marvin Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Over a decade ago when I first joined this site, it was to share a love of the music of Raspberries and Eric. In the initial years, music was the focus, and it really was the only thing that mattered to many of us. It was our bread, it was our water, it was our livelihood. Through this site and it’s many knowledgeable members, I learned so much about artists that used to be foreign to me. I was given an appreciation for music that I had taken for granted. I also learned that there were many others who shared my musical passion, but most of all I learned that through music, friendships could form that would last forever. Things change. With time I became disenchanted by the fact that music started taking a backseat to everything else. I couldn’t care less what clothes which band member wore, or whether Eric was ‘hot’, or which political party you sided with. All those discussion seemed infantile to me and sometimes just led to raised tempers and emotions. This disenchantment grew to the point where like so many of the original members, I lost interest, and only made sporadic visits to the site. When things unravelled a couple of years ago, there was a lot of miscommunication. There are regrets, certainly, and words that were said by not only me, but by others, that in hindsight probably should have been filed away. By that time I had very little involvement in the Board so leaving it for good wasn’t that much of a concern. There were still many other ways to stay in contact with those that wanted to stay in contact with me. Over the last few weeks I find myself visiting the Board much more, and posting again, albeit only to certain areas/forums. The past is just that, but the only thing that hasn’t changed in the last decade for me is, it’s still only the music that matters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marathon mama Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 You have a great knowledge of music and also can write very interesting posts. I personally would love it if you could do more interviews (with Eric or any of the other Raspberries, or Billy Sullivan, would be great. Do you know if there are other famous board members?Anyway, please keep posting and just ignore any threads that don't interest you. Members have lots of other interests and they may be interesting to others.Also, sometimes even music posts can raise emotions (threads with topics such as Dan Fogelberg vs. Elvis Presley, for example). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackhawkpat Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Very well stated, Marv. I am very happy you have returned to the board and look forward to you sharing your great musical knowledge here with everyone. Many people offer different things on this board, but the music has always been the thing that ultimately drives us all here. I used to enjoy posting the videos from the 70's that you and I used to trade off on many years ago. So, fittingly, here's one for you: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 You hit the nail right on the head, Marv!! These have been my sentiments exactly, for some time now. I really hope you're back for good because I really enjoy your astute musical knowledge! Great to see you again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ira Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Glad to see you back Marvin.I've made some REAL flesh and blood friends thru EC.com who I see and keep in touch with.This site has changed my life.BUT...to state the obvious...in the absence of Raspberries/Carmen activity....there is a void...not in the nature of the site...but in all our lives."I Can Remember"...the curtain going up in Chicago..I had chills...I cried.(My friend Curlew (Mel) and I met midway across he United States for this Magic Moment...)To meet Eric...whose music was part of every romantic experience of my life....to see the 'Berries 4 more times after Chicago!!!...how can this NOT be a "down" period for many of us....For just a little while we had this....."I Can (and always will) Remember". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin Posted November 4, 2011 Author Share Posted November 4, 2011 Glad to see you back Marvin...I've made some REAL flesh and blood friends who I see and keep in touch with.But...to state the obvious...in the absence of Raspberries/Carmen activity....there is a void...not in the nature of the site...but in all our lives. Thanks for the kind words MM, Pat, GMan and Ira. To Ira I will say this: This site pre-dated the reunion by about 4 years (at least). There was a void for over 30 years, yet we found a way to fill it. The passion I have for the band was refuelled two weeks ago when I saw Wally & Scott in concert. I would urge any others who share that Raspberries passion not to pass up opportunities like this when they turn up. Time passes fast, my friend, and we can’t live with ‘what if’s’ and ‘if only…’ Music has been a healing power through all my life, and while I've been taken to the top of the mountain by many artists, no band has moved me emotionally and musically like Raspberries. There aren't many people who understand the love and passion I have for this band. I will go to my grave with the belief that they were the greatest band that 'should have been...' Keep the music alive, spread the passion, and it will live forever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ira Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Beautifully said Marvin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darlene Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Great post, Marvin! I was absolutely thrilled and charmed when I discovered this site way back when, because I thought I was an island unto myself in my appreciation of Raspberries and Eric. In fact, I got internet access solely on the basis of EC.com. I didn't care about the computer until I found "Raspbernie's" website. Then I met Bernie and Ken Sharp at Eric's show with Ringo in New Brunswick and my addiction was complete!The subsequent activities like Weekend at Bernies and nightly chats were all about the music. The realization of my secret dream that Raspberries would unite and tour, of course, painted my world with magic.The "unravelling" (a beautifully descriptive term, by the way) of the dream was really tough to take, and I'm sure that it shifted the focus of board members to each other. Focusing on what had been and now wasn't was too painful to even think about. I understand that.For me, it's still the music. I participate in the political issues because that's the liveliest discussion for me, if we're not talking about the music.For me, also, the music's the thing. You stated it perfectly, Marv, as usual.--Dar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Cartmill Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Well said...even for an overly-sensitive, north-of-the-border, lilly-livered liberal, riff-modification-equals-copyright-credit-believin', music-freak-freakin', Canadian Nancy Boy, like you, Marv!...And I mean that in a good way...Welcome back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Marvin and I had a little 'chat' on FB the other night about this very subject.I remember discovering EC.com around 1997, and, in similar fashion to Darlene, acquiring a computer just so I'd have access to this site. Anybody remember the old message board? There was only one line of dialog, and it never strayed too far from the music. When Bernie revamped the message board and all the other forums sprouted up I realized we were going to splinter, and not everybody was going to embrace discussions about politics and religion, for example. That's o.k., we also got forums for Eric and Raspberries, photos, videos, etc. Good to see you posting more often Marv...can Eric be far behind? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackhawkpat Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Good call, Kirk. I remember it well. I was working at an electronics company at the time and was not too excited about learning how to use a computer in my new office, for the first time. The tech person used to always hear me playing Eric or Raspberries music leaking out my door, so one day, she came in my office and told me she had something for me and closed the door. She told me she had snuck in my office a few nights earlier to see who was the artist I kept playing.She printed out a bunch of things off this website, which she had found in a search, including a 1991 interview Eric had done with Gordon Pogoda that was on here in the "I Can Remember" section, the discography of the band, and several other interviews, which she put in a binder for me. Imagine my surprise! Suddenly, this computer thing didn't seem so bad to learn!You know, it's been fourteen years and I still have it. I just went downstairs and dug it out and it's dated 05/21/97. There are also some printouts from 08/97 when Bernie, apparently, first started writing the Eric book. So, I can blame/thank this website for me ever learning how to use a computer!Way to lead a horse to water, eh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raspbernie Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Our very first Message Board (courtesy of the folks over at the Internet Archive):ERIC CARMEN HOME PAGE MESSAGE BOARD Oh, and a "shout out" to Marvin (and all of the other names we all recognize) who were here from the beginning!Bernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 Our very first Message Board (courtesy of the folks over at the Internet Archive):ERIC CARMEN HOME PAGE MESSAGE BOARD Oh, and a "shout out" to Marvin (and all of the other names we all recognize) who were here from the beginning!Bernie Fascinating to read back to some posts from 14+ years ago. Yes, some of us from then are still around today, and still championing Raspberries/Eric. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 You know guys. I was flipped from the very first time I heard Raspberries. It was the end of Junior year in 1972. "Go All The Way" hit me right in my heart and soul. This was the music I had been waiting for ever since my "beloved" Beatles called it quits. Yes....Raspberries hit me in exactly the same spot the Beatles did when I was a 9 year old kid. I remember emailing Eric telling him how much Raspberries meant to me. He told me....and I quote..."I wish I were born in Jersey, you guys REALLY got us!" That really made me feel special and to this day I have turned many friends onto the band. I still miss them as a musical force...because to a kid in Jersey...they were the second coming! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim From Wisconsin Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Our very first Message Board (courtesy of the folks over at the Internet Archive):ERIC CARMEN HOME PAGE MESSAGE BOARD Oh, and a "shout out" to Marvin (and all of the other names we all recognize) who were here from the beginning!Bernie I peeked in on the home page for years before I found the message board - I was one of those people who never knew there was anything beyond the home page! I remember seeing the picture of the 4 guys together from 1998 I think and I was so excited that something might be happening! It only took me until 2004 to find the message board - "Hi, my name is Tim and I was really computer illiterate." Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 You know guys. I was flipped from the very first time I heard Raspberries. It was the end of Junior year in 1972. "Go All The Way" hit me right in my heart and soul. This was the music I had been waiting for ever since my "beloved" Beatles called it quits. Yes....Raspberries hit me in exactly the same spot the Beatles did when I was a 9 year old kid. I remember emailing Eric telling him how much Raspberries meant to me. He told me....and I quote..."I wish I were born in Jersey, you guys REALLY got us!" That really made me feel special and to this day I have turned many friends onto the band. I still miss them as a musical force...because to a kid in Jersey...they were the second coming! I have no recollection of the Beatles prior to about 1970 (I was 11). The Raspberries were MY Beatles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I totally understand Marv. I do have a few years on you.lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ira Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Well to integrate references to the Beatles and Raspberries...Thanks Marvin for helping us "Get Back". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy-Ann Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 If I had to depend on just music talk, I would have been “a chick outta luckâ€. But thankfully for me there was a plethora of subjects to choose from. So I dove right in as “the water was fine!†I guess Eric’s music was what first made me aware of him, but it wasn’t his music that made me “notice†him and wonder what the heck happened to him after MMLC. So, for me, music was never the end all to this place.I think it rocks when the name sake of a board has positive comments brought forward about him (HOT being one of them) and not negative ones. Maybe it’s because I’m a chick I feel this way...maybe it’s because it’s nice to be nice. Maybe it’s because I actually have a lot of respect for the man whose name graces this website. But...that’s just me. This has nothing to do with the “hot†factor. It has everything to do with respect for another human being. He’s earned my respect, for whatever reasons they may be---they are mine and mine alone. I understand the fact that many wanted to only speak about music, which rocks too. Hence there are many a thread that one can join in on and have done. Then, at the same time, it is great that there are other places for us who love to “chit chat†about other things---such as band clothing or Eric’s “hotnessâ€. (And at times, it’s seems to have made Eric happy. So let’s see, calling an attractive man HOT on his own board or posting something negative about him? Which would I choose? I choose to make someone smile! )I have to say...I have learned much from the “music talkâ€, I really have! But I only could express my opinion in my own personal way. It will always be “chick-a-fiedâ€, well at least most of the time. This is where I use my emotions and/or femininity to express my thoughts on said music (and/or photos). That will never change no matter who thinks what they may think about it. “I am Woman, hear me, GUSH!â€...over romantic tunes and silly things like that. (I love being a female...every ounce of me screams it!)I found my voice because of this board. (Yes I did!) I knew I loved to write but never really did until I discovered this community. It had many things that I cared to discuss, music being one of the few, but still one subject I participated in when I knew what to interject. I was also made aware, through private emails and sometimes public posts, that what I had to say actually affected others’ lives. I liked that---oodles! It means I’ve done more than just blather on about something. It means I’ve made difference.However, through the religious debates on this board, I have actually opened my mind even more than it was. I’ve thought about what my religion means in my life, and what others’ religion or lack of it means to them. Though I doubt I will ever NOT believe in God or that Jesus is God...I’ve been able to assess what others were trying to state. I suppose I am “new and improved†because of the debates I have read and/or chose to participate in. And I am thrilled to pieces that I was a part of this forum during the height of controversial posts!Now, for those who do not hold the title of “original posterâ€, I want it to be known that we who are "non-originals" are VERY much a part of this board, and a VERY happy to be! YAY! Thanks for having us and allowing us to voice anything we want...anywhere we want to on this board! Well, unless we are otherwise censored and told to zip it by a moderator. Hey, it’s happened.The fantastically awesome thing about this community is that there are more rooms in this place than the biggest mansion on the proverbial hill. No one can be in all rooms at once but everyone can choose how many rooms they want to hang out in at different times. Choice...what a concept!And the past may be the past, but I think it should never be dismissed by simply stating so, because we need to (hopefully) learn from it as best we can. As for passion, anyone’s passion, all I can say is that nothing can be squashed unless one lets another do it. I refuse to let anyone step on my passion! So having stated all of the above, I’d like to end my post by adding; to me living life to the fullest is all that matters. Because in life I have experienced music and love and much, much more through many who have touched my life and many who have, have been right here on this forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy-Ann Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Anyway, please keep posting and just ignore any threads that don't interest you. Members have lots of other interests and they may be interesting to others. How did you state what I felt in less than 800 words? VERY well stated, Mama! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Wendy, ever time I read one of your posts, I see pink for the rest of the evening Oooh, found my first post...I was still living in Tehachapi and didn't even know what a URL was:Aug 27, 1997 - kirk@tminet.comHi Bernie, just bought a computer and found out about your site from Patrick in the Netherlands. I'm a 40+ first gen. fan who had the privilege of seeing the Raspberries and Eric solo several times on the west coast. Also met Eric backstage at the Roxy. Congrats on the great site. kirk@tminet.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim From Wisconsin Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Everyone has their own reasons for visiting this board - There is no right or wrong. It has evolved over the years, but it was mostly about music for a long time.Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollies65 Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I feel sorry for you.[For missing the Beatles] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raspbernie Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Here's another cool page courtesy of the Internet Archive...made even cooler because we're over 2.5 million hits right now: ERICCARMEN.COM - 16,000 HITS Bernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy-Ann Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Wendy, ever time I read one of your posts, I see pink for the rest of the evening Pink is my signature color. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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