By Rock n Roll James

I’ve always had a thing for music.

Growing up in Mercedes, music was always a part of my childhood. I remember my parents having a coffin-like entertainment system in the living room. It was huge. It was like 6 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet high. The top had a coffin-like lid that you would lift open. Inside was a phonograph record player for 12 inch vinyl LP’s (Long Playing Record) and small records called 45’s. The small records were called 45’s because they were played at 45 rpms which meant 45 Rounds Per Minute.

I would have to speed up the rotation of the spinning record player in order to listen to the 45’s. Also, inside was a radio and an 8-Track Player. There was also a cubby hole where you could insert a small album collection. The albums always fascinated me as a child…the big square-like packaging with pictures, art, and information about the artists, sometimes song lyrics, and even posters. I would read every single liner note to try to find out as much as possible about the artist, their songs, and how they produced the sounds that I would hear.

I was in the 3rd grade, and I would sift through my parents’ album collection. The diversity of their musical taste was immediately evident. From Augustine Ramirez and Little Joe to Marty Robbins, The Carpenters, Elton John, and others. No Heavy Metal though. My introduction to that genre came later in my teen years.

At a young age, about 9 years old, I began a collection of 45 records. Those were smaller versions of an album that usually had 2 songs. A song on each side, and there were some that could even have up to 3 or 4 songs depending on the time length of the songs. My mom would buy them for me at Western Auto, Radio Shack, or at the record store at Sun Valley Mall in Harlingen, Texas.

My 45 record collection was a variety of English songs from all kinds of artists like Glibert O’Sullivan, Terry Jacks, Neil Sedaka, Pablo Cruise, and The Eagles. I even had the Billy Crash Craddock 45 of his only hit song “Rub It In” which I remember my mom dancing with me as a kid in the living room. My record collection was gold to me. I kept them in their sleeves and on a tray that separated them all individually. I would put a record on, lay on the floor with my head close to the speaker, and make sure the sound was low as to not disturb my parents. I would listen to Glenn Campbell’s “Gentle On My Mind” or 10CC’s “I’m Not In Love” and be blown away with the instrumentation, the lyrics, and sounds.

I would close my eyes and visualize a music video in my mind.

The 70’s was a great era for music. The substance in all the songs was unbelievable. My mom noticed how much I loved music that one Christmas she bought me an 8-track stereo player for me and my brother Harvey’s room. Wow! Our own personal little stereo in our room! I right away began a small collection of 8-track tapes. They were a smaller rectangle case with magnetic tape inside that had music recorded on it.

I was 10 years old and my little brother Harvey was 6, and I was about to introduce him to music in our room. Since then, he has been a music enthusiast and has become an accomplished multi-instrument musician in his own right. Growing up we didn’t have cell phones, internet, or social media. We had music, and music has been a part of mine and my brother’s lives since childhood.

I appreciate and thank my parents for that. Now my Uncle Jesse’s musical influence on me? Well, I will tell you all about him next week.

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