I like to listen to music when I work. But I’ve never listened to a compact disc (CD) made by someone from our industry. Not until I received a copy of “Summer Wind,” a CD recently recorded by John Hayes, the Northeast regional manager for Canberra Corp.

John, of Niagara Falls, N.Y., has recorded two CDs — not to sell, but for fun. “Recording the CDs is the best thing that’s ever happened to me in music,” he said.

In 1993, John was introduced to karaoke, and has been hooked ever since. (Karaoke is a form of musical entertainment in which you sing along with pre-recorded musical tracks, with the lyrics displayed on a screen.) “It just happened,” he says, “I didn’t intend to get into it, but before I knew it, I had invested about $9,000 in a system.”

His first karaoke gig was an accident. “I bought a karaoke unit for home use. A local club manager asked me if I knew of anybody who could run a karaoke night at his establishment. I said — jokingly — that I could do it. The guy thought I was serious, and took me up on it.”

John arrived at the club with his karaoke machine, speakers and a rented amplifier. He couldn’t get into the place because it was so crowded, and before he got on stage, John had to call and borrow his nephew’s bigger speakers so the sound would be audible.

John also does traditional disc jockey work for parties and weddings. And he sings, too. But he never advertises. All of John’s bookings are by word of mouth.

A special gig for John was singing at his daughter’s wedding. As a surprise, he sang and recorded the song “Daddy’s Little Girl” in advance. At the reception, he danced with his daughter to his recording. I bet there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

There probably wasn’t a dry eye at Russ and Brenda Ogden’s wedding reception last summer, either. Russ is national sales manager and an owner of Morgro Inc., of Salt Lake City. Russ’s son, a 22-year old acoustic guitar player, sang rock musician Dan Fogelberg’s “Leader of the Band” for his dad. Russ says, “It was very emotional to hear my son perform the song for me that Dan Fogelberg wrote for his father.”

Russ is a self-described music addict. But he doesn’t sing or play an instrument. He collects music.

Russ has about 40,000 records and discs in his collection. They’re sorted by musical genre, artist, and album. I think he remembers all songs ever written, who recorded them, the color of the album cover, and where he’s stored them. I asked him about the 1963 song “Sugar Shack” (the first record I ever owned) and did he have it? Russ says, “I could find it in seconds. It’s by Jimmy Gilmour and the Fireballs and it has a blue album cover.”

What’s the best thing that has happened in his music-collecting career? “The biggest kick is going to a Salvation Army store or a garage sale and finding an album. You rush home, look it up, and find that you’ve scored,” Russ says.

Once, he and his son were at an estate sale and bought an album for 50 cents. Russ says, “It was the soundtrack from ‘Alexander the Great.’ We went home, looked it up, and it turns out it was Richard Burton’s first movie. That album is worth $450.”

Russ buys albums that are really old or that he’s never heard of. Sometimes, the album cover is worth more than the record. There’s a 1966 Beatles album cover, the “Butcher cover,” which was recalled because it was offensive, and replaced with another cover. Today, the record is worth $30, but the cover is worth up to $25,000.

Finally, the question I was dying to ask: “What CDs do you have in your car right now?” John says he listens to anything and everything, from Pink Floyd to Peruvian music. Russ has Ella Fitzgerald, Meat Loaf, Jimmy Buffett, and Johnny Cash in his car. As for me, I have a CD in my car called “Summer Wind,” recorded by a singer from New York. I think it might be a collector’s item some day.

Gretchen Roufs, a 14-year janitorial supply industry veteran, owns Auxiliary Marketing Services of San Antonio, Texas. To suggest someone you think should be featured in “freetime,” contact her at (210) 601-4572.




POSTED ON: 3/1/2001