~ Hans Christian Anderson
As long as I can remember music has always been there. Through joy, sorrow, growing, keeping me grounded and out of trouble when I was young, building friendships, bringing people together, keeping me company, enhancing expression, gaining knowledge, experiencing other cultures, it has always been there, it is universal, and has enriched my life beyond measure.
A self proclaimed music fanatic having attended over 200 shows and fest's in my life I have had and amazing journey. From "The Who and Clash in LA at the Coliseum in 82", to "Riot Fest in Chicago last year". I've swayed with amazing people, heard armies of amazing voices rise in unison, and learned amazing things. I have been collecting memorabilia for the past 20 years and will share a piece here each month.
This passion drives us to deliver the best Real Estate experience possible to our clients to bring people together for a cause through our Dreams Open Doors program. By working together, helping each other, opening doors, and building dreams, we are able to support charities and programs in our communities that lift the spirit, teach life skills, offer hope, and bring people together through the arts.
Amy Jade Winehouse (1983-2011) was an English singer & songwriter known for her amazing soulful, deep, expressive, and emotionally charged contralto vocals, and mix of musical genres.
Amy's debut album Frank (2003) was critically acclaimed in the UK and was nominated for for the Mercury Prize. Her follow up album Back To Black (2006) thrust her into stardom and lead to 5 Grammy awards, tying the then record for most wins by a female artist in a single night.
Winehouse was plagued by drug addiction and lost her life at age 27. She is far and away one of my favorite singers to listen to, her music is powerful, and speaks stories of her pain. I regret never having the opportunity to see her live and she was taken from us way too soon with so much more to give.
The CD covered was signed outside her hotel during a visit to NYC.
GNR exploded onto the LA music scene in the mid 80's formed by founding members Izzy Stradlin (Hollywood Rose) & Tracii Guns (L.A. Guns) invited Axl Rose of Hollywood Rose to come sing with L.A. Guns. Months later GNR was formed in 1985. Slash was later recruited when Tracii Guns left the band. Duff and Steven were also added during 85 as the band changed up some members.
The band got started playing the Hollywood club scene and were frequently playing at The Troubadour and Roxy. The first time I saw them live was at the Troub and it was electric, i saw them again with the double billed Metallica tour and the Use Your Illusion tour in LA. It was awesome to see them again in Chicago at Soldier Field for the Not In Your Lifetime Tour. Brought back a flood of old good memories growing up in LA.
Cheers to the "Most Dangerous Band In The World", may your music and story inspire others for generations to make real music.
This tour poster was signed in 1993 for a European Tour hand. Its is signed by all original members from the tour and is extremely rare as original band signed memorabilia from that time is not easy to come by.
Johnny Cash "The Man In Black" was one of the earliest signees to Sam Phillips' Sun Records back in 1955 at the birth of Rock N Roll.
Cash's mark on Country Music and Rock N Roll is undeniable. He was part of an elite club of RNR pioneers that included Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis. The 4 were referred to as "The Million Dollar Quartet" after an impromptu jam session at Sun Studios on Dec 4, 1956. Cash and the Tennessee Two were an early example of Rockabilly and they recorded a string of hits at Sun.
Cash remained a stalwart figure and working musician well into the 1990's. Cash is the recipient of the Grammy lifetime achievement award. Cash died in 2003.
Cash was always happy to join fans to sign memorabilia after shows. This is a vintage signature that was signed the night of that show. There is no shortage of Cash signatures and he signed just about anything presented to him.
Growing up in LA there was always amazing music and bands to go see. The Ramones are iconic. Formed in NYC in 1974 they were at the forefront and extremely influential in the British and American Punk Rock scene. They toured for 22 years and played 2263 gigs.
Although none of them were related they all adopted the surname Ramone while playing with the band. In 2002 the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll HOF.
This flyer was signed for a lucky fan at a meet and greet at Middle Earth Records on June 25th, 1989 by Dee Dee, Marky, Johnny, and Joey in support of their new LP "Brain Drain" in Downey, CA.
Growing up in North Hollywood CA was the best place to be if you were a music fanatic in the 80's. One of my absolute favorite wild child bands to see was "X". I followed them all over the LA scene and have seen them about 20 times. I got to see them again here in Chicago at Riot Fest last year.
X is a native Los Angeles punk band formed in 1977 by Exene, DJ Bonebreak, Billy Zoom, and John Doe. The band has released 7 records and has recently begun touring again. LP's Los Angeles and Wild Gift are ranked by Rolling Stone Mag in the top 500 records of all time. The band received an Official Cert of Recognition from the City of Los Angeles in acknowledgement of its contribution to Los Angeles music and culture.
Rare and hard to find this sleeve is signed by Billy Joel, and his whole band. It was signed to Dan who owned a guitar store in St Louis and supplied lots of vintage gear to big name acts. We bought this and several other pieces at the stores auction when it closed. Hard to find a Billy Joel piece with everyones signatures. I saw Billy play with Elton John during the dueling pianos tour in Rosemont Il. The cover was photographed in Astor Place NY at the uptown side of the Astor Place subway stop in 1976.
