By Scott Coner
Nashville Recording Artist, Songwriter, Performer, and Author
During the time I grew up, it was still a small town. The
city people hadn’t started bringing all of their problems to us yet. They would
begin their migration fifteen years down the road as the city planners allowed
developers to take away our innocence and identity. But that in itself is
another story. The late 70’s were upon us, and I was quickly becoming a
real-life teenager. I had grown up hoping and praying that someday I would have
a girlfriend, a car, and maybe a bit of coolness. I did finally get a car. I
think these are the dreams of all young boys that grew up in the mid-west.
Thank God all of today's political correctness hadn’t got it’s footing, or my
life might not have been such a joy ride.
Up until my freshman year, I hadn’t been around much of what
we call today’s “classic rock.” I was with my friend Jeff when I heard,
“Stairway to Heaven.” We were on Highway 44 going towards Shelbyville when the
song came on the stereo. I remember looking out the window at the fields
thinking, “This music might be a game changer for me.” Later that spring I was
washing my older sisters car in the yard when I heard Aerosmith’s “Walk this
Way, ” and I nearly lost my mind. It was such a great time to be alive. I was
turned on to Boston, Pink Floyd, Skynyrd, Blackfoot, and Clapton within a
period of three or four months. I’m sure it’s hard to believe for most people,
but up until that time, I had an AM radio beside my bed. My mom and dad had one
of those large stereos that looked a bit like a casket in the living room, but
we listened to country music back then. Up until I was fifteen, country music
had been plenty. I loved it then, and I still do. That part of my life can
probably be compared to those Sunday evening Ed Sullivan shows with Elvis or
the Beatles that changed young lives in the 50’s and 60’s. By the time all of
this beautiful music showed up like a crazy parade, I was mesmerized. I
remember sitting in class not hearing a word the teacher was saying as the
music moved around my mind. It was a pretty exciting time for a guy like me to
be alive. Finally, I had found something that I loved and wanted to be a part
of.
As the other kids were thinking about sports or college, I
was thinking about music. I was still young and naive’ enough to think I could
get my friends together to form a life-long band. That was my first mistake.
But hey, you learn as you go right? The years would pass by like a mist, but my
passion for music would never leave. I still get an awful lot of joy of
listening to music. I have continued to write and play through the years. And
like most artists, I have been pummeled nearly to death by the vampires in the
music business. I suppose I have been luckier than most, though. I have been
able to hold on to a great career, a perfect wife, and perfect kids through the
entire process. I know others have not been so fortunate.
Recently, I met an old friend that I have thought about many
times through the years. He was one the early inspirations in my life. By the
time Jeff was 17 years old, he was playing Steve Gaines’ licks like he wrote
them. Like all of us back then, Jeff moved on with his life. He had played
music around the country with several rock bands until he felt the need to
settle down. He got married, became a cop, and had kids. Like me, though, he
never lost site of the music. He has continued to play and write. He needed to
have music in his life just like me no matter what else was going on. These
days Jeff and I talk on the phone once or twice a week. We get together and
write every now and then. And we are trying to mold our music together. It
sounds easy enough, but sometimes you need to stand back a bit and figure out
how to bring the best of things to the front. Jeff is a great player. By the
time he graduated high school, the eighties were in full swing. Jeff became a
very well known guitarist around Indianapolis as well as other cities.
I think this is where it becomes interesting as we attempt
to work together. During the eighties, I moved back towards the Hank Jr. type
of country sounds. “Alabama” was coming on pretty strong and there were some
other good country acts that I became interested in. I was also focusing on
writing and trying to find myself somewhere in the mix. These days when Jeff
and I get together to work on music, we are meeting in the seventies I suppose.
We both can identify with that time and can bring our personal approach to the
table.
He and I have both worked with some pretty strong players
through the years. I’m sure we will both continue to work with many more. But
the cool thing about working with Jeff is that we both came from the same town,
the same time, and the same memory. Jeff is the one that turned me on to
Skynyrd. He loaned me a 38 Special album. We listened and learned way back when
it was still new. True friendships last for a lifetime. After all of the years
of not even seeing each other, it’s a bit like a time warp. I think we respect
each other’s music. I think we are proud that we accomplished a few things
after actually becoming grown-ups. And here we are after all of those years
still locked into music at the end of the day. I don’t know if my life is
coming full circle. I don’t know what tomorrow will bring any more than the
next person. But as I look around my world I see things that matter. I see
family and friends. I hear music. I have plans to keep on being whom and what I
am. And when the music finally stops, and my heart stops beating, maybe
somebody will come along and listen to all of this music I have been part of.
Maybe he or she will wish they could have been right there beside us as we
enjoyed every minute of every song. …
"Just yesterday morning they let me know you were gone,
Susanne the plans we made put an end to you.
I walked out this morning, and I wrote down this song,
I just can’t remember who to send it too."
-J. Taylor
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