#727: An Aaron Xmas

GETTING MORE TALE #727: An Aaron Xmas

How many Aarons do you know? I know several, but only one that bombards me on a regular basis with mystery parcels!

We’ve written about Aaron many, many times in these pages.  There is a whole series of videos called Mike and Aaron go to Toronto, where we spend our money on all things musical.  Then there are the numerous albums and even holy grail items he’s found for me over the years.  Aaron is a non-stop fountain of music!

The truth is, he sends me far more stuff than I send in return.  Hopefully he’s not keeping track too hard.  But now it is Christmas!  I sent him a couple CDs last week (Max the Axe and Styx), and he has returned the favour with interest (as he usually does).  Let’s see what’s inside, shall we?

Riiiiiiiip!

Christmas came early indeed!  Aaron and I have discussed Gowan before.  Many today know Gowan as the lead singer of Styx, but before that he had a couple decades worth of a solo career under his belt.  I told Aaron, “I want to start a Gowan collection, all of it.”  Amazingly I didn’t find any last time we were in Toronto, but Aaron doesn’t quit.

Check this out:  the two Gowan albums I wanted most!  Strange Animal, and Lost Brotherhood.  Woah!  What names in the credits!  Tony Levin on stick and bass, on both albums.  Alex Lifeson (Rush) and Kenny Greer (Red Rider) on guitar for Lost Brotherhood.  Talk about the best of the best of the best.  And between the two albums, I get all the Gowan songs that I like (so far)!  Those would be “Strange Animal”, “A Criminal Mind”, and “All the Lovers in the World”.

But that’s not all!

Clearly, Aaron remembered that I once had a crush on “Sporty Spice”, Melanie C.  I even owned her first solo album Northern Star.  I still think Mel C is the best Spice Girl; she even worked with Bryan Adams.  She’s arguably the most talented and the one with the most integrity.  My crush is long gone, but she’s still beautiful today; even more than 1996.  Yeah, I still like Sporty!  Knowing this, Aaron bought me the “Unofficial” Sporty Spice In My Pocket book.  From this, I learned that Mel C once worked in a fish and chip shop.  What a couple we could have been.  I love fish!

 

You know, I wasn’t actually looking forward to Christmas, until now.  It’s been a horribly downer year for us.  Thank you again Aaron for the thoughtful gifts.  I’m feeling the spirit now!  Maybe I’ll go put some Christmas lights on.  I’m a “Strange Animal”, that’s what I know, but Aaron seems to know what makes me tick.

Thanks buddy!  Did you know that Sporty Spice was kicked out of a gym in Japan because they saw her tattoos and thought she was Yakuza?  Ominus Spiritus!

 

 

39 comments

  6. Hooray it arrived! I’m glad you dig. As it turns out, Gowan CDs are harder to find than they ought to be. But as you say, I am on the case! Still need to find you Great Dirty World. Do you have …But You Can Call Me Larry? Anyway. Haha yes I did remember you liked Sporty, I just threw that in as a lark. And she’s totally yakuza. Look at her. LOOK AT HER! Hahaha Enjoy Dude!

    COMMUNITY!!

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    2. I love Gowan. Always have, which caught ire from my friends when I was young; not sure why? He’s talented, and I always knew it. I recently acquired Great Dirty World on CD – found it at a VV…I was excited about it since I had it on cassette (13th birthday gift!).

      Aaron is THE BEST. His packages arrive when you least expect it, and when you most need a friend’s connection. I hope to meet him in person some day soon (and you too!). He is so thoughtful and mindful.

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      1. I liked the beard too. Funny, the kids didn’t like it when it was shorter and scratchy, but liked it once it grew out more. My lovely wife, however, was supportive and kept her thoughts to herself, but didn’t actually like its interference for smooches. I gotta say, when it comes to smooches from my lovely wife, the beard didn’t stand a chance so away it went, and post-haste! \m/ :) \m/

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  12. Another comment: Sporty Spice was my favourite too. Mel C is the most honest and down-to-earth. The one person who literally starved for her success. She is the best singer with the most talent.

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  14. I know this post is 3 years old, but I have to say – in the mid 90s I worked at a music distribution company in T.O. that represented a (then) major label-less Larry Gowan for distribution and promotions, and I met him a bunch of times, saw him perform dozens. He is a very, very nice guy and super down to earth. Total pro.

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    1. Hey thanks for the comment! I love hearing good stories about Gowan. Never heard a bad one yet.

      I noticed your name “seizure salad”. My wife suffers from seizures and I wish you all the best with that difficult condition!

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      1. Oh dear…my handle comes from the name of a radio show I used to host, I don’t actually have a seizure disorder. But thank you for the kind thoughts!

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