Disclaimer/Intro:

It seems that I am compelled to write a blog entry when someone (animal, vegetable, mineral--no minerals yet) has departed this earthly realm. Maybe I'll revisit this blog thing more often. Who knows?

RICK BAGLIONI TRIBUTE BLOG ENTRY

How do you encapsulate a 55 year roller coaster of a friendship into a bunch of words? There are simply too many anecdotes, events and occurrences to possibly list them all. From tales that originate out of our neighborhood (even though Rick lived about 5 blocks away) where we first met at age 7, to grammar school and beyond. A long time ago, I was persuaded by Rick and his Mom to join the Cub Scouts (the junior version of the Boy Scouts). The Cub Scout experience didn't last long which was probably a good thing for all concerned.

     However, that and regular interaction, conversation, and meeting up in the school playground led to the beginnings of a friendship. If memory serves, it was possibly baseball cards(?) then Matchbox cars, then some comic books that were the unifying hobbies we had. Both of our parents were aware of, and stayed on top of our burgeoning collections, lest they clutter up our rooms and the house in general (mine less so).

At some point in the early to mid '70s, Rick became the proud owner of a portable GE stereo phonograph (jokingly referred to as the Close-n-Play). Until a few years later, this served as our gateway to another dimension. Rick's (and my) record collection started to grow (45s, LPs) and then small cassette players and of course, cassettes. We began to frequent (as best we could) local record stores, where there was much to explore and learn (on our own and through record store employee/gurus). Oddly, or perhaps there was some strategy to this, we hardly ever bought the same record. I guess this was to cover as much musical ground as possible. FM radio was helpful in hearing new sounds, but at times, ,their selections were somewhat repetitive.

Aside from the music obsessions, and stamp collecting, and button collecting, Rick had a healthy interest in art and design. He had the neatest handwriting (many, many hand labelled cassette cases in miniature printing) and his inherited gift for precision architectural style rendering found its way into his artwork. In a way, intentional or not, his art had a futuristic feel to it.

Rick liked to be the center of attention, and had a real gift for mimicry. This included doing accents, facial expressions and other mannerisms, and was not limited in any way. He copuld easily recite dialogue from an obscure cartoon, a scene from a favorite film, or a conversation (with all of the nuances) from years before.

Our concert going experiences weere many (and varied). From very informal performances in a loft or basement-type setting, to large concert halls, the willingness to seek out the unusual and different carried over to that as well. I attended many unique musical events at Rick's urging.

Rick's gift communication led to a brief stint at a New Rochelle, NY radio station, where he had (for a brief time) a Saturday morning radio show (where he managed to play Iggy Pop to a mostly conservative audience). His gift for languages (English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese) enabled him to pursue a teaching career. We would frequently run into students of his, who thanked him profusely for helping them assimilate into American culture, whether this meant finding a new job, furthering their education or just broadening their language skills. Speaking of languages, Rick invented a language of his own. This mainly involved the insertion of the letter "n" into every word. We would have regular discussions or "dinscunsions" if you like, about what to call this, It was either going to be called Englinch, Ninglish or Nenglench.

He had very strong opinions. If Rick liked something, he would let you know. If he didn't like something (or someone), he would REALLY let you know. He was passionate about everything, and his voice (and temper) would rise with the retelling of an anecdote.

On a different and more personal note, when I was in my own hour of need, aside from certain members of my family, Rick was there for me 100%. While I stayed with him and rebuilt the broken pieces of my existence, we became even closer friends. While on opposite ends of the spectrum politically, we managed to find common ground in everything else. Eventually, we moved in opposite directions, and our communications were mainly limited to phone, and the occasional get together. We still talked about life, music, and many other topics (carefully side-stepping politics). Rick was still a music obsessive, and his tastes had really branched out. I don't think that anyone could keep up with him in that regard.

He was one-of-a-kind and will forever be missed. His presence is still felt, and to me, he is still with us (especially when I'm in a record store). The only difference is that now he is slightly invisible. He would have laughed at that. 

Rest in Peace, Rick.

A RICK PLAYLIST OF SORTS:

Don't Cry No Tears - Neil Young

No Dark Things - Echo and the Bunnymen

The Main Thing - Roxy Music

Thank You America - Cabaret Voltaire

Us and Them - Pink Floyd

Arc-Lite - LOOP

Honeymooners

Little Rascals

Boardwalk Empire

Scarface

Blade Runner