Personal Tastes

I should take a step out of just life ticking along to cover how my own tastes in Music, Film and such developed here.

Most people I have spoken to seem to be most influenced by what Music and Films are made during their Teens. Certainly, that would answer be true of some of my friends who are more into Dance music than I. I seemed to be mostly influenced by stuff from the early eighties (from age 5->11, about 80->86).

Firstly music. Up until the age of 5, most of the music I had listened to was my parents stuff from the 60's and some 70's. Then I started to watch 'Top of the Pops' every week. I really found myself enjoying the pop music of the time. New Romantics, the end of Punk, some rock. This all got into my soul, and I never lost it. It is is considered sad to declare that this is the music you like. The decade that taste forgot, allegedly. However, to me, when I listen to that music, it brings back just good memories of just being a kid. I have since been to Eighties discos, and found that I can remember all the words, which friends both were both amazed at, and shocked at. Hey, they went to the club as well!

Since that time, I find that a lot of music just doesn't have that certain something that you got at the time, and whilst I can enjoy it, it doesn't invoke anything in me that the early Eighties stuff did.

Films: Almost all of my favourite films were either released about that time, or were constantly on telly. Star Wars (Eps 4/5/6 for any people who need the info), Superman 1 & 2, Clash of the Titans, Flash Gordon and the Indiana Jones films. All of these came from the end of the 70's/early eighties (mostly). Even for years my favourite Bond was Roger Moore. Sometimes it the Hammy nature of the film, sometimes the setting or the story. They just had iconic bits that I can watch over and over and over and over again. I think though, it is again, something that takes me back to being a young boy. Flash Gordon generally meant Christmas time, waiting for the extended family to arrive. Clash of the Titans, the first video recorder we had. Star Wars - who didn't want to be Luke Skywalker or Han Solo. Superman is just a great superhero.

Telly: I loved stuff based on books, and SciFi. Doctor Who just has to be down as probably one of my all time favourite shows. I got into StarTrek, Thunderbirds, StarFleet, Terrahawks. These have just stuck with me. I also liked a lot of the kids book adaptations that were on. The Box of Delights and The Chronicles of Narnia were doen fantastically well (although I'm sure by todays CGI standards, they aren't much) but they had the magic that I felt reading them. Also, something I probably shouldn't admit to, I liked some of the Saturday night 'variety' telly. The Paul Daniels Magic Show was just amazing, I loved magic and even had some of his tricks. Noel Edmonds Late Late Breakfast show just had entertaining stuff on it. In fact, I probably watched every incarnation of that until he ditched Mr Blobby on House Party.

This was my era, my time. Most things since have just never quite done it for me.