Mix Tape BY ANTHONY PARKS
Osic. Even if we’re unaware of our
n some level, everyone loves mu-
attachment to it, we are all in a long-term, dependent relationship with it. Far beyond having a favorite band or album, we crave, rely on and are guided through our day by an endless concert of sounds and words. Have you ever watched a movie or a commercial that didn’t have music helping to shape the story? Imagine the absence of music from your car, a video game, the doctor’s waiting room or a clothing store. Ever since our parent’s first performance of “Wheels on the Bus,” music has been as natural and as important to us as the clothes on our backs. We love music, and like a favorite recipe or story, we love to share it with others. There was a time – a brief window in history – when sharing your favorite music was more than just a hobby or kind act. It was, dare I say, an art form. I am referring to the forgotten technique of making a mix tape. Now, my grandparents were happy to have the radio and my folks got together with friends and listened to albums, but I’m very proud to be a part of the first generation that was able to personally interact with the music we loved. Of course, nowadays you can literally tell your phone to play a song, but there is no anticipation or adventure in that. And that’s just it – a mix tape was a low quality, fragile and short-lived stepping stone on the way to wireless streaming data thingys, but it was yours. The mix tape was a two-sided novella, a coded message, a summer soundtrack, a declaration of love. The possibilities were seemingly endless, especially if you sprung for the 90-minute tape over the 60-minute. I mean that’s ten more songs if you time it right. Those of us fortunate enough to grow up in this era of original “data sharing” remember the feeling of having someone hand you a tape and say, “I thought about you when I made this.” You had the ability to say something important to someone when it was too difficult to speak the words yourself. Take Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes.” On a classic mix tape, it’s a way of saying, “I’m very much into you.” Whereas “November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses might suggest that emotions are running too high. Maybe you were going on a camping trip. Time to make your own soundtrack with “Mountain Song” by Jane’s Addiction, “Fire on the Mountain” by The Dead and, just for a laugh, “Dueling Banjos.” How you placed each song was of equal importance. You didn’t want to jump around too much – you couldn’t skip from a sappy love song to a Friday night rocker. Good mix 24 | SAND& PINE MAGAZINE June/July 2015
tapes had a theme or would at least build up to a certain feeling or emotion. Personally, I would create my little nuggets of music based on just that … the music. I wanted to share with others the songs that I was in love with at the moment, and I hoped that the listener would be quick to become a fan as well. When you made someone a tape it was their’s. It was a gift that you spent at least an hour making and just as long thinking of a quirky title, like “Great Tunes for Your Crappy Car,” “Summer 87 Beach Mix, part 2” or one of the best tapes ever given to me, “Funk Bomb!” The personalized titles, specifically crafted song list and maybe even the set of colored markers used just to decorate the tape cover, made giving and getting mix tapes a very special experience. As I look at my old tape collection the way a mathematician might look at an abacus, I realize how many great songs are resting there and how many memories are stretched out on those tapes just waiting for a rewind. Anyone have a tape deck?
If I made a mix tape today, this is what it would sound like … JJ Grey & Mofro- Every Minute The Revivalists- Masquerade Paul Pena- I’m Gonna Move Brett Dennen- Wild Child Rebelution- Closer I Get
The Wood Brothers- The Muse
Tedeschi Trucks Band- Midnight in Harlem Greensky Bluegrass- Leap Year
Driftwood- The Sun’s Going Down (to get
in the mood for their First Friday show) White Denim- At Night in Dreams
Gary Clark Jr.- When My Train Pulls In The Black Keys- 10 AM Automatic
Band of Horses- The General Specific Alabama Shakes- Don’t Wanna Fight Dangermuffin- Walk Into the Wind
To listen to this mix, check out What’s on the Web on page 6 for links and QR codes.