Play I Some Music

This post is a loooong one. So, I may be breaking this bad mutha up into roughly tres parts. We'll see how it goes. Sit back, get comfortable and read.

For as long as I can remember, I've always had a very strong fondness for music. I remember being a wee litt'l lass, riding in my parents' car and singing along to whatever was on the radio. And at 2, hearing Carly Simon's "Jessie" and saying to my parents, "Jess. I like that. Just-call-me-Jess." And so it was. And now many people know me only as 'Jess' - 26 years later. It stuck.
As my love of music continued to grow, so did I.
My lullabies at the age of 5, 6, 7, 8 & on up were the various Bob Marley songs that my dad was listening to at that time. I remember everytime he got a new Bob Marley and the Wailers cassette, we'd be listening and I would study the 'album' art. I remember my favorite to look at was 'Survival'. And I loved to say 'Babylon By Bus'. I would repeat it over and over inside my head.
Dad would also watch various Bob Marley concert videos, which usually contained interviews. I was so taken with Marley's presence on stage. He seemed to be floating there. As if his very presence had infiltrated the entire area - and everyone there. I loved watching the I-Three's. Swishing their skirts and swaying, in unison, from side-to-side. I thought Rita Marley had the most beautifully organic facial features and the most beautiful skin. She reminded me of Mother Earth.
I loved the horns. The sound was so electric to me. The sound penetrated every pore, woke every nerve. And gave me goosebumps - and still does. 'Exodus', for example. An in-your-face, forboding song. The horns aren't the cornerstone of that song. But when you hear them, you know it. They make their presence known. They're almost saying: "Here we come. Do You Hear Us?"
In second grade, I received a Rainbow Brite record player. (Yeah, shut up). I thought I was the shit. I also received two albums. The albums were Bob Marley and the Wailers' "Legend" and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's "Born to Run". Oh my god. I thought my head was going to explode. First of all, Bob Marley was already my life-line. But I listened to that "Born to Run" album over and over. I decided then and there, after listening to Clarence Clemons wail away on the Alto Saxophone, that that was for me.