Life and Times of Gooch 1987-1989 CRANK UP THE VOLUME!!!!!
	Well the decade was moving along in a fast-paced action filled manner. And 1987 dawned as one of those years with STUFF happening! Of course ya gotta figure some of that crazy rock'n'roll was involved and sure enough, 1987 was the year U2 took over the world! And I wasn't gonna miss out on the excitement. A world tour beckoned after the release of The Joshua Tree, probably U2's crowning glory. And with "WHERE THE STREETS HAVE NO NAME" now playing in the background, I was CRANKED on seeing them a coupla 2,3 or 20 times! The tour opened in the desert land of Arizona in Tempe, April of '87. I bordered a plane and jetted westward to catch the first two shows and was FLOORED by the power and majesty of a confident, INCREDIBLE band and then throw in the breathtaking soouthwestern scenery and GEEZ LOUISE... this is why we live! To experience the wonders of the world and cast our fates onto the wind! An emotional and spiritual reawakening! And how about TIME magazine! An issue devoted to this band with photos taken during the show with the audience, including me in the front row, as a back drop! Darn! I thought I would make the cover of TIME magazine! HAHAHA Oh well...maybe next year.

I saw a coupla more East Coast shows and hey! Europe sounded pretty interesting! I had always been keen on European history during my school years and even won the history prize in my high school graduating class, so the other side of the Atlantic always beckoned, still does, so in June I once again took to the air and wound up in IRELAND!!! Hey Joan it was a moment that transcended time! I was there 4 days but the city of Dublin was hosting its hometown boys in Croke Park and they were the only topic of conversation. U2 was now world news and their actions were mirrored in all newspapers and media. Well the journey continued to Leeds and London and it was difficult. Many times I was being stopped by police and who knows what...musta thought I looked like some kinda terrorist! I had gotten kinda tired cause it was a hectic pace amd my bodily functions were not functioning properly!!! HAHA I thought I was gonna die while waiting in Hyde Park for a bus trip to Paris! My nose started bleeding and didn't wanna stop. SHEESH. But I survived and crossed the English Channel, and rode into ...Paris! WOW I was impressed! What a city! I saw David Bowie and The Cult on a Saturday night somewhere, ate on the Eifel Tower and U2 played on the 4th of July, a fitting end to this adventure. And on Monday, I was back home. Wow! Was it a dream? Things were not quite the same. Before long me and Gayle had broken up and softball was a memory. I had tired of the James Street scene and began seeking other avenues of entertainment and even solitude to reflect on what had been happening in my life and where it was leading. Um don't get the idea that it was all fun and games cause I worked very hard at the old cem and dedicated every moment I could to my job. But that is why we have vacations and what we do with them affects our every day lives. Of course not being married and laden with the responsiblities of raising a family, gives one the options of realizing other hopes and dreams. PEACE

1987 saw the release of The Pretenders "GET CLOSE". The original Pretenders were gone but Chrissie could still write some great songs and she could interpret other artists quite nicely. One of my pretending faves-DON'T GET ME WRONG, and tunes like WATERFALL AND HYMN TO HER. I can' t believe I had never seen them on tour before. By now I was hanging out with Dan Happ a lot. He opened a record store REPTILE RECORDS and being right around the corner, it was a gathering place for quite the eclectic group. I met a buncha new people and we spun some discs and extolled on the virtues of rock'n'roll! Dan had a kinda band and started playing a lot and I had quite the time enjoying the Phoenician Pony Babies in their primitive days. Let's bust the furniture! Of course they were too loud for Kenny and way too cool for the Auburn but a splendid time was guarranteed(is this spelled right?} for all! So I met Tony B and Phil and Pete W and Joe P and Audrey and Heidi and Dianne and Cousin Rick. The fall of '88 a bunch of us went to NY to see a Mets Dosdgers playoff game. Mets lost and it was my last baseball game. The strike the following year was horrendous and I figured if those guys were too good for the game, well they could have it. I stopped watching and never went back. U2 release a rather so-so album as far as I'm concerned, RATTLE AND HUM. A few good songs and then some other stuff. And it would be years til we here from them again. Can I still type? Takes us to a rather interesting year. 1989 Well where do we start! How about I get a license!!!! After all those years and million miles of traveling, I get my own vehicle!! HAHA I wonder at times how I did it walking down deserted highways in Arizona or pounding the pavement of O'Connell St. Opened whole new venues in my life!!!! Can ya believe it! And check this out!!!! Drivers license picture!!WOW!! A couple decent records by the only people that matter to me! Chrissie and Pete. Some great songs and ok records. Got us through the music year and once again, years before we hear from them again! Big news! The Who announce a 25th year anniversary tour. For some reason I am not thrilled. A 10 piece band, back-up female singers and Pete NOT playing guitar. Gimme a break. For some reason I am not thrilled. Tour opens in Glens Falls NY!!! Unbelievable!! I go there and Toronto and to Buffalo. That is it. For some reason I am not thrilled. The Who are not about other electric guitar players! Sorry., I wasn't thrilled.That summer I start meeting a few interesting girls. I knew Rene for a while since the good old Ponderosa steakhouse days, but I started seeing her a lot in '89. One heckuva wild girl and a big motorcycle enthusiast. I liked her a lot and she was a lotta fun to be with. I think she ended up marrying somebody and moving to Russia! Not your ordinary girl. And then there was Cyn. She had the biggest , most beautiful eyes I ever saw. We hung out for most of the summer of '89 and that was that. Never saw her a gain. Sent me a Christmas card outta the blue last year. Has a whole bunch of kids! Hey Cyn, how are ya. Well this decade is over BUT on July 11, 1989 while watching a softball game at Greenman estates, there appeared this vision.....haha YEP I met Carla and that tale will have to be told in the next decade! On to the '90s!