Who do you credit for your love of mucic?


For me, it was my Mom. When I was a kid @ 6-7 years old, she had a nice, small 78rpm player in the living room and a stack of records. I used to get up early in the morning and quietly play Frank Sinatra, Al Jolson, Perry Como, Jo Stafford and the big bands. My Mom made it a point to take me to every musical movie she could. Man, I reveled in Dan Daily, Fred Astaire, Doris Day, Carmen Miranda and Xavier Cugart. Then there was The Wizard of Oz, Snow White, and all of the cartoons that featured really good music at the time.

At one point in my childhood (circa 1941-1943), my Mom worked at a concession down at the beach in Ocean Park (right next to Santa Monica). There was a dance hall across the boardwalk that featured the big bands of the time. I'd walk over there and sit at the door listening to the greats like the Dorsey Brothers. Yes, it was during WWII ... and I was just a tyke, but even then I was in love with music. The shame of I all? I have absolutely NO musical talent other than being an accomplished listener.
128x128oregonpapa
Brian Wilson. His compositions and arrangements got me listening more and more deeply than I would have imagined possible before.
Top 40 radio in Baltimore in the late 50's early 60's, that was my start, and its grown since. My oldest brother kept a "transistor radio" to his ear every Saturday for the top ten countdown. Then the British Invasion hit, and it was off to the races. My next older brother took me to concerts, but my first was with my Dad, my 12th b'day, Beatles.
My Father and 3 older brothers (classical, Simon & Garfunkel, Cat Stevens, Tim Weisberg, ect) plus I grew up in the seventies and eighties when that (listening to stereo or radio) was 1 of the major forms of entertainment. I always was around a stereo for the first twenty years of my life. But, Around the age of 12 years my sister was dating this really rich older gentlemen and he had a Complete McIntosh system with all separate components and XR7 speakers too. At night with it all light up (not to mention the sound) I was in AWE! Prior to that I thought my dads Pioneer 4 channel was the cats meow. SO, I think the question should also include: When did you get into High-Fi??
My parents played music constantly. and they played everything--Tchaikovsky, Cream, Horace Silver, Olatunji, Dylan, Verdi, etc. My fascination with music was inevitable. I was kind enough to extend the same favor to my children.
I would have to give my mother the most credit. With Sinatra-Bennett-Mathis-Warwick and various classical and show tunes being played helped create a diverse interest in music. Even with my ear glued to "THE BIG 8" I understood there were other forms of music that were not weird or strange just because they were not played on Top 40 radio.