I LOVE music, I mean I REALLY love it. I'm completly disgusted with politicians, but I don't mind talking politics...sometimes. I've had a fascination with physics for a very long time, so I like to think, and discuss the strange "goings on" in the universe. I also have some (apparently) strange ideas about the afterlife. Strange enough, it scares people sometimes...but I won't go into that now... When I was 9 or 10, I fell in LOVE with Indian music, and became a HUGE fan of Ravi Shankar. Dig this...
Two of my biggest heroes, His Holiness, the Dalai Lama for his SUPERIOR spiritual being. And John Lydon (aka, Johnny Rotten) He cuts the shit! and speaks his mind... Now, check out my little brother (guitar) The Grinding Wheels, at Room 710, Austin...
My musical intrests are varied, but ROCK is what fuels me. My parents listened to rock, blues, and jazz my whole life, and I heard it ALL. But sometime in 1977 I heard my first Ramones LP, and I became an INSTANT Punk Rock fan. I saw MANY concerts in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area during my teenage years. Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush was my first (I saw him again in 79) That show, and the Sex Pistols at the Longhorn Ballroom (78) remain the most cherrished of all. I saw Rush (6 times 76-82) Black Sabbath (with, and without Ozzy. I also saw Ozzy's first two solo tours. BOTH shows with Randy Rhodes. The second time was just 3 months before his death. Randy WAS awesome... I've seen Santana, and Dizzy Gellespie in Hawaii, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Motorhead, Scorpions, Little Richard, Chuck Berry and many more. But, the MOST unique experience EVER was...the Grateful Dead. It's unlikely there will EVER be anything like a Grateful Dead concert...period. But for NOW, I'm concentrating on my nephew Ian...MY BOY!! He's becoming on of the BEST bass players, and I couldn't be more proud of him. He's a chip of the block. His dad's band "The Grinding Wheels" are ROCKING Austin with pure Texas KILLBILLY...our family Rocks!... My nephew, Ian (black bass) and his band, Enamour..and..I was AT THIS SHOW, Jan 10th 1978!!!...
I love a well made, SMART movie...stupid is ok too, sometimes. Here's just a SHORT list of my favs. Bubba Hotep, The Big Lebowski, Raising Arizona, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The 5th Element, Naked Lunch, Clockwork Orange, Fisher King, Up In Smoke and Next Movie. ANY, Monty Python, Cohen Brothers...and well, you get the idea.
The DAILY SHOW with Jon Stewart, and The Colbert Report. Southpark, and the Adult Swim lineup on Cartoon Network. Discovery, PBS, History Ch. And now, the ONLY network shows, I think, are worth a CRAP...My Name Is Earl, and The Office...DAMN cool shows!
When I was 9 years old, I read "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" by Richard Bach. I saw myself in that story, and it has stayed with me my entire life. It SHAPED my entire life. I also love the humor of Tom Robbins. His book "Skinny Leg's And All" is one of the coolest reads of all time!! Lastly, "The Old Man and the Sea" by Hemingway (of course) was another book I read as a child, that meant a great deal to me. There are MANY others, and not enough of your time.
Anyone who risks their life to save another... ..and sometimes, just a good friend. Gone, but not forgotten, my good friend, Pat Collins. An AMAZING guitar talent, and very kind soul. It's been almost 5 years now, when he came by to visit (as he often did), and show me a guitar lick, or two. We smoked out, played guitar and just had good time. Then he split for home(right down the road from me). The next morning, his heart killed him. Just like that, he was gone...but not forgotten...Pat "The Cat" Collins.