The name of our company is Slow Turnin' Vinyl. Simply enough, named after my favorite song by my favorite artist. I have a special affinity for singer\songwriters. Lyle Lovett, Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen to name a few. There are many, many artist who can and have touched my soul, made me feel something akin to what they're feeling. So despite the fact that I know next to nothing about cars and the hardscrabble life of a Jersey kid from a struggling family I can feel Bruce's songs, imagine me in them. I'm grateful to artists who can perform that kind of transformative magic.
But I'm lucky to have been turned on to John Hiatt's huge catalog of music at a time when he was writing about husbands and wives, fathers, sons and daughters and the heartache and joy of doing your best to do right by the people who count on you at a time when that was my only mission in life. I feel like he wrote many of his songs for me. He's a great live performer and the countless times I've seen him have each been a re-energizing experience.
Now, despite my love for Slow Turning, Slow Turnin' Vinyl really started with the Beatles White album.
When I decided that I wanted to see what I had been missing during my extended vinyl hiatus I thought long and hard about what song I wanted to hear. Out of the fog came a brilliant option - While My Guitar Gently Weeps. I positioned the needle over the track and let the arm drop.
You'll hear a lot of people wax poetic about what vinyl brings you that digital doesn't and there's probably merit to much of what they say but, for me, it's like wine. I'm no connoisseur, I can't speak the lingo, but I know when I drink something that I like.
When the needle dropped I was totally engaged. I know what I heard was different than what I was used to hearing. Their were details that I remembered from long ago that had been submerged in the digital years. That was the moment that I myself was transformed from fan to evangelist.
So, listen to John Hiatt. Track down While My Guitar Gently Weeps. Dust off some of your favorites regardless of what format they're on. Go out and see a band. Find time for more music in your life and give it time to breathe.
Falling in love with music again is just as good as falling for it the first time around.
Comments will be approved before showing up.
