Rock and Roll

My dad takes each of his kids on a weekend away every summer. Good father and son bonding time. This year, we went to Cleveland. We stayed with his aunt and uncle, Pat and Jack Nantz. We got there around 2:30 am Saturday after driving all Friday night. Saturday morning we went to Denny's and had a big breakfast. It was great. But then came the best part of all. The R.R.H.O.F.M.

For all you laymen out there, that's the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame Museum.

Giant glass pyramid reminiscent of the one in front of the Louvre (no big surprise since they were designed by the same architect). Unfortunately they don't let you take pictures inside. But let me explain why this museum was different than most other museums. Let's say you go to an Art museum. On the wall you will see paintings by famous artists. The Mona Lisa, by Leonardo Da Vinci. Starry Night, by Vincent Van Gogh. Japanese Bridge by Monet. This is the product of their artistic talent. But Rock 'n' Roll...Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin. My Generation by The Who. Johnny B. Goode by Chuck Barry. You have already experienced these. Outside of the museum. You have heard them on the radio, in your CD player. Now you go to the museum and what is there for you to experience? Well imagine now that you have seen previously a painting: "Self-Portrait without ear" by Vincent Van Gogh. Now you find there is a musem where you can go and see, next to the painting, Vince's actual ear. And the knife he cut it off with. And the box he wrapped it up in. And the packing slip where he mailed it to Paul Gaugin. All in a glass case, with a little placard explaining to the uneducated viewer exactly why he cut his ear off and mailed it to Paul Gaugin. And of course some of you already know why, and you smile in recognition and stand in awe over the artifacts, while others are genuinely educated by the experience. This is what it is like to be at the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame. Let me give you an excellent example.

See that album cover? See the bass guitar about to be smashed? Well at the museum, I saw that bass guitar. A 1965 Fender Precision Bass - predecessor to the one that I blogged about last time. The neck was snapped totally in half, connected only by the loosely hanging bass strings, and the body was deeply cracked. Now some of you would already know that London Calling is the most influential album by the Clash, the most influential punk band of all time. You would already be prepared to tell today's snotty little Green Day fans that their favorite band wouldn't even exist if it weren't for this album. You probably already know exactly where bassist Paul Simonon was when the picture was taken. Others of you have never heard of this band before, and would've learned a great deal from the display at the museum. I fall somewhere in between.

But everyone has their hobby, and this museum was like a Mecca to me.