(The following is an excerpt from my book, The Music of My Life: A Personal History)
My big sister Nicole had a record player next to her bed—a GE Concert Hall Model 332 with detachable speakers. It wasn’t exactly what you’d call hi-fi, but it got the job done.
I can still remember sitting on the floor next to it spinning 45s like “Jackie Blue” by the Ozark Mountain Daredevils and Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Nicole also had a few of those compilation albums like Night Sounds and Full Tilt, which were mostly produced by K-Tell. That’s how I was first introduced to classics like Eddie Rabbit’s “I Love a Rainy Night,” Billy Idol’s “White Wedding,” and Devo’s “Whip It.” We also listened to non-music records like the adventures of Hop-along Cassidy and The Rankin/Bass version of The Hobbit, which scared the crap out of me, especially when we’d listen to it in the dark. Nicole also had the album Disco Duck by Rick Dees & His Cast of Idiots, which I destroyed one day when I left it on the record player right next to the window, and the sun melted it. (Sorry, Nicole!)
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