When I was younger

MUCH

Younger,

I would make fun of people who didn't listen to the same music I did.

I had to

They were different

And different was scary

And evil.

Back then, I was a head-banger

Before the term was even coined.

Heavy metal was my life.

Anybody who wasn't into Metal

Was an outsider

Untrustable

Weak.

Time passed.

I started hearing my heros

(or is it "heroes"?

Who cares? Get a life...)

On COMMERCIALS!

Even the Gods of my youth

(Steven T and Company)

Have whored themselves out to corporate America

(of course, after the fiasco with Run DMC, they had pretty much crossed any line I could draw for them - but that's another blog entry).

So as the grey (gray?) hair starts taking firm root

And more time passes

And my eyes open

I finally realize

That the Metal attitude

All my "heros" were selling in the 70s

Was just that:

Something To Sell.

And when their target market grew up

And no longer wanted to purchase the Metal attitude

They either had to go get REAL jobs

Or

They had to go prostitute somewhere else.

Like Cadillac

Like Dodge

Like The Gap

Etc...

Whores.

So here's my dilemma today:

Def Leppard is coming in concert.

Do I stand by my values

And boycott a group of 40 year-olds whose message USED to be

Anti-establishment?

(ok, ok, I'll grant that they weren't necessarily really BAD

Not like Bon Scott and the boys

Or Ozzy and his crew

But it was so COOL to have a one-armed drummer!)

Or should I plunk down the ol' credit card

And pony up almost $100 to see the old-timers play

Rock of Ages

One

More

Time?

Truth be told

I'm not going to go

For the music...

I just want to see Rick Allen

Play drums

As well as

Or even better than

Most other drummers.

And I want to see him do it with just one arm.
_____________

Did you see that?

Did you see what I just did?

That was my impression

Of a Republican.

When faced with a moral dilemma

I came up with a totally senseless

Excuse

To circumvent

My personal values.

All for the sake of my personal pleasure.
____________________

Follow-on to the saga of growing up music-wise:

I have now become

The person I used to make fun of.

I now listen to not just

Metal

But almost anything (Run DMC DEFINITELY excluded)

And it drives my kids nuts.

As an example:

Barnes & Noble just called today

To tell me a CD I ordered arrived.

I'll be picking it up tomorrow morning.

Lulu.

"From Crayons to Perfume"

If you can guess which song

I actually bought the CD for

Then you'll see just how far I've come

From being the narrow-minded

Tunnel-visioned

Head banger

That I used to be.

...now where's that Air Supply CD...?









You sound reasonable…must be time to up my medication.