RememberingAaron.org - Aaron's favorite tunes

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Aaron's favorite tunes

Written by Brian Julin

Wednesday, 03 January 2007

Aaron loved to be the master of the stereo system wherever he went. If you know a particular song he was especially fond of (yes, I know, he liked them all) please do post. There have already been some suggestions made to us about music to use for the event and for any after-event activities, and we'll pass along suggestions for that to Aaron's family.

Don't limit yourself to just "respectful" tunes, though -- I'm sure everyone here will delight in knowing such things as the fact that he used to play "I like big butts" over and over in his final years of high school. We probably won't use that during the service, but do tell.

For my part, Aaron and I discovered psychedlic music together, and I turned him onto one band in particular that he several times over thanked me for. It's still my favorite band, Steppenwolf, and a song I remember him taking a special liking to was "Hippo Stomp" For me personally, given the lyrics, I know I will always get a chill and a tear whenever I hear it from now on.

Oh, and his favorite Beck song was "Hollow Log" which he quite reliably would yell out (when appropriate) at Beck concerts in hopes of seeing it performed live.

I'll let folks who have already suggested stuff for this post their own suggestions here.

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Comments (17)

1 Written by Kai Price, on 2007-01-05 09:30
Aaron and I both loved the Grateful Dead, and he mentioned that a favorite Dead song of his was the standard, Dark Star. He liked lots of jam bands though, and we went to a few different concerts together. I also recall that Aaron turned me onto Linda Perry, who he loved. He also turned me onto Spititualized aka Spacemen 3, recounting that he figured that any album called "Taking Drugs (To Make Music To Take Drugs To)" was worth giving a listen to. I'm not sure what his favorite songs by these musicians were though. Oh, one more, I recall there was aphase where he really loved the P-Funk, Parliament-Funkadelic.

2 Written by Kai Price, on 2007-01-06 12:55
Now I am remembering that he also especially liked the Dead tune, Fire On The Mountain. And we must not forget his appreciation for bands like The Beastie Boys and Sublime.

3 Written by mike, on 2007-01-07 05:12
yup, pfunk for sure.
and frank zappa.

aaron turned me on to a number of bands that i would have written off before as hillbilly rock, bands like allman bros., ccr, deep purple, steve miller band.

he had this way of singing along to a lyric and waving his hands with a uniquely aaron-like flourish while looking at you, that you couldn't help but to be like, ok, yeah, maybe that is a good song...

4 Written by Tom Leighton, on 2007-01-11 15:05
Although the Jeffereson Airplane was my favorite band for many years before I became a \"Dead Head\" (in my 30\'s), I never had a friend who liked them. Until Aaron.

It seemed that every time Aaron came to my apartment he would pull out one of my Airplane CD\'s and turn up the volume.

For me, the Airplane represented/encapsulated the social, psychedlic, and political rebellion of the 60\'s against the \"old order\" (a.k.a. the establishment, as we used to call it). So when I found that Aaron shared my love of their music I felt a special kinship with him, one that was amplified by the difference in our ages.

While I cannot think of any \"favorite\' songs that Aaron liked, I can say that he enjoyed and appreciated a greater diversity of music than any friend I ever had.

Despite his move from NYC to Amherst and my limited concert budget in recent years, Aaron had become my main concert buddy. Of the 4 shows for which I bought tickets last year, Aaron joined me in my original ticket purchase for 3 of them.

He loved to drive to NYC to go to shows at The Beacon Theatre instead of seeing the same band in Boston or somewhere closer to him. The reason, of course, being that we could easily smoke pot (even despite the NYC and NY Stae anti-smoking laws !!!) and generally be in a really cool, unhassled space.

I was looking forward to many more years of going to all kinds of concerts with him.

5 Aaron and Music
Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2007-01-11 19:38
Aaron WAS music. I remember that from the day I met him, which was the day that I met Kai, I was impressed with his enthusiasm for and knowledge of a vast array of artists and genres, many of which we shared appreciation for, including Jeff Buckley, Syd Barrett, and Gram Parsons. (If there is a concert going on over on the other side, it will be one stellar lineup, and I'm sure Aaron is sitting front row and center.) I was thrilled when I actually could share my Nuggets II compilation with Aaron - four discs of world '60s garage/psychedelia - at last, something he didn't already own!

I will always hold fond memories of the September 2004 Incredible String Band concert at the Iron Horse, with Aaron and another friend (Tom Leighton, could that have been you?). In my mind, I will always see Aaron lying in the sunlight at Berkfest 2002, head resting on his backpack, enjoying the musical soundscape in a pleasantly-altered state. I always assumed we'd share more concerts with Aaron...why is it that work and routine days stretch on forever, and concerts and time spent with friends pass so quickly - but take up much more importance in memory?

6 Written by Liz Wuehrmann, on 2007-01-18 19:33
Of course, Aaron liked all of the typical psychedelic music, but oddly, the two bands I remember him liking were Dee Lite and the Indigo Girls, particularly the Closer to Fine album. But then again, that was the early 90's.

7 Written by Brian Julin, on 2007-01-18 23:06
Liz -- unfortunately no Indigo Girls CD in his collection. It might be on tape -- but no player. I did give a listen to the Dee-Lite albums (boy that's a blast from the past) and house music would be a hard fit for the calling hour, but there are a couple tunes on there that might make the music for the buffet afterwards.

Tom -- I have been trying like crazy to find a tune he was trying to learn on guitar -- Young's heart of gold -- but it isn't on any young CDs there. I remember him playing it off CD, though, and I don't think it was just a GD cover of it. It may be on a dub -- did he ever dub any Young off you? I could search through the dubs if so.

8 Written by Kai Price, on 2007-01-19 15:33
I forgot all about his Dee-Lite phase until you brought it up, Liz.

And I seem to recall he was a fan of some funny rapper (and I'm not talking about Slick Rick, which would be over the top), but someone who he got to see at Coachella...

Anyhow, keep those suggestions coming, folks! Whether before, during, or after the memorial service, we have lots of room.

9 Indigo Girls and others
Written by Liz Wuehrmann, on 2007-01-19 16:11
I\'m thinking about getting ahold of that CD and maybe I can rip and send some of the tracks to you ahead of time, see if any\'d be appropriate. Also, just remembered that at one point he really like \"Misty Mountain Hop\" by Led Zep.

10 Written by No Name, on 2007-01-23 18:21
I remember him telling me, "Behind Blue Eyes" by The Who. Also, his leaving his boots behind at the Woodstock concert.

11 Written by Justin, on 2007-01-24 12:20
In the last year especially Aaron told me a lot about music- I couldn't believe how deep his knowledge was. When I told him I didn't know what "stoner rock" was, he set out to convert me in a big way.

I'll never forget one night in the spring he came over with a STACK of cds with Corrosion of Conformity, Monster Magnet, Queens of the Stone Age, and Clutch among his favorites. We listened to a couple trax off each one while he basically outlined the genre and its history. Aaron never seemed to limit himself to any genre, and was at home listening to pantera as much as the Grateful Dead.

12 Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2007-01-25 16:35
Aaron's tastes were quite varied.

He also liked "neo-metal" groups like TOOL and A PERFECT CIRCLE. When TOOL were in town, Aaaron would make an effort to go see them. In fact, the last time I saw Aaron was at the Tool concert at the Nassau Coliseum on October 7, 2006 -- which doesn't seem too long ago. Aaron and I also went to see Steve Winwood, String Cheese Incident, Phil Lesh and Friends, and the Cream Re-Union. Aaron was a great person to go to shows with because he was always enthusiastic. null

13 Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2007-01-25 18:15
I remember Aaron and I listing to albums “Machine Head” and “Fireball” by Deep Purple our heads nodding in the smoky room agreeing that “Maybe I’m A Leo” is a perfect song. And more than just perhaps Aaron is that Leo. I think at some point Mike and I dubbed him “Red Lion” as his quasi Indian name.

Aaron also loved the lyrics to No One Came:

“Maybe I could be like Robin Hood
Like and outlaw dressed all in green
Someone said what’s he gonna turn out like
And someone else said never mind”

And yes the man did love Linda Perry.

14 CRC memories
Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2007-01-26 18:04
The single, best, overriding memory I have of Aaron is of him tearing out his hair tie and shaking loose his ponytail and grooving to Magic Carpet Ride...

15 amon duul
Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2008-10-23 20:49
I'll never forget aaron introducing me to amon duul when I was in college. I just found out about aaron and about this website. The world has lost a great man and we are all lessened for lack of him. My prayers to his family...

16 Wonderful memories
Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2008-10-23 22:21
I, too, just heard of Aaron's passing. I am so saddened by the news. I have so many wonderful memories of Aaron. He taught me so much and was an inspiration to so many. I will always hold memories of Aaron fondly in my heart. Thank you for creating this memorial and space for those who cared about Aaron to share together.

17 Written by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , on 2008-11-12 22:13
I found out about Aaron's passing tonight when I tried to track him down to congratulate him on the most recent referendum results in MA.

Aaron and I went to high school together. When I look back at the person I became, and all the trouble I got myself into, it's hard not to lay some of the credit (and blame) at his feet.

I'm so greatful for the time I shared with Aaron. Thank you for maintaining this memorial to celebrate his life.

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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 03 January 2007 )

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