I love a good book and I love all types of books, but my earliest memory of actually being really sucked into a story and not wanting it to be over when I finished was A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin.
I liked it for two reasons. First, it introduced me to the magic of fantasy with tales of wizards, witches and dragons. Secondly, weaved within the spells of the storyline was the battle the main character Ged was having with the shadow he created that was a part of himself. The story details his quest to conquer that shadow resolving only when he realizes they are one in the same. I was assigned to read it back in High School where I was battling my own inner dark feelings and I remember having a powerful identification with it. Through the magic of the pages I could lose myself and find myself. Eventually I would grow to understand the message of the book, and the immense power of my own dark shadow.
2. Little House On The Prairie
I know, I’m a total dork and I am totally dating myself but I must have seen every episode of this tv series a trillion times growing up and still find myself transfixed occasionally when I come across it on cable.Good, clean moral fun I guess – and since I’ve spent much of my adult life adhering to none of those qualities, I always have a good old-fashioned episode of Little House to remind me of my more wholesome younger days.
Who wouldn’t want Ma and Pa as parents or the opportunity to take a swing at the conniving Nellie Olsen? But on a more serious note, it was just great tv – amazing stories that made you laugh, cry, root for, wish for, and identify with the characters of Walnut Grove. The clip here is from one of my favorite episodes where Nellie pretends to be paralyzed as a result of actions by Laura.
3. Fleetwood Mac‘s Rumours
Simply put, I live and breathe this record. I’ve listened to it thousands of times – I know every note from start to finish and still after thousands of listens I find new things. I’m fascinated by the craftmenship of the songs and when the three voices of Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie, and Stevie Nicks come together in unison on tunes like “The Chain, “Go Your Own Way” and “Gold Dust Woman” it’s heaven flowing through your ears. “You Make Loving Fun” is pure magic woven off the keyboard of Christine McVie, her impossibly steep vocal climb on the chorus lifts you to the clouds and leaves you basking in the honey of her voice. Lindsey’s guitar solos keep you rooted and rocking throughout while everyones favorite witchy woman Stevie Nicks sprinkles her beatnik fairy dust leaving you lost in her shadow.
This album defined the sound of a decade, incorporating folk, classic rock, pop, and harmony singing over the bluesy rythym section of bassist John McVie and drummer Mick Fleetwood. They were the ultimate cool and the created one of pop music ultimate records. My current favorite tune off the record (it always changes):
Mike Acerbo is a singer songwriter who currently lives in NYC. His debut Album “The Search” releases on Feb 14th 2012 .
Acerbo’s album The Search has been a long time in the making. A project that was once put on the shelf in light of the tragic loss of his mother, brother and a close friend, the end result is a beautiful, dark album that has a depth reminiscent of Sufjan Stevens, Fleet Foxes and an eerie mystical feel that battles that of Florence & The Machine.
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