Lying and The Grateful Dead

This isn't that story I was originally going to post, but I just got off work and this is running through my brain making me laugh (and cry inside):

Today at work, I put on Game Day so I have a Wii, Xbox and 360 set up for grades 3-12. I also had board games set up and was playing this game:

with about 6 kids. For those of you who don't know what Apples to Apples is, click here. It's a fun card game and the red card that I layed down to discribe the green card (Sexy) was the Backstreet Boys. The 'judge' showed the card to me asking what that was. My mom dropped open and I asked, "You don't know who the Backstreet Boys are?" She just looked at me in a seriously confused way, so I asked the group, who were all about 11 years old, if they knew who they were. They all returned my question with the say dumbfounded stares. So I explained that it was a band, hoping to jog their memory. They still had no clue who they were! Now I feel extremely old, even though I am only 19. I mean, I loved the Backstreet Boys when I was there age, and these kids didn't even know who they were! Ugh.

Anyways, back to what I was originally going to post about.

Disclaimer: I am going to admit that I LIED. In middle school. But not since then, of course. ;P

When I started middle school, I started to really get into music. As in, I would research all the bands that were popular at my school and illegally download it. Because the oldies were coming back my friends would talk about music I had never listened to, like The Beatles, The Grateful Dead, and Bruce Springsteen. I would just nod my head saying, "Ya, man, I totally love that stuff. Fave band EVER!" Clearly, I was flat out lying.

Growing up I never listened to that kind of music. I was partially raised at my grandparents house and to this day, I can remember maybe listening to 2 CD's, and they were instrumentals. I don't recall them ever listening to 'regular' music. When I lived with my dad, and in the later years my stepmom, we always listened to funky music like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dave Matthews Band, Alanis Morisette, Pink Floyd, Blues Brothers and the likes. Surprisingly, a lot of my friends hadn't heard of MY music, or they didn't like it(with the exception of Pink Floyd), so I just didn't mention any of it.

Fortunately, I grew out of the "I hope everyone likes me" stage and I openly love my music now. I still listen to Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dave Matthews and Alanis almost everyday, even if it's just one song. Obviously I have branched out a lot more from what I listened to in 7th grade.

I am, however, extremely happy that I was NOT raised listening to the Grateful Dead because seriously, what kind of music is that? (Sorry to all the Deadheads out there) I did go to a Grateful Dead cover band, so I can at least say I tried to like them. It just wasn't doing anything for me. But it also may have been my eighth grade English teacher cough::Mr.Rhode::cough that ruined it for by making my class watch a VHS of The Grateful Dead in concert for MULTIPLE CLASS PERIODS. It may even have been an entire week of his class. I try not to remember that time of my life.

And now, because I like lists, here is one of some of my current favorite bands:

Rise Against

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Brian Benham

Flogging Molly

Amy Winehouse

Mad Hannans

Gogol Bordello

Zox

Pink

Katy Perry

Madeleine Peyroux

Young Jeezy (I know, start laughing)

No Doubt (old)

Jack Johnson

Mad Caddies

Blue Foundation

RX Bandits

Streetlight Manifesto

Dead Prez

Aaaand that's all I can think of off the top of my head that I would absolutely cry to be without.

Know of any other bands that should be added to my top list? Just tell me! I love learning about new bands.