My Love Affair with Music

I'll start this post off by reiterating that I am not a musician.  I am an author.  The only musical experience I have is the six years I spent playing the trombone in Jr. High School and High School.

However, that doesn't change the fact that music is more important to me than almost anything.  It's the source of inspiration behind every word that I put on paper.  My love affair with music is the reason that I decided to become an author.

Like writing, music is my lifeline.  I'd die without it.

One of my favorite movies is Brown Sugar.  Whenever I hear the opening line "When did you fall in love with hip-hop?" I grin.

My love affair with music began at a very young age.  I was born in 1979...I'm definitely a proud card carrying member of the MTV generation.  I remember when the M stood for music. 

In my house, music was always playing, especially on Saturday mornings.  My mother filled our little apartment with the sounds of Levert, Frankie Beverly & Maze, Zapp & Roger, Marvin, Freddie...all the great R & B singers.

As I got older, not only did my mother's taste in music influence me, but I began to develop my own like and dislikes.  I went through phases...R&B, hip-hop, pop, rock, blues, jazz.  At 15, I discovered Jimi Hendrix and life as I knew it changed forever.

It was if someone had turned down the volume of everything around me.  Prince was the first guitarist that I loved.  He made me fall in love with the melodic and beautiful sounds of the electric guitar.  I was so entranced by the sounds that came from that instrument, I had to hear more.  Who else did that?  I needed to know.  That is how I discovered Jimi.  Once his music became a staple in my life, it opened the door to a whole new world of music for me.

Untitled* is the product of my love affair with music.  I thought it would be an incredible experience to write a book about a musician and the struggles he would encounter as he made the music that I love.  I was right.  It definitely was an incredible experience.  I've learned so much about the "behind the scenes" effort it takes to become a successful musician. 

Which of course, makes me appreciate it even more.  Writing this book only deepened my already immense love for music.  In honor of the artist was my main inspiration behind this story, here are my 2 favorite songs.  Enjoy!

JC