Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Post 1: pgs. 1-56 (first 3 chp.)

Book: "So, You Wanna Be A Rock And Roll Star?"
So far, this book is about a drummer Jacob Slichter. He was a graduate of Harvard University, majoring in "Afro-American studies and History." Jacob Slichter was born in Champaign, Illinois. He is the drummer for the band, "Semisonic," who has sold multi-platinum albums. What has happened so far, is he met one of his closest friends, Dan, who was his roommate in college. He also plays an instrument, a bass guitar, which he played in college, then switched to guitar after college. Even though they both had a different taste in music, they still played music together in college in their dorms.
After college, Dan got married to a girl named Diane. Dan also joined a band called "Trip Shakespeare," where they formed in Minnesota. Jacob went to the wedding as best man, and he thought it changed his life. Why? because the wedding took place in Minneapolis, where he got to meet many musicans (none named), and they all recommended to Jacob that he should move to the Twin Cities. At the wedding, Jacob played at the reception with Dan and Jacob's other friend, John, the bass player; Dan played guitar, and Jacob played Drums.
Jacob signed his first big contract with a record company when he was 13, when he signed up for the Colombia House Record Club. John, Dan, and Jacob were all a band together, ever since the wedding reception. Their first performance in front of another record company, was at "7th Street Entry," where 250 fans piled in to hear some jams. A&R Records was in the front row, and the band knew that they had the record in their palms of their hands. Instead of A&R, or Elektra (another record company), the band signed with MCA, and they sponsored bands like: The Who, Elton John, and Tom Petty. This was a big step in their lives.
Eventually in the 80's, the band started recording in L.A. They were in a Hollywood hotel, where they would settle each night. Each day, the band spent around $1,000 a day in the recording studio. The band was there for months, and eventually flew back home.

REACTION: My reaction to these chapters were surprising. I was surprised because he signed a record deal at the age of 13, and that's really young. "This impromptu set was such a success that in the ensuing weeks the three of us recorded some new song's of Dan's (with small contributions from me)-songs that suited the bare textures of our trio more than the ornamented arrangements of Trip Shakespeare (page 7)." This quote shows that Jacob is now more confident in himself to be something big when he grows up. I also admired his taste in music, because that's the music I listen to. He is great, and this book wants me to keep reading and reading.

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About Me

my name is zack. I am 15, born January 20, 1992. My favorite subject is Math, in general. My favorite food is Chipotle, which would be a steak burrito. My #1 passion is music and guitar, which I've been playing for 7 years. My favorite sport is hockey. I have 2 cats, Ozzie and Bella, who are both 2 years old.