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Childhood Influences.

Rev. Juda Sleaze
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Rev. Juda Sleaze Newbie

Rev. Juda Sleaze

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So, have you ever thought about music you grew up with, and how it's influenced the music you make?

 

I didn't realize until a few years ago what a huge impression some things left on me; especially the Star Wars soundtrack, more specifically Holst's The Planets - I used to think I liked that record because it reminded me of Star Wars in places, took me a while to realize good ol' John had just ripped it off! :P

 

But, my oddest but biggest influence has to be the music from Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings cartoon. The modulation, the harmonies... very similar stuff comes out in my music. Here's the whole film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJZPJrbGgEc&feature=related

 

I guess other stuff, like the Ghostbusters' soundtrack, Lancashire folk, Neil Diamond et al had an effect, but The Planets and the Lord of the Rings soundtrack by Leonard Rosenman: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006260/ (who weirdly enough I just found out did the music for The Jazz Singer with Neil Diamond...) Definitely had the biggest impact on me from a musical point of view.

 

So, what were the big musical influences on you as a child?

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fader8 Newbie

fader8

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I didn't realize until a few years ago what a huge impression some things left on me; especially the Star Wars soundtrack, more specifically Holst's The Planets - I used to think I liked that record because it reminded me of Star Wars in places, took me a while to realize good ol' John had just ripped it off! :P

LOL! I'm old enough that when I went to see the first Star Wars movie when it was released, I thought, gee, this sounds a lot like Holst!

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Andyreww Newbie

Andyreww

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I didn't realize until a few years ago what a huge impression some things left on me; especially the Star Wars soundtrack

 

Me too - Star Wars (in general) had a long lasting effect .

 

Also, (apologies for the cheesy bit) the Hooked on Classics series Louis Clark did with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra circa 1981 has had an influence on me. IMHO putting a beat/bass line behind classic compositions was ingenious and probably resulted in a lot of people in the UK, including me, listening to classical music for the first time. Applying his work with ELO to the Royal Phil was a good move.

 

Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saëns, 1874 - another classical influence (I still listen to this today).

 

On the EDM side; Derrick May, Todd Terry, Leftfield, The Orb, Orbital, The Prodigy etc.

 

Andy

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denitronik Rookie

denitronik

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The list is too long to display.

I was born in 1951 and during the 50s and the 60s my father worked for Capitol Records and later for Columbia Records.

Needless to say that we had all the records at home (well almost all ...). I listened to all kinds of musics and many artists from many countries.

We even had a stereo sound system before it was commercialized consisting of two mono amplifiers and a stereo cartridge that my father had rigged-up to our turntable(with an extra cable wrapped around the arm).

 

Reflecting back on this I realized at some point that my music is nothing but influences.

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katenavile Newbie

katenavile

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In my case, most of my influences come from the 80’s. That’s why I like to create music that sounds like some bands like Bon Jovi, Cinderella, and Poison. I grew up listening to bands like those and I guess that’s why I like hard rock. In the 80’s also appeared other bands that played extreme music like Metallica and Anthrax. I like those bands too and they are another inspiration for me.
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wazapamani Newbie

wazapamani

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Funny thing about influences; I listened to Steely Dan a lot in the 80's when my parents and I drove in the car for hours to my grandparents. My folks used to compile tapes with all kinds of stuff, but I especially remember the Steely tapes, with records like Katy Lied, The Royal Scam etc, but for some reason they always recorded one side. When I listen to those records now, I get warm feelings when I hear that music. But I REALLY don't like those other sides. It's cheesy music, the songs are no good, stupid melody, bad singing anyway... So maybe that really is the case, maybe those other sides really aren't that good, or (more likely) the music you hear in your youth takes a special place, be it positive or negative, but probably never 'mwoah I don't have an opinion'.

 

Also listened a lot to

War of the worlds (jeff wayne)

Pink floyd

Simon, garfunkel

Van Morrison,

Miles Davis

Santana

Bob D, The Band, Neil Young, CSN,

Alan parson's

Dr John, JJ Cale, E.Clapton,

Joe Jackson, Genesis, Talk Talk.

 

A mixture of pathetic melo-dramatic sympho, funky grooves with held-back energy, and lyric songwriting.

 

But let's not forget all the tunes you hear on the tele when you were young. In my case that's all Dutch stuff with witch I will bore no-one.

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n6smith Newbie

n6smith

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For me it would be mainly Walter (Wendy) Carlos... and the Clockwork Orange OST that got me into Synths initially....

 

Later on I met Roger Powell of Utopia & Todd Rundgren 'fame'.... and he introduced me to the possibility of Computers and Sequencers via the program he developed, called Texture for the Apple II which was, I believe, the first computer based sequencer... Later, of course, he went on to work for Apple as the lead programmer in the Audio Division though i have to say, I lost touch with him prior to this phase of his life.. but 'back in the day' I was lucky enough to know him.....

 

Other older influences would include Kate Bush and her use of the Fairlight... David Gilmour's guitar playing and solo techniques, Rick Wakeman & 'Fingers' in regards to the Minimoog and it's live use.. and probably.. later on, JMJ to a degree too.. David Sancious... and certainly Peter Gabriel for... well.. being Peter Gabriel and all that he creates!

 

More modern Influences would include U2, Coldplay, Bear McCreary and BT amongst many others....

 

Those guys who shined and rocked Commodore 64 demo scene, those intros on cracked games you loaded

 

Oddly enough.. I am listed in both the C64 and Amiga Music Preservation Websites though I actually worked on the Music 500 System for the BBC computer, testing and writing demos for it... and I only did one 'demo' track for 'Fairlight' for both the 64 and Amiga that I can recall...

 

Memory is a funny thing though.. so who knows.. Maybe back at 'The Party" in 97... I wrote more and cannot remember!

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DaveyBee Newbie

DaveyBee

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i wish i could say that my influences are as cool as bowie, as eclectic as zappa and as thoughtful as john cale. I cant. although i love these guys and many more besides (Suzanne vega's 99.9F, REM's Document, The Smiths Strangeways) and they were all music i listened to in my teens, my real musical influences ARE the things i listened to as a kid. And more's the pity. From AC/DC to Yes, from Genesis to Bryan Adams (First four albums and certainly nothing after Reckless) i cant escape that music and it permeates all i write. My brothers were big fans of all of the above and thats what i grew up with. Then i 'rebelled' against their prog and rock orientation and fell for Simon and Garfunkel and Phil Collins. Oh the shame. Not that there's all that much wrong with certain songs created by the above mentioned groups, it just ain't cool. And now im writing songs that sound like they were written in the 70's and 80's. I want to be cutting edge, damnit!!
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Rev. Juda Sleaze Newbie

Rev. Juda Sleaze

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I should've just called this thread: "Read This If You Want To Feel Old"! :lol:

 

I remembered another one yesterday when listening to Absolute 80s Radio yesterday; getting a 7" of "Can't Keep This Pressure On" by Spandau Ballet (I bought it because I was enthralled by the notion people would call being shot a dance as a child, I wasn't a New Romantic). I played it at 33rpm and had my mind blown, I'd never heard music like it. Then I noticed it was playing at the wrong speed, once played at the correct speed I thought it was actually pretty boring and never bothered playing it again.

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wazapamani Newbie

wazapamani

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I should've just called this thread: "Read This If You Want To Feel Old"! :lol:

 

I remembered another one yesterday when listening to Absolute 80s Radio yesterday; getting a 7" of "Can't Keep This Pressure On" by Spandau Ballet (I bought it because I was enthralled by the notion people would call being shot a dance as a child, I wasn't a New Romantic). I played it at 33rpm and had my mind blown, I'd never heard music like it. Then I noticed it was playing at the wrong speed, once played at the correct speed I thought it was actually pretty boring and never bothered playing it again.

 

 

 

Same for "Voulez Vous" by ABBA. When you play that on an old recordplayer with 18rpm instead of 33, you hear large Norman-choirs crying out in despair with raised fists in the air: "Vouououleeeezzzz Vououououououous....... Aaahhhhha!"

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Rev. Juda Sleaze Newbie

Rev. Juda Sleaze

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I should've just called this thread: "Read This If You Want To Feel Old"! :lol:

 

I thought the same thing when I saw Radiohead listed as a childhood influence!

 

J.

 

I Know! How can they be an adult already? Radiohead's still new, right?!? :lol:

 

Still, fader8 gets the "feelin' old" crown so far, with his "this sounds like Holst" Star Wars comment!

 

Same for "Voulez Vous" by ABBA. When you play that on an old recordplayer with 18rpm instead of 33, you hear large Norman-choirs crying out in despair with raised fists in the air: "Vouououleeeezzzz Vououououououous....... Aaahhhhha!"

 

Sweet, I actually wanna hear that now!

 

If only there was a computer programme that stretched sounds out so they played really slow... I don't suppose you know of one do you Jordi? :wink: :lol:

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Jordi Torres Grand Master

Jordi Torres

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I Know! How can they be an adult already? Radiohead's still new, right?!?

 

Exactly! I still remember the first time I heard Paranoid Android...I was stuck in traffic at noon in Santo Domingo (under a merciless caribbean sun)...(I knew their previous stuff but of course OK Computer was :shock: )

http://www.diariolibre.com/showimage.php?id=302069

 

If only there was a computer programme that stretched sounds out so they played really slow... I don't suppose you know of one do you Jordi?

 

Me? How would I know?! :lol:

 

J.

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el-bo Explorer

el-bo

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THIS played back-to-back as a kid is the reason why 4/4 doesn't feel natural to me, and why my pieces rarely come in under 20 minutes :D

 

currently trying to record my own cover

 

[YouTube]

&feature=related" rel="external nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
&feature=related[/YouTube]

 

**given up trying to embed this...anyone ??

 

other influences - everything

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ObtuseMoose Newbie

ObtuseMoose

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Good thing to hear as a child!

 

I was probably about 13 or 14 years old when I saw the live version of Tubular Bells on TV. It had a profound effect on me. I managed to capture most of it on an old Webcor reel-to-reel tape recorder and played it to death. When I found it on YouTube a few years ago I almost cried watching it again. I still prefer this version to the original studio version.

 

 

--

Moose

Edited by ObtuseMoose
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el-bo Explorer

el-bo

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Good thing to hear as a child!

 

I was probably about 13 or 14 years old when I saw the live version of Tubular Bells on TV. It had a profound effect on me. I managed to capture most of it on an old Webcor reel-to-reel tape recorder and played it to death. When I found it on YouTube a few years ago I almost cried watching it again. I still prefer this version to the original studio version.

 

 

 

--

Moose

 

 

i also love this version, and was overjoyed when i found it a few years back...but there is a more complete upload

 

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