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I've had a love for music ever since an early age. I guess one could say I was one of those people that got their vaccination from a phonographic needle. Previously, I purchased guitar picks from various bands I had seen through the years. I had them formed into a guitar shape and framed it for my office. Several people around the office thought it was cool and thought I should turn it into a poster. That got me to thinking which led to this poster.
I was 46 years old in 2005 when I had an idea about creating a Rock n Roll Tree out of buttons from bands. I wanted the layout, as best as I could, to place the bands in chronological order based on their first EP, Album or CD. So, I created a list of bands with the help of friends and started collecting various band's buttons and marking them of the list. I received these buttons from all over the world. Most of the earlier bands, I found in Europe. Obviously, I couldn't find buttons on all bands so I found images and worked with various people in the U.S., then ultimately finding a company cheaper overseas to turn them into a button. I have to admit, I've cursed myself for even starting this project several times! Five years later, in 2010, I finally had enough buttons to actually create the poster. The first attempt resulted in only getting up through 1985 and I was out of room on the poster. I realized I had to start over and weed out some bands if I was ever going to make it up to bands in twentieth century. That was harder than you think when one has to determine which bands to leave off. I tried to keep different genres to capture the explosion of Rock n Roll music. My apologies in advance for any band left off. As one can imagine the list was extensive. My biggest fear was that I would realize I forgot a certain band, but I had to get to an ending point and print it. 
As I continued to go to concerts, it became clear that music passes through generations. Thanks to Guitar Hero and Rock Band, along with parents listening habits, the younger generation are exposed to all types of great music.
One might ask, why "Gdogs Cosmic Rock?" Glad you asked. Gdog was easy. It's the nickname of my son and for Cosmic Rock, I found it fitting. I don't know about you, but when I hear a song while driving, at a restaurant, or wherever, it can take me back in time to some place in my life. It can be comforting, bring up bad memories or remind me of friends and fun times. So to me it's kind of Cosmic! I hope that each time you look at this poster you can find a band, think of a song and enjoy the Cosmic ride! I want to thank Carole, Larissa, Ben, and Steve for all their help in making this become real. Phillip, many thanks for encouraging me to keep going when I was thinking what did I get myself into! I want to thank my family for giving me the time permitted to tackle such a project and their continued support through this project. I know I drove them crazy with buttons everywhere and never ending questions. There are many other friends, too numerous to list, that I want to thank too. Last but not least, I want to thank God for the continuous blessings in my life. Thanks |