Enter Sandman Metallica by The Mini Band 8 to 10 years old

When I was eight years old I was very, very excited about Rock n' Roll, that much is true.  Elvis; Eddie Cochran; Little Richard; Chuck Berry; Bo Diddley.  It never occurred to me though, that I could actually start performing Rock n' Roll.

That's an amazing difference between then and now ("that was then; this is now").  Kids have a totally amazing PERMISSION to do just about anything now.   Some parents even encourage their children.  My parents never encouraged me to do anything but shut up and sit down (to be fair, my dad did buy the records for me, on his way home from work, he told me that the salesgirls approved of my choices).

I wanted to take guitar lessons at one point, I was about fourteen.  1962 or '63, under the influence of the Beach Boys.  The moaning was so protracted and loud that I disavowed the idea immediately and never brought it up again.  A few years later I bought one with my own money and taught myself how to play, with a little help from my friends.  A little more than twenty years after that I finally mastered my emotions and learned to enjoy playing with other musicians.

The best advice that I ever got was from my high school classmate Gary Pagano.  He told me to learn to play bass and sing, at the same time, and then buy a big amp and a P.A.  He said that if I could do those things, and owned those things, that I could always get a band.  I didn't take the advice, I never take good advice.