Been a while since my last Blog and if you've read any of them, you can see it's to do with my personal interaction with technology, creativity and I guess a common theme or purpose. One thing I haven't spoken about, is the present and it's here that causes a bit of sorrow and is why i've steered clear, but will address now...no matter how uncomfortable.
But before I do this, maybe it's worth summing up 'who' I think I am! I don't have the 'family thing' with marriage and Kids and don't miss it...cause it didn't happen! Yes, I often think what it may have been like to be similar to everyone else, but i've never felt like everyone else...of course, we all feel unique and maybe i've took it to extremes, not that I think I'm better or anything, just that I seem to see things from a different perspective.
Always been the quiet guy who tends to listen, rather than interject or be as assertive as I should be, but this contrasts with being a Musician that has stood on stages in front of 2000 people every weekend, which didn't bother me...the more people in the audience, the easier. Now this may come across as being negative, but really it's not...I've devoted my life to filling my synapses with knowledge and ignoring the chaff...I feel good about this, but then again, to be outside of the 'crowd' has its drawbacks.
This post has really come about because i've been working on a 3 prong attack for many years, with Audio skills, Web Skills and more recently Video Production Skills, all amassed over a period of 20 years or so and believed they would all converge at some point...but I've hit a Brick Wall! I find that this journey that I've sacrificed a lot for is coming to an end, due to the economics...or should I say, incompetence of our financial system...(leave that to another time)
At last, the 3 components were coming together, but I can see are now, just beyond my grasp. Maybe a change of direction is needed, maybe this never ending thirst for knowledge is wrong and I should look for something else...but I can't let it go. If you were to sum me up in one word, it would be "Creative"...to do things that no one else has done (or very few).
Please, it's not sad in any way, but I think I'll always stay on the fringe of things...just the realisation that you've gone down a road that ends, is a bit...err... difficult to swallow! ;-)
You hear all that stuff about music being the "Universal Language"...all those cliche' comments, but you know what it's like...you've all been there. A piece of music, a Song, a Band...even a genre that...I don't know...Defines you in some way! Speaks to you on a different and personal level that is difficult to describe, yet...completely overwhelming.
This was how it was for me with the explosion of House Music, when it hit our shores in 87. I completely fell in love with it...the sounds, the feel, the emotion and energy it radiated. Again, like my Break-Dancing days, it was a movement, but not an obvious one. There was nothing in the main stream, but 'tunes' would be passed between mates and I realised that things were changing.
Of course, from my last post, I left it with how I got into DJ'ing and spent all my money on Tunes (vinyl) and DJ'd in a trio at a dodgy fun pub in Coventry. From there we did the odd Warehouse party and met up in a dodgy field with a PA and loads of people of their heads...Acid had took hold...both the style of House and the Drugs! Never did any of that stuff...too dodgy!
With being DJ's though, we weren't just content with scratchin over tunes or beat mixing, we wanted to create our own mixes. Radio 1 on a Friday night was where you could hear good mixes (megamixes...so cheese...lol) and a lot of vinyl was released that had multiple trax mixed together...this is what we loved doing...creating a 5 minute mix with 20 or 30 trax in...I guess, creating a new tune from other peoples work...completely mainstream now...
We had our decks, but we also got hold of a 4 Track, which allowed us to record 4 different tunes at the same time (mono)...yes...this is bugger all compared to now, but back then in 88 it was the best you could get and it was all on Cassette. We'd use a snippet off this tune, speed another one up and chuck it over the top and see what happened...Great fun.
While buying loads of tunes and listening to Radio, It was a natural thing for me to want to come up with my own tunes...I knew the beats, the sounds the genre and wanted to do my own stuff...not really obvious to me at the time, but something that was the next step. I bought a Drum Machine (from my ex Step dad funnily enough) and had the first affordable home Samplers (Casio SK1)...it was crap and you know those Birthday Cards that sing Happy Birthday when you open them...well...they are ten times better quality than this thing I had!
I loved it though, I could recreate all the beats from my hero's (Todd Terry was mine) and sample sounds of a record and play new melodies on the keyboard sampler...of course, it had a built in Microphone and I used to chase the Cat around the house (Smokey) to get him to 'Meow' and then play it back at different pitches "mmmeeeeooowww....mmmeeeoowww...meow...mw)...poor Cat ;-)
We were doing this and sharing it about friends, but I saw an Ad in DJ mag (this was THE mag to get at the time) and it was a Studio training course in Birmingham, which was run by "The Commission". These guys were like Pop Stars to us as they did mixes for DMC (Disco Mix Club). I gave them a ring and had a chat and the bloke I spoke to said "well, if we think you're rubbish, we'll send you home"..err...I was a bit worried, but thought...yeah, I'll do it!
At £12/Hr (which was a lot back in 88) I booked in at the Studio (Unique Productions) for my course. I went on a weekday evening and caught the Bus. I got there early and turned up outside a row of Shops and thought..."This is dodgy" and waited until someone turned up (remember...no mobile phones back then)
This guy turned up and we did the usual greeting and while we entered the building and went up the Stairs, I nervously said "Isn't this where the Commission do their mixes?" He said, "Yeah...I am the Commission"...I was in AWE! As soon as I walked in the Studio I felt...I don't know...at home...like this is where I should be...fate I guess.
All these Synthesizers everywhere, Samplers, mixing desk...so Professional compared to me in my Bedroom and...and...you'll find it funny, but you know when you get a new Car, there's a 'smell'...well it's the same in a Studio..I can smell it now...lol. Well we went through a few things of the equipment and I played him a Cassette of my mixes, but also an idea I had based upon, just my Drum Machine and my cheap Casio Sampler...
I was at home...this was where my future lay...all my hopes and dreams at the time, to become a Producer like my heroes...to get all these ideas and tunes in my head out, that my skills and fingers couldn't do...this place could help and mold me...it did!
I stopped buying vinyl for a few weeks and used all of it to pay for Studio time and must have spent about £300 on being in the Studio, plus I had to pay for hiring an 8 Track recorder...I ended up with a Track that you can hear below...complete Shite when I listen to it now, but this sparked off an obsession that continues to this day, which I'll go into how I ended up being on Radio, in Magazines and being Signed by a Record Company...
You can hear below the outcome of my first ever track in 88...It's off Cassette, so sounds awful...but brings a smile ;-)
Of course, this wasn't strictly my first exposure to Music...At the age of 2 and being surrounded by Musicians (Mum and Dad) It was kind of in my Blood...lol. Yes, I had Blonde Hair then..and don't you just love that 70's Decor! ;-)
Me with the Microphone and Drum Sticks in my Hand...lol
Sunday, 23 May 2010
Music…hmmm…How can anyone describe Music?…can it be put into a sentence? People try, but for some reason it’s a part of us…evolution has kept it alive…it must aid us to be who we are for some reason. Every culture, creed and race has music and it’s a cliche’…’Music be the food of God’s (love)...well, from what I’ve heard over the years…I guess the Gods are here…and have always been here!
Of course, if you’ve read my previous blogs, you probably can sum up that I was instilled with Computer technology, but also spent my days spinning on my back...but there was something else…something that was guiding me in a way…something that I wasn’t aware of…don’t get me wrong…nothing religious, but something I didn’t understand…I found Music!
Growing up, I was surrounded by Music…my Step Dad was a Guitarist and my Mum played the Bass and sang…which is quite funny…as she’s only 5 foot nothing…lol! They were both in a band, with a Drummer and Rhythm Guitarist and used to gig around Workingmen’s Clubs. Mum used to take us to some of the gigs and it’s a classic tale in the family, that growing up, I used to fall asleep, while leaning on her Bass Cab…a huge Bass speaker, but I ‘absorbed’ it in some way…this was before my Stepdad was involved…but I can vaguely remember it.
Growing up around Music was fun and to me, it was just normal…my Mum practicing and SD getting his guitar out and recording it...I mean, every family did it right? They’d be Drums set up in the front room, loads of wires everywhere and gleaming Guitars in their stands…loud noises and rhythm…it was just normal!
One thing…I have to thank my SD (r.i.p) for, is that he introduced me to recording…how it was done and what could be achieved. He was a Geek and when I look in the mirror, I realises, I’m more like him than I want to acknowledge…I wouldn’t be doing or have done the things I have without him…would have liked to have been there when he passed…don’t get me wrong…he had a…err…not so good side, but in all honesty…through the ages of 7-12…he made a big impression on me…thank you!
Going back to the Music though…I’d grown up with hearing traditional instruments, but fell in love with the Synthesizer…of course, I didn’t know what one of them was then, but the late 70’s, early 80’s Sci-Fi Films were full of them, but in terms of Music…There was only one person I wanted to be…Gary Numan.
I just couldn’t comprehend this sound I was hearing…it was like all the Space Films I’d watched, but it was put to Music…a loner…serious, intellectual…This is how it started for me!
Wednesday, 12 May 2010
Acieeed…Acieeed
The late 80’s…I loved that time. From 87 to 89 was a very good time for me or at least my Brain Synapses seem to recall! House was born!
Early to mid 80’s wasn’t all about Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet etc There was a sub culture…an underground movement…that went hand in hand with the ‘Break Dancing’ I used to do. Hip Hop had arrived and just to let you know, Hip Hop wasn’t a style of music, it was a culture, combining Music, Art and Dance, but one that fell for!
Rap was one of the main, core types of music around and of course, Electro music was a huge part of this also. Around 86, the music started to change, with the tempo slightly raised to a Disco Beat (120 bpm+) and when certain pieces of Musical Instruments (Synthesizers) became affordable…The whole scene was kicked off in the US (Chicago, New York) and changed my life!
I left School in 87 and went straight into Engineering…Yes, drilled holes in bits of Metal, but it’s here that I met two guys who both had the same idea and love of music that I did…Jasper and Gaz! We all wanted to be Dj’s and back then, dance music was rap, house, soul…hard to explain, but they weren’t separated as much as it is today.
A favourite early house tune for me:
For me though, it was House and when it started to appear…it was like nothing else. Really simple beats, up-tempo and had sounds on the tunes that I’d never heard before. Myself and the other 2 guys, each bought a Record Deck and a Mixer (which is a story in itself) and started teaching ourselves to DJ (Scratching and Mixing).
It kind of exploded in 86/87, because there were new types of synthesizers that came out that Musicians wanted (Digital) and they just got rid of their old pieces for next to nothing. These were then picked up by the pioneers of House…using machines that weren’t intended to be used in the way they were using them…for instance, 2 of the main Drum Machines at the time were the Roland TR-808 and TR-909…these didn’t sound anything like real drums and were intended for use by Guitar and Bass players to go out and gig with…they hated them!
House pioneers, picked up these ‘cast aside’ pieces of equipment and used them as the core of their sound, rather than trying to apologise for using them! These bits of kit are still used as the raw source of electronic music today!
Pic of me and my Mum, when I was 17!
Anyway, in 88 we each go our own bits of kit and one thing I also did…don’t laugh…As well as working in a Factory during the week, I worked in a Bingo Hall calling Bingo! Yep…I did...though I was going out with the Bosses daughter and got paid for 5 shifts instead of 4! What this allowed me to do though was spend my money on Vinyl and to get all the latest US imports…because at that time…UK house music was a bit dire! So every Saturday morning, I’d get a Taxi into town, jump on the Train to Birmingham and be sitting outside Don Christie’s Record shop, before the bloke had even opened up!
You see, he used to get a delivery of Imports on a Friday afternoon and sort them out when he was closed, ready for the weekend. Now, I was really bad at this, but as there might only be a handful of Imports in the whole Country, the shop might only have 2 copies of a tune…if it was a good tune…I used to buy both! Just so, nobody else could have it for that week!
Back to Coventry on the Train, clutching my prized 12 inch’s under my arm…you know…I’ve just had a Flashback of the bag it they used to come in…lol. Once in Cov, it was off to ‘The Three Tuns’ Pub and I’d got to know the Dj there. Here, he would play out my tunes over the PA and I’d see who was ‘bopping’ to them…Bare in mind, this was quite a normal Pub…and here was this complete underground House blaring out…quite funny when I think of it.
The drinking laws changed and Coventry was one of the places to trial 12 hour drinking…before, the pubs shut at 2 in the afternoon. There was a ’fun pub’ in Cov (The Tally Ho) that opened in the afternoon from 1 until 4 and myself and the rest of the guys started to go.
Now, the Dj there (Shane) was playing chart music…all commercial crap that we hated and there was probably about 20 or 30 people in there (upstairs). We got chatting to him and I’d just got my Vinyl for the day and asked “Will you play them?” He was a sound bloke and did...then an empty dance floor started to fill!
He asked me to buy him the same tunes, but they were quite rare, so I made a profit on top...think I charged him £50 for 3 tunes, that cost me £15…lol Got him his tunes the following week and I’d just bought a load more, which he loved and I asked him if we could bring down our Mixer and have a go the following week? “Sure, no problem”.
All 3 of us practiced all week and got a few mixes sorted out and there I went on Saturday morning, with a ton of Vinyl and my mixer. Jasper turned up with some tunes and another deck (they only had 2 at the Pub) and we set up. I have to say the first time was one of the best times i've ever had. We were droppin' underground House, rap...scratchin' over tunes...the place went mad.
Shane was happy, 'cause he was getting paid and doing his favourite thing...chattin' up the girls, but for us...you can't describe it...playing all your latest tunes, scratchin', mixin' and it was loud as foook! ;-) After that first afternoon, nobody in the place wanted it to stop...we had massive beams on our faces, but unfortunately I'd drank quite a few Diamond Whites and smoked...err...a few things...came home and slept for 36 hours...my Mum can tell you about that (blush).
It then became a permanent fixture every week and in the space of a month, we changed the place from 30 people on a Saturday afternoon, to a place where they had to turn people away...200+...serious! We ended up getting Dj's from London coming up and doing 30 min spots...it was mental...and one the best times of my life...so far ;-)
It's funny...I didn't see myself as a Dancer...Poppin' wasn't just Dance to me, it was an expression, a way of fighting without punching...That's what it was all about! At the time, growing up in 'Cov' it was all Gangs and every area or School had Gangs...you walked into that area and you didn't know anyone, well...you'd get your Ass kicked! Maybe I'm painting a negative picture and maybe in reality, it wasn't that way...but it felt like it!
The whole Breakin' scene took off hugely...all the big Cities, London, Birmingham, Manchester etc got it first and Cov, which is just outside of Brum caught it. So you're thinking, "Well, it was just a bunch of lads (and girls) Dancing in the Street with a roll of Lino and and a 'Ghetto Blaster'"...err...no...it was life or death...seriously...it was a Battle against other Gangs (Crews).
Early on I realised what I was quite good at it...the whole Dance scene essentially broke down into Poppin' and Breakin'...Breakin' was probably the more energetic, exciting and dangerous, but Poppin' was more...I don't know...intellectual! Poppin' is what I did...and did very well!
Of course, in the early days before we formed a Crew, there were a few places you could show your skills and one in particular was near the Courtaulds building in Foleshill. This place was a Sports and Social Club, but on a Saturday afternoon, there were just hundreds of kids packed in and some of the main crews from around...including Future Shock. Electro music would be blasting out and every 5 minutes or so, you'd see kids gather round in a group...'cause there was a 'Battle' on!
So what was a Battle? Well essentially it was a case of someone doing a move and then the other person tried to do one better, until 1 of them gave up. Sounds simple, but in reality it was all about 'blowing out' the person...doing moves that took the piss out of them.
On one Saturday, I thought I'd make my move....but not just having a simple Battle...I'd take on one of the best in the West Midlands...Mr Freeze! I walked up to him while he was talking to someone, looked at him and he looked back and just knew...he was a veteran at this. I was about 14, in my cheap Hip Hop gear and he was this huge black guy in his late teens early 20's...all kitted out with the best gear...
The crowd could sense it, all eyes were on us both...BATTTLE CRY! With a crowd, gathered around us...maybe 5 or 6 deep...I started, did a bit of floatin', lockin' and tickin'...all my best moves at the time and thought...yeah...beat that! Now this guy was watching everything I did...he could tell what level I was at and knew how he would respond. This guy was about 10 feet away from me and in a blink of an eye...he floated all the way around me and then next thing I knew he was again standing 10 feet in front of me...only this time, he was wearing my Baseball Cap! All in a few seconds...I didn't even notice!
I was beaten and everyone knew it...it was my turn, but thought I'd save myself from anymore embarrassment, smiled and said "nah, nah", while waving my hand. Thing is, I got respect for that, not because I'd got beaten, but because I took on the best. Anyway, had a little chat with Mr Freeze after and he gave me some tips and encouragement...nice guy! I was determined then, I was gonna' get good!
Next time, I'll talk about the crew we formed (Sonic Beat), which ended up at one point being about 15 of us, where we practised and some of the scrapes we got into...especially one time when I 'broke the rules' and ended up with about 100 lads outside my house...looking for blood!
Of course, from my last post...I mentioned about the fact that I used to do 'Break Dancing'...this may come as a bit of a surprise to people that have met me in recent years, but...yeah...I did it! It wasn't just dance to me...it was a way of life...an entry into something that shaped everything that I am today. No it's not technical stuff, that's just a vehicle I use...it's one thing and one thing only...Creativity! To make or do something from just a thought...what's that saying? "Actions speak louder than words?"
Staying with the topic though, before I go into it...below is a video or an excerpt from a film that had a huge impact on me and countless others in 1985 who were part of...even though we didn't know at the time...a new movement...one that I embraced with every part of my body...Literally!
Maybe looks a bit old and tired now, but to me, still impressive. These 2 "crews" who played a part in the film, were real Crews at the time..."New York City Breakers" and the "Rock Steady Crew" and set the "Bar" at the time...but remember, there was no Internet at the time (or as we know it) so you couldn't find out what was going on...this Film, legitimised Street Dancing...and 'boy' did I fall in love with it.
The whole 'Hip Hop' thing came over to the UK in the early 80's and it wasn't just dance...it was a combination of Dance, Graffiti (or Art) and Music...that all were as important as each other, but for me, the Dance aspect was huge...this made me feel special, unique...a feeling that has stayed with me ever since...but it was bloody fun...sometimes dangerous and hand on heart, what i'm doing today and what i'll end up doing, is all because of this time in my life.
As mentioned in my previous post, it all started with Michael Jackson, when he did the 'Moon Walk" ...it was like..."how the Hell is he moving backwards, but looks like he's walking forwards"...I had to find out and my Kitchen that had Lino tiles was going to be my 'Test Ground'...I must have worn out countless pairs of Socks practicing that move, but then through School, the 'Wave' came in...this was the start for me, as well as probably the first Film that really went into the culture (Breakin') but was a cheesy movie, but opened my eyes to what was possible...
For now, i'm going to leave it at that, but my next post's will go into the type of Dance I did, how I nearly got the crap kicked out of me in a Battle and how we ended up doing shows in Workingmens Clubs doing this...but for now..."Ain't no Stoppin' Us"
The mighty ZX Spectrum…no other ‘Home Computer’ has ever been this successful…well, ok, maybe a few others, but this was a great machine when ‘we’ got it.This was when gaming got good…
I’ll take you back to 1983 (the picture wobbles and you hear the sound of a Harp)…ahem!Here I am at the age of about 12 and the Spectrum had been out for almost a year.It was my Brother’s Birthday and he got the Spectrum.Now picture this…if you wanted to play a decent game back then, you had to go to maybe your local Video Shop or an Arcade in town.There were a couple of video consoles around, but they were pretty crap and of course, you had to buy the games…not anymore!
Now, please note, I don’t advocate piracy in any form, but because the Spectrum was so popular, all you needed to do was borrow a game off a mate, get two cassette recorders, play on one and record on another (these were even traded at School) and there you go…Jetset Willy for the next 2 weeks!
My Lazer computer was crap by comparison because they went out of business and apart from the game that resembled some ‘guy pissing down into a Bucket’, there wasn’t much choice…or you could program your own and well…bugger that!
There were so many games available that we had hours of fun with it.Granted by today’s standard, the graphics were rubbish but the gameplay was pretty good, with Attic Attack being my favourite.My Brother preferred Manic Miner and he was very good at it…it was all about “What sheet are you on”…not level or anything…”Sheet” WTF!
Of course, if you want to see what all the fuss was about, you can play these games now:
Ahhh…memories!Sadly, this was to become my last interaction really with Home Computers until several years later.Though, around this age 12/13, my destiny was before me (or so I thought at the time).In 1983 Michael Jackson showed the world his Moonwalk.Hip Hop, Breakin’ and Body Poppin’ was coming in…and if I say so myself, I was pretty good at it.
Next up…Sonic Beat are born!...(That's me to the right)
As I was the youngest in the family, it was thought that to have my own Computer would be a bit too over the top…I mean “He’s just a Kid”.I was about 11 at the time and just started Secondary School, where I had ‘Computer Lessons’.I can still remember the first lesson…I sat at the back of the class and the Teacher started to introduce himself to the class and gave an outline of what we would be doing.
He then started to talk about Computers and gave a brief description and stated “they run on BASIC”…”Does anyone knows what BASIC means?”…ha hah…it was my chance…you see, I’d already wrote programs, or should I say input them from magazines…with complete silence in the class, I raised my hand…”Yes…what is it?” while pointing at me, “Beginners All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code” I answered with complete confidence!The other kids looked at me like I was ‘Teachers Pet’ and the Teacher looked a little amazed that some average looking kid in a not so great Secondary School…new the answer…but I did!
Christmas then came and to my delight, I got my first and very own Computer…Enter the Laser 200!The what?Yeah, it kind of fell under the Radar a little, but it was all mine.I had a Cassette player with it and plugged it into the spare downstairs TV.It was better than the ZX81 my Brother had, because it was in colour and had sound, plus it had a ‘Hi-Res’ mode.It had a whopping 4k of memory and came with a few games on tape.
I loved it, small rubber keys that beeped when you pressed them and looked great.I had to wait for the January sales (yes, back then, they actually happened in January) to use my Xmas money to buy some more games and a RAM pack.Now…bear in mind this was nearly 30 years ago, but you just have to trust me on this…Imagine having about 6 or 7 DVD cases stacked on top of each other and you get close to the scale of this extra memory.“How much extra did you get?” I hear you cry…wait for it…16k!Yep, 16k.
This gave me access though to some better games…of course there was Chess, for some reason every new Computer came with Chess, but there was a game that used the ‘Hi-Res’ mode (basically, the blocks were a little smaller) and cannot for the life of me remember what it was called, but I can only describe it as a ‘Man’ on top of a high rise, shooting things into Buckets below…unfortunately, it didn’t really look like shooting…it was more like an electronic ‘Stickman’, peeing off the top of a building into a Bucket.
Not long after, my Brother got the mighty ZX Spectrum and I’ll talk about that some other time, but I can remember, clear as day that our Stepdad at the time, set us a task to write a Program ourselves…we jumped at it, as it wasn’t that often you could do anything to impress the Man, so with my Brother all set on his new Spectrum and me on my Laser…we set to work one Saturday.
The biggest movie at the time was Tron.It was probably the first CGI movie and in the local Arcade, the Tron game was the most popular…Light Cycles, the Frisbee thing and if you’ve ever seen the film, it ends with the ‘Hero’ throwing one of these Frisbee things at the evil Computer and destroying for all time…mind you, the new Film is out soon, so I guess not…”End of Line”!
So, I decided that my Program was going to recreate this ending, with animation and sound…it was gonna’ be Ace!I can’t remember what my Brother wrote, but I spent ages and ages on this Program.One good thing about my Laser is that you could program each button to play a different Musical note...of course, it was just a beep, but you could specify the note and the length (If only I knew then, how much of an impact this would make to me in the future).
So here I am, been on it all day and it was finally finished…When I ran the Program an animated version of the evil Computer showed, with the theme tune to Tron playing over the top…all in different colours…it was great.The Stepdad decided to see what we had done and looked at my Brothers code…but can’t remember what he said, but then he looked at mine…I ran the Program and he seemed to like it, then asked me to ‘List’ the Program…He just laughed at it, but not in a good way “You’ve just used PRINT@ statements, not PEEK and POKE”…he was a ‘Better Boy’…anything you could do, he could do better.
I was left there sitting in the corner of the living room, looking at my Program list and felt humiliated, small and cried for the rest of the day…I was proud of what I had done, I’d done it all on my own, with no help, but it was no good.In a way, this moment kind of put me off Computers or should I say the Programming side and it wasn’t until much later when I got into Music Production when I was 17/18, that my interest started again.
Anyway, shortly after having the Laser, the company went ‘Bust’ and you couldn’t buy any games or anything, but that didn’t matter, the game market exploded with the release of the ZX Spectrum that my Brother had and this will be the topic of my next post…The ZX Spectrum…Gaming had arrived!
No my friends...that's not a picture of a Door wedge, it's actually a Computer and in 1982 it was at the forefront of home computing! Oh, ok...by modern standards, it really has no other use...other than to be a Door wedge, but it brings back some good memories.
My eldest Brother had decided to join the Navy and off he went at 16/17, leaving myself and my other Brother who is a couple of years older. For his Birthday in 82 (I think), he got a surprise...the mighty Sinclair ZX81!
I kid you not, this was a big deal...no longer did we have to bother our Stepdad anymore with "Can we play on the Computer please?" Only to be met with a stern and miserable face...in fact looking back, it's probably why he bought it, so we didn't bother him. Anyway, this was it...we had our own...or should I say my Brother did! He then had to put up with me saying "Give us a go, give us a go":-)
We'd seen the advert in a magazine and I seem to recall it was on 'Tomorrows World', but not too sure. Well, this was it, I can still remember my Brother setting it up on the floor in the Bedroom, connected to a portable TV...it didn't matter too much about the quality of the tv as the ZX was in black and white and didn't have sound. It had a huge memory of 1k...yes, that's right...not a gig or meg...just 1000 bytes of memory!
You'd be surprised though, how much you could do with it, but by modern standards it was crap. At this time there were a few other Computers on the market and what you could do is buy magazines that had programs printed out. You'd get the mag, spend and hour typing it in and sometimes they even worked! The downside though was that when you turned the Computer off...it all went and you'd have to start again! Oh, didn't I mention that...sorry, you couldn't store anything!
There was one game we used to play for ages that we typed in...a kind of Pitfall, but with a stick man and black blocks and gray blocks...pretty naff when I think of it, but we had hours of fun. BASIC was already built in, so no need to load in and we could program to our hearts content...though I've got to be honest, I wasn't that good at it...mainly because he was mean and wouldn't let me play on it...lol
Then again, I was still young and had my Action Men to play with...and believe me, it was more fun to tie a line from the Bedroom window, down to the Shed door, attach a keyring and let my Action Men go from the window...but making sure I pulled the string from his back...he'd glide down at the speed of sound, shouting "Enemy Tanks approaching" ;-)
This didn't last, as I was about to get my very own Computer...The "Laser 200"...What?...err...yeah, you might not have heard of this one!
Computers! Yes, those big pieces of plastic that we sit in front of, pretty much every day...of course, if you're Mac based, well...there's a little less plastic, but the sentiment is the same. We're almost like modern day Gunslingers, with our Mobiles and Laptops, closely at our side...ready to swing into action at a moments notice. You know, it's quite funny when you walk into your local Saloon, pass through the swinging doors...err..ok, maybe not, but you see it all over...
People thrusting Mobile phones into other peoples faces (or their own) and taking pictures that are then sent straight to Facebook or some other account. The behaviour has changed...I don't seem to remember people taking out Polaroids into Pubs and Clubs...so why? Going back to the start of the post, I mention 'Computers' and will go through my journey of using them from a Kid, what I used them for and where they took me.
My first use of a Computer, was the one you can see above...A Sharp MZ80K. My Stepdad (at the time) used to work for the Jag and 'did something' with Computers...I guess the first foray into CAD. Anyway, this was before my School even had Computers! He (RIP) was a nerd, a geek and anything gadgety, he bought it. One day, delivered to the house back in 1980 (I think), came a load of heavy Parcels...It was here...the Computer he'd been talking about for ages, with my Mum saying it was a complete waste of money, but us kids couldn't wait to see it.
Nobody in my School had one, we were the first family to have one in our area, I felt such a snob, even at the young age of 8! Of course, it wasn't our Computer...it was his...and it was made known! After being unboxed and being amazed, saying "wow...it uses tapes!". I was very impressed. It was all set up, ready to turn it on...me nearly peeing myself in anticipation...He then got the manuals out! :-(
They were huge, in ring binders and almost half the size of me!...nearly an hour later (it felt like that) he turned it on..."Beep...then a single white block flashing"...err...Is that it? Ahh, of course, I didn't know, but you had to load in "BASIC" before it would do anything or you could write 'Machine Code' (001100110 etc). Tape was put in, loaded after 20 mins or so and then...it still didn't do anything. My Stepdad turned to myself and my brother and said "You have to program it to do something". Gotta' say, that didn't really mean too much to me, but then he loaded in the Games...Ha hah...That's more like it! Chess!
There were loads more Games like Space Invaders, Ten Pin Bowling and even a Star Trek game...My Brother and I loved it. There was a 'not so good side' in that my Stepdad wouldn't let us use it when he wasn't around and all the BASIC and game tapes we're locked away in a Military style foot locker (I kid you not).One day though...we had a plan! The Space Invaders game, didn't run on BASIC, it was pure Machine Code...which happened to be printed out into a ring binder...so what did we do?Lasting about 3 or 4 hours, we input Binary Code straight into the Computer, with me reading it out and my Brother typing it in...Yes, for nearly 4 hours we typed in '000110001000 etc...and at the end of this, thinking we could play for a few hours before he got home...it didn't work! :-(
Over time, the School got some BBC Computers, but I had the upper hand...why? Because he used to make us do programming lessons after School...So if you want to know or are slightly interested, where it all started for me...it was here:
Been a while since my last Blog and if you've read any of them, you can see it's to do with my personal interaction with technology, creativity and I guess a common theme or purpose. One thing I haven't spoken about, is the present and it's here that causes a bit of sorrow and is why i've steered clear, but will address now...no matter how uncomfortable.
