This is my ticket stub for the Ozzy Osbourne show at the UIC Pavilion on Saturday, April 5, 1986. I ran out of fingers and toes to count on, but it looks like it was about 29 years ago. That's a long time ago. Not long enough ago that I can't remember Metallica opening up during their Master of Puppets tour and completely putting Ozzy to shame. Nothing against Ozzy, but this was his tour supporting The Ultimate Sin album, and that's just not going to go down as one of his finest creative musical periods. Master of Puppets on the other hand...well I'm sure you already know how good that album turned out to be. Needless to say, at the time, heavy metal was my life.
Not only was I into heavy metal music at the time, but with that metal territory comes responsibility, so I was also deeply involved with the occult and doing what I could to please my master, the supreme being of the 1980's, Satan! Bringing hellfire and damnation down on society were the only goals I ever conjured up for myself back in those days and I lived my life to bring those goals to fruition. As part of my plan, I kept tabs on any and all hints of Satan manifesting his will on the public, by reading the local papers. I poured over the Windmill News and the Beacon-News for signs of doom. All seemed to be going as planned until one day when I flipped the page to the comic section and saw this...
And then, just like Calvin, my whole being and purpose in life came crashing to a halt, much like Vince Neil's car. I no longer knew what to believe in, which is a pretty powerful realization for a sixth grader. I did my best to cling to the music, but I was empty inside without Satan as my guide. I threw out my metal spiked leather wrist bands. I burned my custom built codpieces. I gave up the fast cars and the faster women. I sobered up, became an altar boy, turned away from the dark side and dedicated my life to searching for the answers as to why I was placed upon this giant, revolving hunk of matter we like to call Earth.
I haven't found all of the answers yet, but I'm getting closer and I will find them, that's for certain. We all have to evolve my friends. I managed to evolve beyond Satan's grasp and I've learned to evolve beyond just listening to heavy metal music. It took a long time, but I did it...
Which is why I'll be heading to the beautiful Riviera Theatre Friday night to go see Belle & Sebastian. This will be the third time I've seen them and the one constant at all of those shows is my good friend Jody. He's about 80x the music nerd I am and he knows a good band when he hears one. Joining us will be his lovely wife, Sally, and my good friend Nicole. We shall, most definitely, have a wonderful time listening to one of the greatest bands I've had the pleasure of listening to over the past ten years or so. And it's going to be even more awesome, because my friend Skid has upgraded us, free of charge, into the VIP seating area! That Skid is one damn fine human being! Good things happen to us when we expect them to happen.
This show is also a lesson in the power of giving. Many years back, I let someone borrow some Donovan albums, as they were working on learning some different acoustic music. I barely knew this person, as he was neighbors with an ex-ex-ex-ex-ex-girlfriend. In exchange, he recommended I borrow a five EP set by some band called Belle & Sebastian. Little did I know that I'd soon embrace that band just like I did Donovan. Now they are both on constant rotation and will forever be on constant rotation until my wandering days are over.
Go see a live show. It'll make you feel better. I guarantee it!
3 comments:
Our life changed when my cousin was in the line of fire when the drummer from Damageplan was shot. Long live Pantera!
Drummer was grazed by a bullet.
I've never been in line while being shot at, and I suppose it's something I hope will never happen. I hope your cousin wasn't hurt.
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