player first and foremost, then a synth player. This song fused the two together so beautifully, that I simply had to have more of this stuff. Vangelis is a musical pioneer.

I played this song at my 7th grade music recital which was to feature my school's band and choir (of which I was not a member). My 7th grade English teacher, Mrs. Nola Castle, encouraged me to play at it and introduced me to the band director. I auditioned a song and it was agreed that I should play for the recital. I played Vangelis' Chariots of Fire and Mike Post's Hill Street Blues theme. I was a huge hit after that!

Also that evening, my friend, a child piano prodigy since 5, also played a piece at the recital. She has more talent in the first digit of her pinky than I do in my whole body. Katherine, you and I both know you kick my butt on piano! Period.

Psychadelic Furs - The Ghost In You

There are a handful of songs from the Psychadelic Furs which have stayed with me for 25+ years; this is perhaps my favorite of them all. The Furs were popular in the dance / party scene with other hits of theirs such as "Heartbeat" and "Heaven", and later with the movie, "Pretty In Pink" starring Molly Ringwald (who lived near me and went to school with friends of mine, though I never knew her).

What I love about The Ghost In You is the slower pace and the featured synth lead sound. That is a classic synth patch!

Paul Hardcastle - Rainforest

From an earlier post I mentioned Paul Hardcastle's "Rainforest". Gotta link to it here! I listened to this song over and over as I drove through the Hawaiin rainforests (my homeland!) as a 14 year old. This is a beautiful electronica instrumental.

Kraftwerk - Tour De France

Since I mentioned Kraftwerk earlier, I better give them their props here. This song was my introduction to Kraftwerk, though they had been making music for a few years before I had ever heard of them. This song was so revolutionary in the sounds used as well as the sampling of the breathing. Kraftwerk made people realize you could make some really interesting percussive sounds with the analog synth. This song was both mesmerizing and beautiful, like Cybotron's
"Clear" was mesmerizing and haunting. After hearing this song I realized how much I enjoyed synth instrumentals and later would grow to love synth instrumentals such as those from Vangelis or even Paul Hardcastle's "Rainforest".

Cybotron - Clear

This may be the one song that "sealed" the deal for me on techno or electronica music. I remember being about 12 or 13 when "Clear" came on the scene. I hung out with my minority friends (in a mostly white neighborhood - all of us "non" white kids knew each other regardless of our race: black, hispanic, asian - we were all friends). This was 1982 and breakdancing was just beginning to be popular. This song along with just a handful of others really struck a magical chord in my mind. I knew I wanted to learn how to create synth sounds with my keyboard before this song, but "Clear" opened my mind to an entirely new type of music: electronica.

Before "Clear" I thought of a synth as one of many instruments for song creation/recording. After, "Clear" I realized that you could make an entire song on nothing but synths! Way cool! Then I discovered Kraftwerk and several other "all synth" bands. Yeah!