Music therapy

The Day Kurt Cobain Died

April 4, 2013 Addiction

Tomorrow is the 19th anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death. I wrote this for last year’s sad anniversary. I remember exactly where I was 18 years ago today, when I saw the news flash about Kurt Cobain’s suicide. I was lying in bed, depressed and reclusive because of frequent fear. Mood music:  I was living in Lynnfield, [...]

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Layne Staley, 11 Years Later

April 4, 2013 Addiction

“What’s my drug of choice? Well, what have you got?” –Layne Staley, Alice in Chains This week marks 11 years since Alice In Chains frontman Layne Staley was found dead. Mood music: Like Kurt Cobain, Staley had a big impact on me in the early 1990s. But while I identified with Cobain’s depression, I identified [...]

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31 Years Ago Today…

March 19, 2013 Music therapy

On March 19, 1982, the world lost one of its greatest musicians in a plane crash: Randy Rhoads. Mood music:  Mr. Crowley – Remastered Original RecordingOzzy OsbourneBlizzard Of Ozz (Expanded Edition) The songwriting and guitar playing he did on Ozzy Osbourne’s first two solo albums — “Blizzard of Oz” and “Diary of a Madman” — is [...]

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A New Addiction Takes Hold

February 21, 2013 Music therapy

During my vacation this week, I’ve been playing a lot of guitar. I picked the instrument back up over the summer after a 20-year break, and I haven’t looked back. My addictive personality has latched onto it like a starving lamprey. But it may be one of the best outlets I’ve ever had for calming [...]

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I Wish Hard Rock Stations Had More Class

October 22, 2012 Music therapy

It’s not easy being a rock ’n’ roll fanatic some days, especially when it comes to the choices I have on the radio dial. Oh, don’t get me wrong: The Boston area has plenty of great stations, especially RadioBDC and Rock 101 in Southern New Hampshire. But some radio stations, in the Boston market and [...]

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Led Zeppelin Gets Me Through the Rain

October 10, 2012 Music therapy

A while back I wrote about how Van Halen’s music helps me through  the winter blues. Too much rain can depress me, too, and for that I’m finding a remedy in Led Zeppelin. Mood music: Like most teenage rock fans, I listened to Led Zeppelin nonstop, studied every lyric and guitar solo and read any [...]

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The White Stripe of Dissapointment

October 1, 2012 Music therapy

An old friend from Revere went to NYC to see Jack White perform at Radio City Music Hall this past weekend and walked away crushed. She waited an hour and a half to meet him, but he blew past everyone and hopped into a waiting van. No hellos. No autographs. “What a disappointment. Just waited [...]

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The Song Remains Not the Same

September 6, 2012 Music therapy

My fingertips are sore and black because I’ve practiced my guitar playing every day since pulling it from its box on my birthday 11 days ago. They hurt like hell, but it’s a very satisfying pain. Mood music:  Can’t Find My Way HomeBlack Label SocietyThe Song Remains Not The Same My technique is still all [...]

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Get Well, Eddie Van Halen

August 31, 2012 Music therapy

Funny thing about life: Just when everything is humming along and all is right with the world, something devastating comes along and kicks your ass back to the stone age. So it seems to be with guitarist Edward Van Halen. Mood music:  Stay FrostyVan HalenA Different Kind Of Truth Last winter, Van Halen released its [...]

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Time to Make Music Again

August 21, 2012 Music therapy

When asked what I want for my birthday, I usually say nothing. I don’t want people spending money on me, and I don’t want to be greedy. But this time, with my 42nd birthday only days away, I asked the family for something specific: an acoustic-electric guitar. Mood music:  Over My HeadKing’s XGretchen Goes To [...]

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