The Rock and Roll Myth

I couldn't figure out what was so appealing to me about Rock and Roll for the longest time. It wasn't my childhood. I was raised on country music. It wasn't the music itself. Some of it, I could do without.

So I dug and dug into my soul and I have finally figured it out: it's the myth, the legend that accompanies each band that I worship that draws me in.

When I listen to Led Zeppelin, I am convinced Robert Plant is singing to me, telling me that he wants to be my "backdoor man."

When I hear the Stones, I buy into their excessive boozy image. I buy into the heroin mythology of Keith and the mystery that surrounds Brian Jones death.

When Freddie Mercury hits those insanely high notes, he is sharing in my search to find "Someone to Love."

When Iggy Pop carouses around the stage freaking out on drugs, and rubs peanut butter on his chest, he embodies my sense of adventure.

Rock and Roll says everything I want to say. It says "I fucking hate you", "I love you", "I want to sleep with you", and "I want nothing to do with you". It says everything that is hidden deep below the surface.

So when I put on a Who track, like "Behind Blue Eyes" I really do mean, what is going down behind my blue eyes. I connect with it more than any other type of music no matter how carnal it is.

It's much like what Penny Lane says in Almost Famous (see previous post) when you get lonely, you go to a record store and visit your friends. I really do feel like Mick Jagger is a friend of mine. That I understand the inner workings of Gram Parsons, that Jimmy Page and I connect on a spiritual level.

Rock and Roll myth is that the Rock Stars get you. They understand you. They are your friends. So when I listen to the Doors, I say to myself: "He may not love me but Jim Morrison sure as hell does..."