About Rock n' Roll Russ

"Rock n'Roll Russ" is about my oldest brother, Russell D. Gray. When I was growing up, I looked up to my brothers... for different reasons. You have to understand that Russ is about 5 years older than me, so if you know how to count, you can figure out that he grew up during the hard rock era- classic bands- Kiss, Cheap Trick, Styx, Journey, Santana, AC/DC, Boston, they were all staples of Russ' record collection- and still are. He had the most extensive musical knowledge- listened to KSJO (San Jose classic rock radio station), had long feathered hair, wore Levis, had a classic '61 Studebaker, which was in storage for many years. He would come home from school, and work on that thing to all hours of the night, and had it painted Candy Apple Red. Nothing came between him and his first car. Years later, after Russ had moved and got married, my parents got tired of it being in their garage and they sold it. Russ always wonders if whoever got it restored it.

"Rock 'n Roll Russ" is a comment on how marriage can change a person. How a significant other can have so much effect on you that you lose a part of yourself- usually the part that doesn't make sense to the other. Russ still listens to AC/DC, and most of the bands listed above- but now that he and his lovely wife Lori have kids, he can't play it all. My niece Claire loves the songs from that era. She sings along to the cd in the car- and Cameron, my nephew, likes some of it- but deems most of it inappropriate for his ears. Maybe Cameron will rebel from the classic rock stuff and like whatever becomes hip next.

What I am saying here, is that Russ won't ever be the same. He was young, and when you're young, you are adventurous and want to listen to all different kinds of music. Now he's listening to country and children's artists. But we can dream of the day when he can listen to the old stuff again without getting lip from anyone.

"Rock 'n Roll Russ" is inside us all. We all have to find our own voice, our own path. That is what this song represents: One young man's path- and how it can shape another's life: his young brother's.

Matt Gray
Santa Cruz, CA
2000

funfolk@funfolk.com