The Origin of Musical Influences

I’ve been doing my best to find a variety of new music lately but it seems that I have failed. Most of the music I listen to comes from recommendations by those who I trust. People who know me well will usually know what I will like. Sometimes I am surprised at some of the music given to me. It may even take some time to grow on me but in the end they usually win. Here are some of my favorite artists or groups and the people who influenced me into listening. This is not my whole list, but it's go give you an idea at the variety.

The Beach Boys-Dad: For my Dad, music was supposed to be fun. We would dance around the living room listening to Beach Boys records when we were in diapers. They continue to have an influence in my life because of my love for the ocean. Here is "I Get Around"


The Beatles-Mom: My Mom and Dad are from two generations. While my Dad would say that the British invasion ruined a lot of music and culture, my Mom would say that it gave new meaning to music. Here is "Help"


The Pharcyde-Tyler: This will always remind me of being a freshman in high school. I wanted to be like my brother Tyler and we would work out to the Pharcyde in the weight room at Ponderosa high school. No body can flow or has the background texture that the Pharcyde does. Here is the music video for "Drop"


Peter Paul and Marry-Tyler: Tyler may not know it, but when I bought his last computer from him I fell upon Peter Paul and Marry by accident. I heard the song "If I had a Hammer" and fell in love with the true meaning. Here is "If I had a Hammer"


Cat Stevens(Yusuf Islam)-Russell (Through Aaron) Russell first introduced me to Cat Stevens. At the time I was listening to all Rap and Hip Hop. This would be the first real variety in my music. I remember listening to his friend's son would sing along to Moon Shadow at the age of two. That was what got me hooked. Here is "Don't be Shy"


Rufus Wainwright-Russell: I remember Russell waiting for MTV to play "April Fools" so he could show me the music video. This man's flamboyant style made me appreciate the people who are not afraid to be themselves. Here is "Poses"


Michael Jackson-Everyone: I don't really know who influenced me into listening to Michael Jackson. I remember listening to the Thriller album on record over and over again. I guess it was a little bit of everyone. Nobody performs like Michael.Here is his MTV performance in 1995. Legendary!



Mika-Bobby: I remember Bobby posting Mika's "Grace Kelley" video on Myspace years back. It was some of the funnest music I had heard. It made me want to dance like crazy around the room. Here is "Love Today"


The Killers-Rob:He convinced me to go to a concert at the Lo-Fi Cafe when we were living in Salt Lake. I had no idea who they were and didn't know if it would be worth being crammed in the basement of a building with less than 100 people. Needless to say, they quickly became one of my favorite bands of all time. 10 bucks at the door.


Queen-Mandi: Who doesn't know of Queen. I didn't really listen to them much until I met Mandi. She had most of their greatest hits and watching her walk on those stilts during "Break Free" at her ballroom concert, I was hooked :) If I could have anyone's singing voice it would be Freddie Mercury's. The man was an incredible performer.


The Darkness-Mandi: Before I met Mandi I had heard only one of their songs. I loved it, I just didn't really look into them much. While we were dating she was listening to "One Way Ticket to Hell". To my surprise it was the Darkness. Here is "I Believe in a Thing Called Love"


The Who-Colin(Through His Dad): Colin has Who memorabilia all over his apartment. He has seen them perform a few times in concert. I was curious about his passion for the Who so I decided to look up a few of their songs. They were way ahead of their time. Here is "My Generation"


Paul Simon-James (Through His Dad): Going to Jame's house in the morning to study for a test was even better when his Dad would come in the room and blast "Kodachrome" with the lyrics "When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school". Here is "Diamonds on the Souls of her shoes"


Judy Garland-Anna (Through the Judy Room) When I was 18 I moved to Utah for a summer. I didn't really have friends to hang out with so I spent my time watching a lot of movies that I rented from the library. I became obsessed with musicals, especially ones with Judy Garland. I met a friend online who shared the same interest as I did and she introduced me to the world of Judy music. Here is a radio broadcast of Judy Garland singing "Over the Rainbow" to the troops during WWII.