Wednesday, February 4, 2009

So Long, ASTRONOMO! :-(


One of the reasons this blog has been so quiet is that my best friend since high school just passed away this past January 15th. His name was Astronomo (aka STAIEVE), and we were friends since 1974 when we met on the high school bus. Music was one of the major life bloods between us, and he introduced me to so many great bands (and I in turn did the same to him). Astronomo introduced me to Neil Young and Yes, both of which have been two of my absolute favorites since 1974. I remember the first time he came over to my house. He brought his copy of "Close To The Edge" by Yes, and my life was forever changed. I didn't get it at first, but I was definitely intrigued, and was quickly drawn in. Sigh... that was a long time ago. But we listened to "Close To The Edge" within the last year! In fact, this past summer both of us were on a huge Yes kick. It just goes to show that good things can go on for a very long time!

But unfortunately, Astronomo came down with the evil bastard cancer in late 2007, and life was a real struggle after that. His illness did bring us a lot closer together as friends, and we shared many a good moment talking serious sh*t, laughing about old sh*t, and experiencing new sh*t. I kept sending him humongous amounts of Prog to listen to. I did that anyway, but when he got sick, the Prog would help take him to different places, landscapes, and realities. It was a good thing!

In regular life, Astronomo was pretty much a quiet, kinda shy guy. Those of us who knew him well could all tell you he was one pretty wild f*cker! He could be crazy. He was known for jumping off apartment balconies, ripping down people's gutters, dancing on the roof, and driving really f*cking fast on the country roads of Michigan, back when we were kids. We smoked many a grit, drank many a jug, puffed many a bong, and looked at girly magazines. We also really enjoyed becoming dads, talking about our kids with big smiles on our faces. We shared life, fun, sadness, and our worlds. He will be missed by not only me, but his family, friends. and co-workers. He has now gone to the great Prog Heaven, where eternity is one giant synthesizer solo on a vintage Moog!!! ROCK ON, OH GREAT FRIEND!!!

Give me anything but 8 Cents,
Rudo


P.S. When he was younger, people said he kinda looked like Jackson Browne. When he was older, and his hair turned grey, I thought he looked more like Richard Wright!!! To lose both of those grey haired gods within a couple of months is hard. But Shine On You Crazy STAIEVE-HEAD!!!


Astronomo (doing his best Richard Wright impression)

1 comment:

k.papai said...

Nice photos... esp. that "Richard Wright" one. I know what you mean, you know I know man... Ken