Everyone has a first. Everyone has some band, song, or performer that first got them into what they listen to now. For me, my entry into the type of music I listen to started way back when the genre was in it’s infancy. In fact, this person isn’t technically part of that genre at all, but his music is so close that he served as a gateway before Stratovarius took over.

So where did my entry into hard rock/Metal come from? One name… a man I’ve listened to since I was a child. A Canadian whose American fandom apparently knows no limits.

I’m speaking, of course, about John Parr!

Oh man… what can I say about this guy? Known mostly for his soundtrack songs to St. Elmo’s Fire and the lesser known Restless Heart on The Running Man soundtrack, John Parr was America’s favorite 80s Canadian singer… and boy did we love him.

“We did? But I’ve never heard of him!”

Oh yes you have. Ever listen to Meatloaf? He’s the creative genius behind quite a few of his songs. Even if you haven’t listened to Meatloaf, how could you miss St. Elmo’s Fire?

Following that, Parr had some success on the U.S. Top 40 with songs like Naughty Naughty, though that’s not what I know him for. He hit the chart at #23 in 1984…

After that, he was the lead in the Rock Opera ‘Paris’ in 1989… which if you haven’t seen it, you have my sympathies friends. It’s a good show!

Unfortunately, he disappeared from the music scene at least the mainstream music scene until the early 2000s, and has been active ever seen.

More than one of my mix CDs had St. Elmo’s Fire, Restless Hearts, and Naughty Naughty on them throughout High School. I highly recommend his music to anyone out there that has a (not so) guilty pleasure of 80s Rock and Roll!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim