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Hugh's avatar

Happy Birthday Jefferson. Your school story reminds me of a similar experience I had as a sophomore in high school.

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shane's avatar

It's nice to see an appreciation for agriculture among the young people of this country. And of Chile, for that matter.

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Jefferson Hamer's avatar

Central Massachusetts was full of closeted Chileaphiles back then.

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Jefferson Hamer's avatar

You were there! And I'm glad you mentioned the Walter Raleigh book report and performance. I remember having to turn down the soundtrack because the class next door became distracted by the shred levels. Never paid Yngwie any royalties for that one. In fairness, I received a 'C'.

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Shelly's avatar

Dreaming On is my suggested title for your newsletter. Such a great story. Love your music!

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Casey Muratori's avatar

As one of the privileged few who was there to witness this historic stage debut, I would like to mention one other unforgettable performance I'd love to see recounted in a future post: the ad-libbed "report" on Sir Walter Raleigh set to Yngwie Malmsteen's "Krakatau". Or at least, I think it was Krakatau - my memory is unfortunately too aged to be sure.

While I recall the teacher giving the unorthodox presentation a low grade for being largely devoid of information about Sir Walter Raleigh, it received high marks from me and the class more broadly for being totally awesome.

- Casey

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Peter Irvine's avatar

Love your story! First band I ever played in was for a high school "talent" show. We were terrible, but it was a start.

The lack of repercussions you faced for brandishing a pistol are ... well things were different indeed.

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Jefferson Hamer's avatar

I should have listened to my Dad, who had previously curated a sixth-grade blue ribbon rendition of "Puttin' on the Ritz". Of course, I was younger, and more malleable then.

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