TERRY HOKNES - My All Time Favorite Songs and Music - Billboard chart data plus my personal chart data plus youtube video and historical facts and trivia

TERRY HOKNES - MY FAVORITE SONGS OF ALL TIME ! hoknes@hotmail.com

501	MOTLEY CRUE	SAINTS OF LOS ANGELES	2008
502	GRAPEFRUIT	THIS LITTLE MAN	1969
503	BEATLES	ASK ME WHY	1963
504	BOY KRAZY	GOOD TIMES	1993
505	ABBA	HASTA MANANA	1974
506	LILLIX	SWEET TEMPTATION	2006
507	ABBA	WAY OLD FRIENDS DO	1981
508	AMANDA MARSHALL	BEAUTIFUL GOODBYE	1995
509	PROCUL HARUM	IN HELD TWAS IN I	1968
510	SHANIA TWAIN	WHEN	1997
511	PHIL COLLINS	AGAINST ALL ODDS	1984
512	PIDGEON	WHEN SHE ARRIVES	1969
513	TING TINGS	THAT'S NOT MY NAME	2009
514	KESHA	BLOW	2011
515	TERRY HOKNES	CRUCIBLES	1992
516	DURAN DURAN	SAVE A PRAYER	1995
517	ABBA	GOTTA SING YOU MY LOVE SONG	1974
518	PAUL McCARTNEY	LONG HAIRED LADY	1971
519	RINGO STARR	I DON'T BELIEVE YOU	1992
520	SPIRIT	GIRL IN YOUR EYE	1968

MOTLEY CRUE - SAINTS OF LOS ANGELES (2008)

Album: Saints Of Los Angeles (2008)

August 30th 2008 - my #1 favorite daily song for 28 days making it my #8 daily song of 2008.

August 30th 2008 - my #1 favorite current rock song for 5 weeks making it my #4 rock song of 2008.

Great powerful predictable metal from Motley Crue but amazing sing along chorus - turn it loud !

Saints of Los Angeles" is the Grammy-nominated first single from Mötley Crüe's album of the same name. It was released on April 11, 2008, and started airing on radio stations on April 15 and charted at #5 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks. In the original Gang Vocal version, found on the album, the lyrics from the Lords Prayer can be heard at the beginning of the song. The song was given further promotion through the music video game Rock Band, being released as downloadable content on Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Store on the same day

GRAPEFRUIT - THIS LITTLE MAN (1969)

Album: Around Grapefruit (1969)

This would have been a masterpiece if The Beatles had recorded it as it sure sounds like it could have fit on the Magical Mystery Tour album but instead Grapefruit recorded this amazing powerful pop song from a perfect 60's album. I picked up this album at a garage sale in the mid 80s and it became one of my all time favorites and I have "boosted" this album on my charts 4 different occasions.

November 21st 1988 - my #4 favorite daily song for 5 days at age 17 after finishing high school.

Grapefruit was a London-based British band of the late 1960s. Their brand of music was a typical late 1960s blend of rock, which they often fused with psychedelic effects such as phasers and vocoders, or classical arrangements. Grapefruit's recording career spanned only two years, from late 1967 to the end of 1969. They released two albums (around in 1968, Deep Water in 1969) and several singles, none of which made a significant impact on the charts. Their best-known track is probably the Terry Melcher-produced "Dear Delilah", which was released in early 1968, and peaked at #21 in the UK Singles Chart, while their single "Deep Water" did crack the German Top 20, peaking at #19. Toward the end of their career, following the new material being written by Alexander (with some inclusions by Wale) Grapefruit shifted from melodic pop to more of a rock-based sound, referred to as "Soft Rock" in a full-page Billboard ad for the album "Deep Water".

THE BEATLES - ASK ME WHY (1963)

Album: Please Please Me (1963)

Ask Me Why" is a song by The Beatles originally released in the United Kingdom as the B-side of their hit single "Please Please Me". It was also included on their first UK album, Please Please Me.

Written in early 1962, "Ask Me Why" is principally a John Lennon composition, but was credited to Paul McCartney and John Lennon, as were all other Lennon–McCartney originals on the first pressings of Please Please Me album. It was part of their live act prior to their recording contract, and was one of the songs performed at their Parlophone audition in EMI's Abbey Road studio three on 6 June 1962. The song emulates in style that of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, by whom Lennon was influenced, and draws its opening guitar phrase from the Miracles’ "What’s So Good About Goodbye" (1961).

The song is in the key of E major, with some leaning to its relative minor of C#, and is in 4/4 time. Structurally, the song is complex and, as Alan Pollack states, contains three different variants of the verse. The song also contains "jazzy parallel sevenths" in most of the chords, and has a live ending.

BOY KRAZY - GOOD TIMES (1993)

Album: Boy Krazy (1993)

September 6th 1993 - my #4 favorite daily song for 110 days at age 22 preparing to go on the road this month for the first time with Marilyn Faye Parney

September 26h 2003 - my #10 favorite daily song for 14 days at age 32 living on my own in home at Eastview and performing now with Marilyn for 10 years.

Boy Krazy was a New York City-based girl group that saw brief fame in 1993 with their hit single "That's What Love Can Do".

The group was put together through auditions by a management company in New York. Boy Krazy featured female singers Kimberly Blake, Josselyne Jones, Johnna Lee Cummings, Renée Veneziale, and Ruth Ann Roberts (a former Miss Junior America). Their signature Pop song "That's What Love Can Do", written and produced by British mega music trio Stock Aitken & Waterman, was released in 1991, but it failed to become a hit. Shortly after the release of the single, Veneziale left the band.

Carrying on as a foursome, the group released their second single "All You Have To Do" in 1992, but it also failed to chart. That same year, "That's What Love Can Do" started gaining success in clubs and discothèques across America and substantial airplay on radio stations. The song was remixed and re-released, becoming a hit in the US, reaching the Billboard Hot 100 Top 20 in early 1993, peaking at #18. It also reached #1 in Pop airplay on the Radio & Records CHR/Pop chart. In the liners from their self-titled album the group credited KQKS/Denver, Colorado for breaking the latter after one of the staffers played a version of the track in December 1992.

The album Boy Krazy was released in 1993, and also included the follow-up single "Good Times With Bad Boys", which also hit the Billboard Hot 100. Main lead singer Cummings left the band in late 1993. The remaining members tried to develop a new album unsuccessfully and the group split shortly after. Additionally, they were supposed to release "Love is a Freaky Thing" as their fourth single, but it was never released. It failed to chart anyway. In August 2009, their album and singles were released through iTunes, including never-released remixes of their songs, and 3 unreleased new songs recorded for their album.

ABBA - HASTA MANANA (1974)

Album: Waterloo (1974)

Waterloo is the second studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was originally released in Sweden on 4 March 1974 through Polar Music. The album's title track won ABBA the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest. Waterloo was first released on CD in Sweden in 1988; a West German CD release followed in 1990 (later released internationally). The album has been reissued in digitally remastered form three times; first in 1997, then in 2001 and again in 2005 as part of The Complete Studio Recordings box set. It was also released as a special 30th Anniversary edition in 2004, celebrating 30 years of the group's victory in the Eurovision Song Contest.

The original 1974 Polar Music edition of the album opens with the Swedish version of the title track and closes with the English language version. The American version of the album, released through Atlantic Records, closes with a 1974 remix of "Ring Ring". In the United Kingdom/Ireland and several other European markets, the original 1973 version of "Ring Ring" was added as track 6 on side 2. The cover features the sub-title "Bjorn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida" although some editions replaced 'Agnetha' with 'Anna' – by which Agnetha Fältskog was known in some countries.

Waterloo peaked at the top of the charts in Sweden and Norway, charting highly in many other countries as well. In 2004, it was certified platinum in Germany, thirty years after its release.

Waterloo was the group's first album released in most countries outside Scandinavia, and the first to be credited to "ABBA" (the band was originally referred to as "Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid". However, to avoid confusion, they were called "ABBA (Björn, Benny, Agnetha and Frida)". The "Honey, Honey" single was the first release to refer to the group as ABBA and nothing else.

LILLIX - SWEET TEMPTATION (HOLLOW) (2006)

October 2nd 2006 - my #2 favorite daily song for 11 days at age 35 while dating Valerie for 8 months and living at Eastview. Nicholas was 5 months old.

Sweet Temptation (Hollow)" is the lead single from Canadian band Lillix's second album Inside the Hollow.

The video for the single was initially released to MuchMusic, followed by an iTunes release on 1 August 2006. It was listed as the 96th best song of 2006 by Blender Magazine

Inside the Hollow is the second album from Canadian all-girl rock band Lillix, released in Canada on 29 August 2006 and Japan on 6 September 2006. It was eventually released in Europe and the United States on 1 January 2007.

The first single for the album is "Sweet Temptation (Hollow)". Its music video premiered on Yahoo!'s LAUNCHcast on 5 July 2006, and has been featured on MTV's Making the Video. The album was made available for listening online via MuchMusic.com, and several songs are available on the band's official MySpace site

Lillix is a pop/rock band from Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada, formed under the name Tigerlily in 1997 when the early members were in high school. The band was originally composed of guitarist Tasha-Ray Evin, keyboardist Lacey-Lee Evin, bassist Louise Burns, and drummer Sierra Hills. In 2001 the band was signed by Maverick Records and changed their name to Lillix as there was another band called Tigerlily. Hills left in 2002 and was replaced by Kim Urhahn, and later by Alicia Warrington.

ABBA - WAY OLD FRIENDS DO (1981) (Live)

Album: Super Trouper (1981)

May 12th 1989 - my #1 favorite daily song for 6 days and the 1st of 3 #1 daily songs for Abba. I had known this song since the album came out right in 1981 at age 10. A great anthem to close off the album. I used to use my Smurfs and Star Wars figures to pose concerts at this time and this song was likely one of the "performances". My mother bought the album in spring of 1981 but then we had an exchange named Lena stay at grandmas house for the summer and she gave us another copy of the album as a gift.

Super Trouper is the seventh studio album by Swedish pop group ABBA, first released in 1980. It features the No.1 singles "The Winner Takes It All" and "Super Trouper". The album became the biggest-selling of 1980 in the UK.

The album closed with "The Way Old Friends Do", which was recorded live a year earlier during their 1979 concert tour. Although not released as a single with this album, the song was later released as a single in 1992 to promote the compilation More ABBA Gold: More ABBA Hits

AMANDA MARSHALL - BEAUTIFUL GOODBYE (1995) hit #5 in Canada

Album: Amanda Marshall (1995)

Amanda Meta Marshall (born August 29, 1972, Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian pop-rock singer.

She grew up in Toronto in a biracial family, with a White Canadian father and a Black Trinidadian mother. In several of her songs, Marshall has reflected on her racial identity "as a woman who looks white but is also half-black".

Marshall studied music extensively during her childhood, including at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. While performing on the Queen Street West bar scene in her teens, she met guitarist Jeff Healey, who was struck by her powerful voice and took her on tour

PROCUL HARUM - IN HELD TWAS IN I (1968)

Album: Shine On Brightly (1968)

March 15th 1990 - my #1 favorite daily song for 14 days at age 19 taking 1st year University classes at Muenster, SK living at the monastery.

January 1st 2004 - my #7 favorite daily song for 9 days at age 32 after I bought the CD version of the album while living at Eastview by myself completely single and not dating anyone and just started playing full time with Ovide Pilon.

Shine On Brightly, by the UK band Procol Harum, was released in 1968 and consolidated the success of their debut album; it was influential in the development of progressive rock by breaking all pop and rock music standards with the 17-minute epic "In Held Twas in I", which marked the beginning of the lengthy progressive rock suites that would occur later in the 1970s. The epic's title is an acronym, putting the first word of each movement's lyrics into it as shown:

In	"Glimpses of Nirvana", part 1
Held	"Glimpses of Nirvana", part 2
′Twas	"′Twas Teatime at the Circus"
In	"In the Autumn of My Madness"
I	"Look to Your Soul"

SHANIA TWAIN - WHEN (1997)

Album: Come On Over (1997)

I became a fan of Shania from the day she released her first country single in Canada in Summer 1993 when I was 22. When she hit superstardom in 1995 I became a Shania fanatic for the next 10 years. Eventually I had 10 T-shirts and a poster shrine in my office at Eastview and had 3 copies each of all her CD's. I have seen her live in concert 5 times including: Canadian Country Music Awards Calgary 1998 and all 4 shows she did in Saskatoon, SK at SaskPlace on June 4th 1998 (her 3rd live show ever!), March 29th 1999, June 9th 2004 and June 11th 2004 (I had front row seat). She released her 4th CD Up on November 18th 2002 and I bought 62 copies at A&B Warehouse the day it came out as pre-sells that I sold on ebay. Performing on the road with Marilyn we listened to the Up CD everyday on the road for 10 months. We performed all 4 major singles from The Woman In Me album for almost a decade.

April 24th 1998 - my #7 favorite daily song for 109 days at age 27 while on the road with Marilyn now for 4.5 years and the very time I first connected to the internet and started www.hoknes.com and started selling on ebay. Shania started her first tour ever at this time.

When" is a song by Canadian singer Shania Twain. It was the second UK release from her 1997 album Come on Over. The song was written by Mutt Lange and Shania Twain. The song was originally released in the summer of 1998. It was the only one of the twelve singles from Come on Over not released to the United States. It was released to Canada however, as a pop single in February 2000. The song was included in the Come on Over Tour and in a medley for the Up! Tour. "When" is also the theme song for the Japanese drama Cheap Love.

PHIL COLLINS - AGAINST ALL ODDS (1984) hit #1

Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" (also simply titled "Against All Odds") is a song by British singer Phil Collins recorded for soundtrack to the 1984 film of the same name. It is a power ballad in which its protagonist implores an ex-lover to "take a look at me now", knowing that reconciliation is "against all odds" while considering it worth trying. The single, while it reached number two in the United Kingdom, peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, the first for Collins.

Accordingly, "Against All Odds" was created explicitly for the movie. Hackford, who previously used a song for the 1982 American drama film An Officer and a Gentleman, planned the same for the neo-noir 1984 film Against All Odds, which is a remake of Out of the Past. When he signed with Atlantic Records, he was provided with a roster of artists, among of whom Collins was chosen to render the film's theme song based on the quality of his voice. Hackford said that it was a "textbook case of designing a song to reflect what the film is". The song appears in the movie as background music during the closing credits.

"Against All Odds" won the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance in 1985, and it was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Collins was the only nominee in the category not invited to sing his song on stage, and sat in the audience as Ann Reinking performed it.

After its release, "Against All Odds" peaked at number two as a single in 1984 and became Collins' third top-ten single in the United Kingdom. In the United States, it peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in the spring of 1984.

It is the first of six songs by Collins written specifically for a film soundtrack that would appear on the Hot 100. It also became Collins' only number 1 single on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart as a solo artist, although he would achieve two other number ones on this chart with his band, Genesis.

PIDGEON - WHEN SHE ARRIVES (1969)

Album: Pidgeon (1969)

I purchased this album in February 1988 at age 17 the same day I picked up 12 Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus by Spirit at Tramps on 3rd Avenue for $2.00 each. Two of my all time favorite albums.

March 9th 1988 - my #1 favorite daily song for 5 days at age 17 in Grade 12.

All songs were written by Jobriath Salisbury & poet Richard T. Marshall . A blonde lass named Cheri Gage is credited with lead vocals & autoharp. Bill Strong Smith plays drums & percussion. The legendary Jobriath is credited with keyboards, guitar & lead vocals. (This LP is probably the controversial solo artist's recording debut.) The self-titled Pidgeon album has a lot of musical variety including wild Psych guitar & harpsichord on "Milk & Honey" and "Irene". Vocal harmonies abound. Some tracks are more folky/moody /introspective, while others rock. Jobriath's vocals are very distinctive throughout.

THE TING TINGS - THAT'S NOT MY NAME (2009) hit #39

August 31st 2009 - my #3 favorite daily song for 39 days at age 38 living at Ave M South with Valerie now married 2 years and I had been performing the Dueling Pianos show for 2 months.

That’s Not My Name" is the third single by British duo The Ting Tings from their debut studio album We Started Nothing. Vocalist Katie White states that the song was written "with me ranting about my frustrations with the record industry." The song was originally released as a double A-side with "Great DJ" by independent record label Switchflicker Records on 28 May 2007. After heavy promotion and support from BBC Radio 1 and the NME, the single was re-released individually on 12 May 2008 on Columbia Records.

"That's Not My Name" went to number one in the United Kingdom on 18 May 2008, seeing off competition from well-established acts like Rihanna, Madonna and will.i.am. The following week, however, the single was replaced by Rihanna's single "Take a Bow" at number one. The song was a sleeper hit in North America for about five months before finally becoming a Top 40 hit on the charts. The single has sold over a million digital copies

KESHA - BLOW (2011) hit #7

Blow" is a song by American recording artist and songwriter Kesha, from her first extended play (EP), Cannibal. The song was released as the EP's second single on February 8, 2011. It was written by Kesha, along with Klas Åhlund, Lukasz Gottwald, Allan Grigg, Benjamin Levin and Max Martin, with production done by Dr. Luke, Max Martin, Benny Blanco and Kool Kojak. According to Kesha the song's lyrics are representative of herself and her fans. "Blow" is dominantly an electropop and dance-pop song and is described as a party anthem as it portrays a simple message of having a desire to have a good time at a club.

Blow" was originally released exclusively to the iTunes Store as part of a "Countdown to Cannibal" promotion, and thus originally entered the Billboard Hot 100 on the issue date titled December 4, 2010, reaching position ninety-seven and dropping off the chart the following week. After being released as a single, the song re-entered the chart on the issue date titled February 12, 2011, reaching a new peak of ninety-six. The following week the song jumped thirty positions reaching position sixty-six. The song continued to steadily ascend the charts eventually reaching a peak of seven on the week of March 19, 2011. On the song's peak week it sold 164,000 digital copies and was listed at position six on Billboards Hot Digital Songs. Charting within the top ten, the song became Kesha's sixth straight top ten single as a solo artist. On Billboard's Pop chart, the song reached a peak of number three. In June 2011, "Blow" surpassed 2,000,000 digital copies in the United States. With the song passing two million in sales it became her sixth consecutive single to sell more than two million copies. As of December 2011, the song has sold over 2,694,000 copies in the U.S alone

TERRY HOKNES - CRUCIBLES (1992) Opus #772 lyrics by Philip Murray

In 1992 age 21 I went and packaged up very first official release album on cassette called COOL ALL OVER. It featured all my original songs and a weird bunch of genres. It was reviewed in an issue of the SOMA newspaper in 1992 by Brent Pomeroy. He liked the musicianship but thought the vocals need work. The album was recorded primitively on a new 4 track cassette tape recorder I had bought and recorded this album while renting at 314 Cumberland Ave

I wrote my first song in 1982 at age 11 in Grade 6. I would sporadically write 18 few songs over the next 4 years. Starting with my 19th song (Opus #19) I began writing on a very regular basis starting in December 1986 in Grade 11 at Aden Bowman. This included writing over 58 songs with my best friend Nels Krauss over the period of 1986-1992. I wrote 97 songs in 1987 and then 215 songs in 1988. By the time I graduated high school at age 17 I was up to Opus #268. I wrote another 178 songs in 1989. By the time I celebrated my 19th birthday I was up to Opus #524. At that time I was in first year University living in Muenster, SK in residence at St Peters College at the monastery. I met a poet from New York named Philip Murray who I collaborated with writing music to his words 91 songs in total. I wrote my 1000th song the week I turned 25 in January 1996.

DURAN DURAN - SAVE A PRAYER (1985) hit #16

Save a Prayer" is the sixth single by Duran Duran, released on 9 August 1982.

The song was the third single from the band's second album Rio. It became Duran Duran's biggest hit to date (at the time) in the UK Singles Chart, reaching #2, held out of the top spot by Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger".

It was not originally issued as a single in the United States, although the video was very popular on MTV. However, a special US Single version with the live version from the Arena album on the flip side was released in January 1985. The single reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Duran Duran are an English rock band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States. Since the 1980s, they have placed 14 singles in the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart and 21 in the Billboard Hot 100 and have, according to the Sunday Mercury, sold more than 100 million records. While they were generally considered part of the New Romantic scene along with bands such as Spandau Ballet when they first emerged, they later shed this image. The band worked with fashion designers to build a sharp and elegant image that earned them the nickname "the prettiest boys in rock." The band's controversial videos, which included partial nudity and suggestions of sexuality, became popular in the early 1980s on the then-new music video channel MTV. Duran Duran were among the first bands to have their videos shot by professional directors with 35 mm film movie cameras, which gave their videos a much more polished look. In 1984, the band were early innovators with video technology in their live stadium shows

ABBA - GONNA SING YOU MY LOVE SONG (1974)

Album: Waterloo (1974)

Waterloo peaked at the top of the charts in Sweden and Norway, charting highly in many other countries as well. In 2004, it was certified platinum in Germany, thirty years after its release.

PAUL McCARTNEY - LONG HAIRED LADY (1971)

Album: Ram (1971)

I bought this album brand new possibly at Sears or Eatons in about 1983 at age 12. Unfortunately no chart data pre-1987 for learning any of Paul's albums when I originally bought them.

Ram is an album by Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney, released in 1971, the only album credited to the pair. Set against the backdrop of the legal action taking place in Britain's High Court with the dissolution of The Beatles partnership, following their break-up the year before, Ram was the second of two albums McCartney released between quitting The Beatles and forming Wings, whose future drummer Denny Seiwell played on the record.

After the release of the commercially successful (though, critically, poorly received) debut McCartney, Paul and Linda went on a lengthy holiday and spent much time on their farm on the Mull of Kintyre, Scotland. It was during this period that Paul, often with his wife's input − her self-confessed lack of musical ability notwithstanding − composed the songs that would feature on Ram. The couple flew to New York City in the fall of 1970 to record the new material. Lacking a working band, they held auditions for musicians, bringing some in under the guise of a session to record a commercial jingle. Denny Seiwell was recruited on drums, David Spinozza was tapped for guitar duties (later replaced by Hugh McCracken when Spinozza became unavailable), and Marvin Stamm was featured on flugelhorn on "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey". Although it was a collaborative project, Linda's vocal duties were mostly limited to backing Paul, who sang almost all of the lead parts. Linda sang co-lead vocals on "Long Haired Lady", however.

RINGO STARR - I DON'T BELIEVE YOU (1992)

Album: Time Takes Time (1992)

I stood in line overnight for 10 hours to try and get front row tickets to see Ringo Starr when he was booked to play Sask Place in Saskatoon in 1990. I stood in line with my friend Xylon Cozens. We got good seats but then overall sales were low so the show was cancelled.

I entered a national music trivia contest with RPM Magazine in spring 1992 and I was the only one to come up with the correct answer so I won a years subscription to RPM Magazine (Canada's Billboard magazine) plus 25 brand new CD's which included a copy of Ringo's brand new release. This was one of my favorites of 1992 while I lived on my own for the very first time renting the basement at 314 Cumberland Ave with my sister Leslie when I was 21 and in 3rd year University during our "anorexic phase".

July 29th 1992 - my #1 favorite daily song for 24 days at age 21 living on my own at Cumberland Ave.

Time Takes Time is the tenth studio album by Ringo Starr, released in 1992, his critically acclaimed comeback album. His first studio album since 1983's Old Wave, it followed a successful 1989/1990 world tour with his All-Starr Band. Aligning himself with top producers Don Was, Peter Asher, Phil Ramone and Jeff Lynne, the album was recorded sporadically throughout 1991. The material was written predominantly by outside writers, with Ringo co-writing three songs. Time Takes Time features several celebrity guests including Brian Wilson, Harry Nilsson and Electric Light Orchestra frontman Lynne. Time Takes Time also marked Starr's first alliance with Mark Hudson, both of whom would embark on a long-term musical partnership in the ensuing years. Hudson assisted in vocal arrangements on some of the Phil Ramone-produced tracks.

SPIRIT - GIRL IN YOUR EYE (1968)

Album: Spirit (1968)

The Beatles, Spirit and Yes are my 3 favorite bands of all time. I discovered Spirit in February 1988 at age 17 when I took a chance picking up a copy of their album 12 Dreams of Dr Sardonicus for $2.00 at Tramps record store downtown. They would go on to have more influence on my songwriting and overall varied taste in music as an adult than any other group. I discovered Spirit later than I had with The Beatles and Yes. The great thing to note is that my entire journey discovering their music has been documented from day 1 as I was already listing my daily favorite group, album and song by 1987.

April 17th 1995 - my #6 favorite daily song for 302 days at age 24 travelling on the road with Marilyn performing country for 1.5 years now.

Spirit's self-titled debut album is one whose multifarious experimentalism owes a lot to the contemporary successes of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Pink Floyd's The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. It marked the humble beginnings and grand aspirations of its eponymous authors. The eclecticism of Randy California's writing coupled Barrett's psychotropism with Morrison's West Coast bohemianism; and although the result proved somewhat inaccessible to the mainstream masses (at least commercially), it made the project ripe for underground FM airtime. The band would later curtail its psychedelia, focusing on a broader array of genres. This release was published first by Ode Records in 1968. It has since been reprinted by Sony, repackaged in compact-disc form and remastered from original analogue tapes.