Rock ‘n Roll Fridays: The Art Rock Bands

Welcome to Rock ‘n Roll Fridays!

We are like other memes in that we will ask you thirteen questions each and every Friday.  But our little "twist" is that each week we will pick a singer, band, era or category and pick thirteen of their songs.  Each of our questions will be based on the lyrics.  Got it?  Great!  Let's begin this week's meme!

Today we picked The Art Rock Bands.  What is Art Rock? Also known as experimental rock, progressive rock, avant-garde and psychedelic rock, is a piece of music that appeals more intellectually or musically and is not formulated along pop lines for mass consumption.



1. YES … AND YOU AND I : “Coins and crosses never know their fruitless worth..”

What inanimate object do you cherish?

The closest that comes to mind is my camera, but I don’t ‘cherish’ material goods as a rule.



2. MOODY BLUES … MELANCHOLY MAN : “Another man is what you'll see, Who looks like you and looks like me, And yet somehow he will not feel the same, His life caught up in misery, he doesn't think like you and me…”

When have you felt like an outcast?

8th and 9th grades were pretty hard for me.  We’d moved to a new city and I started a new school in 8th grade with all new kids.  Then went to another new school in 9th grade.  But I had a regular group of friends by 10th grade (fellow outcasts – LOL!), so it wasn’t so bad after that.



3. EMERSON LAKE & PALMER … THE ENDLESS ENIGMA : “I've seen paupers as kings, Puppets on strings, Dance for the children who star. You must have seen them everywhere”

How did you entertain a young child recently?

I don’t know how entertaining it was for them, but I helped my two nephews with their homework.  (I'm usually much more fun!)



4. KING CRIMSON … THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING : “The purple piper plays his tune, The choir softly sing; Three lullabies in an ancient tongue, For the court of the crimson king…”

Who is your favorite instrumental group or player?

I have a hard time picking a ‘favorite’ group or player because I like so many.  The answer changes depending on my mood.  (I’ll say Rush, just to pick one)



5. PINK FLOYD … US AND THEM : “I've got things on my mind, for want of the price of tea and a slice, the old man died…"

Do you give money to beggars?

Not if they’re just out there begging, but if they’re singing or playing an instrument I’ll almost always give ‘em a dollar.

(You know, because at least they’re trying!)



6. DAVID BOWIE … SPACE ODDITY : “Ground control to Major Tom, Your circuits dead, there's something wrong, Can you hear me, Major Tom?”

Who were you speaking with the last time you had a dropped the call?

One of the field agents at work.  They’re always on the road, calling on their cell phones, and their calls drop out constantly.  Pretty annoying really.



7. ROXY MUSIC … OH YEAH : “Day and night drifting into love, Driving you home from a movie show, So in tune to the sounds in my car…”

Do you have a special romantic song you love to listen to in the car?

My wedding song: “Have I Told You Lately I Love You” (by Rod Stewart).



8. VELVET UNDERGROUND … FEMME FATALE : “See the way she walks, Hear the way she talks, You're put down in her book, You're number 37, have a look…”

Have you dated a lot of people?  (More than 10)

Nope. (Maybe 3?)
I was shy and unconfident when I was younger, so I didn’t date much.



9. THE NICE … COUNTRY PIE : “Listen to the fiddler play, When he's playin' 'til the break of day, Oh me, oh my, Love that country pie.”

What is your favorite kind of pie?

(Side-stepping my usual smart-ass answer here)
APPLE!  Hands down!
I make my own and everybody says they're really good!
(And I agree!)




(Yes, this is one of my apple pies, made completely from scratch)



















10. FRANK ZAPPA … DON’T YOU EAT THAT YELLOW SNOW : “And the northern lights commenced to glow, And she said, with a tear in her eye, Watch out where the huskies go, and don't you eat that yellow snow…"

Have you ever eaten snow?

Of course!  (Who hasn’t?)  But never the yellow kind!



11. GENESIS …THROWING IT ALL AWAY : “When there's nothing that I can say - we're throwing it all away…”

What was the last thing you threw away?

(What an odd question!)
Two Kraft Singles cheese wrappers, just this morning.
(I recycle most of my garbage)



12. KATE BUSH …THE DREAMING : “Many an aborigine’s mistaken for a tree, see the light ram through the gaps in the land. You near him on the motorway and the tree began to breathe…”

Have you ever accidentally killed or injured an animal with your car?

More than once, but here's details of one memorable incident...

While driving my truck in northern Michigan, I saw a grouse on the side of the road ahead.  Just as I passed by, it decided to fly back across the road. It hit my grill and flew up over the cab.

(Odd coincidence: I was up north grouse hunting at the time)

I went back to check.  Yep, it was dead.  Then I saw the big crack in my grill!  I decided I might as well get something out of the deal, so I picked up the grouse and put it in my truck bed and drove back to the cabin.

First time I ever ate grouse and didn’t worry about biting into lead shot!



13. JETHRO TULL … LOCOMOTIVE BREATH : “In the shuffling madness Of the locomotive breath, Runs the all-time loser, Headlong to his death…”

Have you ever been in a dangerous situation where you could have been hurt or killed?

Another time, another truck, my friend was driving on a two lane road.  A car ahead was stopped to turn left, waiting for the cars coming from the other direction.  He stepped on the brakes and NOTHING HAPPENED! The pedal went to the floor!  We were going to hit that car!

Suddenly he swerved right off the road, dodged past a telephone pole, then steered back onto the road again.  He let up on the gas to slow down and re-tried his brakes, which for some mysterious reason now worked again.

That was scary stuff!  A real life-flashing-before-your-eyes kind of moment.



You too can join in the fun here: Rock ‘n Roll Fridays!

New memes each week!  Coming soon: Country Bands