1985: Music defined by radio and siblings

105.7 WAPL - The Rockin Apple

I grew up with nothing around my house but cornfields. This area of the boondocks was called Darboy USA, a "suburb" of the city of Appleton. Appleton was a city of 66,000 at the time. One thing I could see from my yard was the radio antenna for 105.7 WAPL, The Rockin' Apple. "The best classic rock, the best new rock." When you are a child, you see this long radio antenna with flashing red lights. Being on the gullible side, I didn't have a frame of reference for size... it could have been an antenna or a tower! I had just assumed that EVERY song on the radio was being played LIVE inside that tower somewhere, hence the flashing lights - that's where the bands play! I don't know if I imagined the radio antenna was like a big elevator shaft, with rooms to perform going all the way up or what.

For example, if "Walk This Way" by Aerosmith was playing on the radio, I assumed Aerosmith was in town playing it live inside that radio antenna. It's funny because I don't remember anyone ever telling me this... it was just one of those early creative theories I had as a five year old that couldn't be further from the truth.

As I grew up, 105.7 WAPL wasn't as cool as I thought it was. It was just the coolest available. My gripe is this... they played a TON of Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Beatles, Grateful Dead and The Eagles constantly. Nothing against these bands, but I grew an distaste to them over time. Tommy and Mike even helped coin a saying "if Bruce is 'the Boss,' then I QUIT." Haha.

Nowadays, the only one I can really stomach of the bands I mentioned above is the Rolling Stones and some Springsteen. This overplaying of music was the first sign that radio stations can RUIN good bands for you. In these days of the mid 80's, they wouldn't play "heavy" music, even if it was popular. They wouldn't play Metallica during the day. If you called in to request it, they wouldn't even take that as a request until after 10:00pm. It was considered way too heavy for daytime airplay. The heaviest you could get during the day was probably Hendrix. Thank God for Jimi. To their credit, they played a lot of other good stuff too. This is where my musical tastes started to develop.

I was just really lucky to have an older sister and two older brothers. Being the youngest came with all sorts of perks. I wasn't "up to me" to seek and find what was cool. I was able to soak up what my siblings liked and usually that's what I liked to. I had my own identity since all kids a certain age like certain things... like He-Man and Star Wars and such. But when I was little, my older brothers had a rock cover band when they were in HighSchool. It was called Defiance.

Defiance

Their shows were often really elaborate with lots of speakers, pro sound, and stage lights... just crazy. They practiced in my basement and my mom & dad would buy Darboy Fried Chicken (not to be confused with KFC) and they'd stay for dinner. My dad helped out with a Keyboard, PA and other essential equipment... and supported them with funds to get started. The next thing you know they are playing bars all over... even opened for Ratt and Lita Ford at Green Bay's Brown Country Arena! My oldest Brother Tommy wielded this white Gibson Explorer, while Mike did lead vocals and played keyboards. That's the music.. how about the dress? We are talking about leather pants, bandanas, 80's sunglasses... the works. They covered all sorts of Bon Jovi, Ozzy, Judas Priest, Van Halen, Rush, Loverboy, Prince, etc. A great party band indeed.

Their guitar player was this kid named Michael Boyle from Appleton. I looked up to Michael Boyle quite a bit... all of them really. But I always wanted to play the guitar. He was a flashy player... had really puffy hair, and my brothers would jokingly call him Buckwheat after the Little Rascals. So that's what Tommy and Mike called him all the time. After HS, Defiance fizzled out... and I wouldn't see Boyle again for about ten or so years. So let's fast forward to 1994. He was working at my favorite guitar store when I was a teenager, Henri's Music in Appleton. I recognized him and said "Buckwheat!" You should have seen the look on his face. Saying that meant I was old school, but I looked too young to know him from that time. I'm Tommy & Mike Bongers' little brother. Being known as one of my "siblings' little brother" was usually a good thing, so it never bothered me one bit.

1983 - Kiss: Lick It Up

Kiss took off their makeup? I couldn't believe it!

I knew of Kiss because I had an Ewok movie (Star Wars) on the same VHS tape as Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park. The Ewok movie was a Lucas Film afterthought... a "made for TV" movie that had the little bear looking creatures from Return of the Jedi. Kiss Meets the Phantom of The park was another "made for TV" movie from 1978 that featured Kiss as a rock band/super heroes that saved a theme park from an evil and maniacal roller-coaster and prop engineer. It's a lot like a Scoobie Doo episode! That was one of my favorite VHS tapes growing up.

In 1983 Kiss released Lick It Up. My brother Tommy had the record, and I was shocked. I readily noticed the KISS logo on the album cover, but there were no comic book-like superheroes on the cover! What happened? I couldn't fathom it. I remember going to the basement and seeing my brothers' stack of records, and Lick It Up was in the front for a while. I would walk past it and stare at Gene Simmons long tongue.

My previously favorite KISS member Ace Frehley wasn't even pictured. Where was Space Ace? He had left the band, and they replaced him with this Randy Rhoads/George Lynch type (read fast) guitar player named Vinny Vincent. It would be years later when I found out that Vincent wrote many of the songs on the Lick it Up album. From a "guitar history" perspective, Jackson guitars were made for Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhoads. Randy died in a plane crash in 1982. Vinny Vincent would go on playing the same Jackson "offset V" guitar prototyped, developed, and named after Randy Rhoads. Vincent was one of the few to want to play the guitar and keep its popularity strong in the guitar industry. I think without Vincent's and a few others' desire to play the guitar, the Jackson Randy Rhoads model might have disappeared.

In 1983, Ace Frehley started a band called Frehley's Comet. His drummer Anton Fig would appear later in 2009 in one of my favorite blues/rock bands. It's actually really funny to see photos of him in a metal outfit next to Ace Frehley.

I also came to find out what Ace looked like without makeup. The dude is UGLY. Not that it mattered. His face was banged up from fights and car wrecks he'd been in. Although I missed the makeup, Frehley's Comet still featured a lightning bolt outfit not entirely different than something Jimmy Page would have worn in the 70's, and Ace's signature Smoking Les Paul guitar.



I would grow through my childhood years really liking the band Kiss even without makeup, but always wishing that they would get Ace back AND put back on the makeup.

I won't lie, I've blown out birthday candles wishing for that to happen... so I can say some birthday wishes come true! (eventually) Conan O'Brien announced the press release in 1996... it was SO cool. But I will be talking more about this later.

1983 - Every Breath You Take

The Police - Synchronicity album

The music video for Every Breathe You Take was one I'll always remember. This was WAY before we had cable at our house... and I didn't know what Mtv was. I was at my Auntie Ann's house. My sister, my Mom and I were visiting her and my cousins Jennifer and Jimmy. There was a band or a guy playing a stand up bass and playing a song I knew from the radio. I didn't know if it was live, or what channel it was even on. I knew the TV was color because of the commercials so I couldn't figure out why the video was in black and white. Looking back at this video you can sort of see why the Police broke up. Sting was sort of the focus, and it didn't really seem like a band.




The Police had other hits on the Synchronicity album like Wrapped Around Your Finger. It was a good, but very dark ballad. I wouldn't really notice that song and others on the album until college. "Wrapped" also apparently had the interest of pop artist John Mayer, who happens to be the same age as my sister. Mayer included a lyric about Wrapped Around Your Finger in his song called 1983. "It's a bitter sweet feeling hearing Wrapped Around Your Finger on the radio." Songs can take you back to a time and place. I myself have hundreds of them; that is the sole reason I chose to write this autobiography.

Even overrated rapper Puff Daddy thought to make reference to the Police. He ended up rewriting some of the Every Breath You Take lyrics and doing a Biggie Smalls rapper tribute. The rapper Notorious B.I.G. was shot and killed, and Puff Daddy's "I'll be missing you" version of Every Breath You Take took off in popularity. I was in college at the time, and I wasn't really a fan of the remake. You won't be seeing post about it when i reach the 1999 posts. Puff Daddy is a rapper who changed his name half a billion times and got popular riding other artist's coat-tails. Hence the tribute song. Just my two cents. I will post it so you can decide for yourself.

Movies, TV Shows, and movie soundtracks of the early 80's

Movie soundtracks & TV Shows were big in the 80's, from what I could remember.

When I was very little, these were movies floating around our house: Mel Brooks' History of the World Pt. 1, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas starring Dolly Parton, Porky's, and Tom Hanks in Bachelor Party. This is a musical autobiography, but there is something to be said about movie soundtracks... they were really good for the time. With exception to music, my parents were pretty strict about TV & movies; but I ended up being exposed to some of it in small doses regardless because my older brothers played them. My family was strict on values, trust, and responsibilities

VHS rentals were on the cutting edge of technology and my family slowly embraced it. Eventually going to a Catholic grade school must have evened out any mind tainting I could have received from watching VHS tapes and/or my older brothers. I was a good kid. Plus, from what I've heard... the tighter the leash, the louder it snaps. I've seen it happen. Metaphorically, I was the youngest of four - so I don't think I had a proverbial "leash." My parents knew what was going on, I mean they already had three kids more than likely go through whatever I was at the time... so from my perspective, they let me slide because my older siblings broke them in. In my siblings' eyes, I just never got in trouble.

The Incredible Hulk TV Show

I used call him the "credible Hulk" ... which sort of make him sound like he would be a good witness in court. I used to REALLY like the show with exception to one part. When Lou Ferrigno turned from human to the incredible hulk, it TOTALLY freaked me out. I used to run up and down the hall screaming until it was over. Then I'd sit back down and watch the Hulk kick butt and take names! I remember having Incredible Hulk pajamas and whatnot.

Dukes of Hazzard TV Show

The "Good old Boys" from Hazzard County were ALL the rage when I was really little. So much to the point where I had tons of Dukes of Hazzard "General Lee" matchbox cars. I would lose them constantly, so my mom would just keep an extra in her pocket for when I'd freak out. Bo and Luke Duke were fun to watch, but why did they never opened their doors? I saw it had door knobs, so I thought they were just being cool. Story is they were welded shut because it's a racecar, but then why have door handles on it? I digress.

The characters on this show were priceless... a corrupt fatman running things that constantly eats, a long legged damsel named Daisy Duke who popularized very very short jean shorts. And a father figure in Uncle Jesse. Even the town mechanic Cooter was a great character on the show. Most memorably, the sheriff's name was Roscoe P Coletrane, and he weilded a revolver and a hound named Flash. We had a doberman named Flash.

The one thing that lives in our family to this day is a deviation of one of Roscoe's sayings... his laugh actually. Although it sounds like "goo-goo!" We heard it as "Q-Q." Whenever Roscoe did something sneaky, fun, or feels accomplished for whatever reason, he would say that. We took a cue from that and started saying "Q-Q!" whenever we did something worthy. Texters and bloggers of today would instead say FTW or "for the win." Same thing. :) Q-Q!

Introduction

How many bands that came out since 1979 are still around?

It seems that as time goes on, twenty and thirty year reunions are becoming more of the norm. As my autobiography filled out, I was impressed that I associated both one hit wonders AND what I consider more legendary bands equally as part of my life's experiences.

I remember where I was, what I was doing... and the people I was around so vividly just by hearing certain songs. Everybody has songs like these and "where were you" memories. Whenever I hear a song that reminds me of something, I tell someone who was there about "that one time." Their reply is usually something to the effect of "man, I totally remember that... but I wouldn't have unless you brought it up." This is a collection of said memories.