A Blog of Influence.

"Who are your musical influences?"

Why does everyone ask that question? I was looking through the music mags that Smiley left on her visit, and it seemed like everybody asked that. Oh sure they glossed it up behind some intro paragraph about another "rain soaked" venue date or some studio banter gone bad between band mates, but somewhere in the interview the writer always asks the obligatory question.

"Who are your musical influences."

Most bands have had a pocket card with pat answers to this question since the label A&R rep first taught them to walk the walk.

"Jose and the Pussycats?"

"No…it's ok to be funny, but you want to look cool doing it. The Archie's are fine…"

Actually no they're not, but I'm not an A&R guy. I'm just a blogger; A&Rs gobble guys like me for lunch. It's how they get good press. No, usually the answer to the influence question is pretty fake. It's 1 "big" name like the Beatles, Stones, etc. followed my smaller label bands in grooming. The big band is usually an artist from the generation that gave this group their sound. Now, with all the alt bands going disco happy I'm waiting for the KC and the Sunshine band nod.

Speaking of which, I was watching Tombstone this weekend. I kinda wanted to see a young KC as Doc. The old KC would have just been sad and unbelievable, but a young KC?

"I'm your bogeyman Johnny Ringo…"

And see, that's what's on the rest of the band's list of influences. Weird indi bands like Johnny Ringo and the Boogeymen; it shows how "trendy" they are. I think the band names are usually made up. Nobody cares. Oh the post game groupie may say she loves Johnny Ringo too even though she's never heard of him, but that has nothing to do with why she gets in the back door.

That did get me thinking about musical influences. I mean I don't play a traditional instrument; I play the iTunes, and let me tell ya, I rock. My iTunes is full of artists that I play that shape my world. But like I said, they're not the influence, they're the instrument.

Who are my influences?

Gia in 7th grade. I learned to play Journey "Departure" because of her. That was her favorite band. Oh I never liked her enough to make them my favorite, but I did learn a few licks from the experience.

Marlee, in college, she showed me that you could like Loreena McKennitt, and still be cool, while more recent influences include Jane, who let me see the "Chove en Santiago"; something I'd never considered before.

My biggest influence? The obligatory artist that everybody knows? That's MyEx, of course. Whether I liked all her music, my likes and dislikes were shaped by her presence. I remember a trip we made in the car from Wisconsin. We'd been driving all day, and planned on driving through the night. She'd just taken the wheel, and she was kinda grumpy about the whole experience.

"What are we listening too." If language were a match, the first flick fell on the word "What" while the agitation friction spark caught fire on the dragging "listening."

"The Cure, why?" I asked, trying o blow out the flame with innocence.

"Oh." was all she said. That's all she needed to say. I changed the CD. From there out, I rarely listened to the Cure when she was around. Likewise, I'm sure her Motley Crüe repertoire dwindled in my presence. In fact I'm sure the first night in her new house, the walls dripped with Nikki Sixx goo. Well, not literally, but you get my point.

See when you promise "for better or worse," the priest is actually talking about your music collection.

"For better or worse, for Nirvana or Hell Yeah, in Big & Rich and Poor Seamus…Till death metal you do part…"

That's right, because your significant other will significantly influence your musical taste. I was talking to one friend who told me that her ex kept trying to make her like playing Cheap Trick. It never happened. You know why? Because you can't force influences. Oh, you can create bad influences, but making somebody like something is like walking a five year old through a candy store to get to the spinach factory: you're gonna lose them somewhere before you get what you want.

So what happens? We learn to like and dislike things based on their influence. I got good at knowing MyEx's taste. If there were a band that I liked, but knew would irritate her, I'd switch the station. It was just easier than facing the music. She influenced me. She shared things that I might not have liked otherwise. That's part of what marriage is about.

Now it's done, and over the past year I've played bands that I know she wouldn't like with people she wouldn't approve of. That's fine. I'm not doing it for her, or to spite her. I'm doing it because my influences have changed. I'm doing it because it happens to us all. Even Johnny Ringo and the Boogeymen, by their sophomore CD, have to admit, "You know what? I really like Taylor Swift."

That's fine, because we all do. Ok, no, we all don't, but maybe you do. I don't know who your influences are. Whoever they are, make sure they're positive. Remember, even if you like Hanna Montana, that's the soundtrack of your life. That's what rocks your world. That's what bounces you out of bed and wiggles you in the shower to sing down another day. Nobody can shape that unless you let them.

"Who are your influences?"