Music Is a Reason For Being

Why I'm writing on Substack

Thanks to those of you who have been so supportive of my new Substack presence. Yesterday I wrote my first story on my obsessive mania regarding crate diving. Ever since I bought a new turntable almost two years ago, acquiring new/old vinyl records has become as necessary to me as my morning coffee.

True, one obsession fuels another, but after a good medium roast from Red Rooster in Floyd, Virginia (I subscribe), it’s on to reading/writing/collecting music. My friends Kevin (On Repeat) and Chris (Zappagram) write so much about music, what’s coming, what’s been, that I am amazed at how they spend their other hours. I want to be like them, but not exactly.

But I’m amazed at myself, cause like them I do have a full time job and yet, I seem to spend waking/sleeping hours thinking/dreaming about where I’m going to place/stack all the LPs I keep buying. I keep moving things around in my study as if I’ll be able to fit it all in (kind of like George Costanza did with his wallet…until he couldn’t). I take tom Waits downstairs and bring kd laing up. I can’t begin to listen to all my new stuff as quickly as I want, though last night after I returned from yin-yoga, I spent a lot of time with the Mekons and Angel Olsen. Zen, apparently, is a matter of mindful listening.

But what I want to tell you most today is what you can expect from me over here (and yes, I will still be present at Medium, too, so if you haven’t found me there, I’m waiting for you at The Riff and Plethora of Pop especially).

The two regular columns that I’ll be writing over here (and here is the same place for me, just so you won’t think I actually move around as I fall in and out of love as Diana Ross once sang) are my coffee-fueled dives into my present and past musical loves.

First, as with yesterday’s column, is my Crate Diving in Modern America series. I live close to two record stores with huge used bins—one of these stores is the type to have LPs strewn over floors, hanging off walls, and sitting in…crates…enticingly in corners and even close to behind the counter. I used to feel shy; now I just keep looking and feel like the store owner, Joe, encourages me to do so even if I’m getting perilously close to tying his shoes for him.

This column will likely appear every weekend, depending on which day I decide to haunt the store. And yes, I do have a budget, and YES, if you decide to support my writing here, that support is EXACTLY where your money will go, because you know I have to buy that in relatively good shape Joe South or Crystal Gayle LP.

The Second Series I’ll be writing is another that started at Medium’s The Riff (and will still appear there, too): Midnight Music Confessions. Maybe they don’t all happen at midnight, but using the confessional mode, I want to write about the darker secrets I have regarding my musical choices/experiences. These may or may not involve actually seeing Hillary Duff perform live…

with my daughters…

who were six and ten then.

But they certainly will involve losing friends amidst the Disco madness of the early 80’s (forthcoming).

Midnight Music Confessions should appear midweek, or whenever I’m feeling low or congested, or even dazed and….

I appreciate your being here, and for now, everything I write in this Substack space will be available to all.

I’d love to hear from you, too, and please…

Tell a friend.