Stuff I'm Listening To #83 - Crowded House

Artist: Crowded House

Title: Better Be Home Soon

Favourite Lyrics: 

So don't say no
Don't say nothing's wrong
'cause when you get back home
Maybe I'll be gone

Why?: I really like Crowded House. For me, they are a permanent part of the soundtrack of my teenage years... And not because I listened to them on repeat. I didn't have to. And it wasn't even the music that hooked me at first. Believe it or not, it was watching them get interviewed on MuchMusic of all things. MuchMusic Canada loved these guys. They received a fair amount of airplay on the station and they used to come in... it seemed, once a year to do a promotional interview. They always seemed like they were having a lot of fun, goofing around. Especially the drummer, Paul Hester. He seemed like such a happy go-lucky guy. Needless to say, I was sad and angry when I heard how he'd passed away.

If you lived in Toronto in the 80s to now, you are likely most familiar with 299 Queen Street West. It is the home of MuchMusic, music television done the Canadian way. Moses Znaimer had the building renovated and updated so one could essentially plug into the nearest pillar with audio and visual equipment and be ready to film anywhere in the building, without the need for a traditional studio. Love him or hate him, the man was definitely a visionary. The building was a fascinating spot to be near, let alone, inside. It served as a landmark for me. It indicated I was about three quarters of the way done my weekly hunt for records and other memorabilia, a trip that would start at Yonge and Bloor, run south to Queen Street, then west to either Spadina Avenue and up if I felt like traversing Chinatown, or all the way to Ossington Avenue, where a single vinyl shop existed and had the occasional gem hidden in it's bins. That trip and the memories is worthy of several posts easily.

So this is how Crowded House is heavily associated with MuchMusic in my mind and all the visits to downtown Toronto in my teenage years. It was always fun to pass by the building, peek into the windows to see what was going on inside. I never met Crowded House all the times they came by. I regret it a little, but it seemed that if Crowded House was in town, I had a far too important test to be skipping from school.

Here is a clip of the boys on MuchMusic answering view questions. Paul Hester's typical nuttiness at around the 2:20 mark when he takes a view phone question.