Keep on rockin'...!

(image from this other place on the interweb)

Rock and roll...what better attitude for life is there than rock and roll??

It's sex, swagger, and a whole lotta style - I mean come on, "Rock and Roll' itself even sounds cool! Go on - say it...rock and roll! It's cool, huh?

Now say it while rrrrrolling the 'r's at the start...rrrrrock and rrrrrrroll..y'see - now it sounds like a gloriously filthy sounding Harley engine purring into its whiskey cooling, butter-meltingly smooth action!

Jesus! Just thinking about it is making me wanna go out, smoke a butt, start a fight and not give a monkey's #%+$ about any of it!

Let me explain where this has come from – I went to see Rock of Ages a few days ago (if you haven’t seen it yet, then do it – do it now!), and I was hit with an epiphany that flew at me right off the stage, unleashed from the microphone, still dripping with filthy, acidic guitar riffs and the most primal and prehistoric of beats…I realised that not only is Rock and Roll ineffably cool as a lifestyle choice, but as a 'mentality' or 'mantra' it's also wholly admirable...think of any hardcore rock and roller you know – at the core of those people – be it an uncle, an auntie, a mate from uni or even someone from work who secretly wears a Poison t-shirt under their shirt and tie – at the very core of these people is someone who stone-wall believes in the world and all its endlessly dreamed possibilities – yes, people can do what they love for a living and enjoy life; yes, I’m 40, but of course my band can still make it; yes a 55 year old's pony tail will cause hassle at bath time, but hot-diggety does it look hellacool when you're rocking out to White Snake?? Hells yes it does!!

And not only this - another thing I love about rock and rollers is that, for all their bravado and – to some – intimidating looks, they like each other...they recognise that they are all part of something bigger than their differences – they’re part of the music!

And what I really love most about them is that they realise there are bigger things than money in this world...they know that we weren't born in a suit wanting cash and chasing status...we were born carefree and curious...and what these rock and rollers care about is what all the best people in the world care about; rocking, rolling, crazy nights, wilder kicks and having a #*&%^£$ time!

A personal hero of mine, Clarence Whorley, summed up this mentality to dart-like precision when he was talking about the king of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley; "Now there’s a man who lived – he didn't give a #%*€ about nothin' except livin' fast, dyin' young and leaving a good lookin' corpse behind!"

And if that wasn't enough, they say stuff like 'rad', 'kick ass' and 'rock on"…and the b@st@rds get away with it - they make it look cool!

So when you get back tonight, throw on a track or two of proper, old school, heart-pumping, ear-throbbing rock - perhaps Freebird or American Woman - and just let yourself go...even if it's just you on your own...let go, and remember that feeling when you thought everything was possible, and reminisce about the times when you played music as loud as your speakers would go, no matter who was around...and enjoy it!

Just a thought...