Brothers

[joninliverton]

I've not got a brother but so wish I had. I have one sister and although I love her and her kids to bits, they're all girls. When I lived nearer them then I used to child mind or babysit as we say over here -we played daft games and they loved me 'cos they could stay up late.


Most of you members know of my love of music so I decided to check out YouTube under brother and came up with these 2 English classics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZmxonqiH0k Listen to the words and at least one of you guys may come up with a connection.

This clip is not for the faint hearted or emotional person and if you read the associated YouTube comments it's pretty upsetting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1KtScrqtbc

Here's the Neil Diamond version - I loved his hair in this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usZtSl8mX08

 

[jwglass]

my brother is one of the greatest people in my life. he started out with a very bad reaction to my coming out (he found out from his girlfriend, my best friend's sister) and he didnt take it so well. he gave it some time, thought about it, and came back to his senses. now we are closer than ever, he is very involved with my life, even the gay parts. he always asks to see pictures from pridefest, and loves hear about meeting diesal and austin. something tells me him and diesal could cause some trouble together. he is a great person and supports me emotionally and physically (he'd beat some ass in a second if someone wrongs me) just thought id throw that out there

 

[joninliverton]

my brother is one of the greatest people in my life. he started out with a very bad reaction to my coming out (he found out from his girlfriend, my best friend's sister) and he didnt take it so well. he gave it some time, thought about it, and came back to his senses. now we are closer than ever, he is very involved with my life, even the gay parts. he always asks to see pictures from pridefest, and loves hear about meeting diesal and austin. something tells me him and diesal could cause some trouble together. he is a great person and supports me emotionally and physically (he'd beat some ass in a second if someone wrongs me) just thought id throw that out there

That's nice Joe, glad you gave him time to come to his senses. Time is a great healer..

 

[mikeyank]

I am very close to my brother, who is four years older. He was the first family member I came out to when I was 25. We were eating dinner in a restaurant one evening, when our parents were spending the winter in Florida.

I told him all about my being gay. He later told me that he never finished his hamburger after I told him. But today he is totally cool with it, and loves me very much, and he and his wife and family love me as much as I love them all.

And by the way Jon, The Hollies, "He aint heavy, he's my brother" is another terrific song that you have found.

Are you aware that one of your favorite artist's Graham Nash, was the lead vocalist?

 

[joninliverton]

And by the way Jon, The Hollies, "He aint heavy, he's my brother" is another terrific song that you have found.

Are you aware that one of your favorite artist's Graham Nash, was the lead vocalist?

Actually the lead vocalist was Alan Clark - Graham Nash was a prominent songwriter and backing harmonies. I have a friend at work who is a lot older than me and an ex session musician who knew someone very close to the Hollies. Apparently Clark and Nash didn't get on too well and Nash often deliberately wrote songs in keys that would strain Clarks voice.

Jeez I know some shit don't I ? Thats the good thing about mixing with people from all generations, you get to learn so much from their experience.

 

[gwr19569424]

I really enjoy listening to the Hollies "He ain't heavy, he's my brother". I even get choked up over it sometimes.

As far as brothers go, I had two brothers who both have passed before me about 20 years ago. I really miss them, although when we were growing up, we were always getting each other in trouble, as boys would. As we grew older and went out separate ways, we always managed to keep in touch. We were a very close knit family and that still carries on today with me and my parents.

Always, Gary

 

[underwear fun]

I have a brother 4 years younger than me (as well as two sisters). Thanks goes to mum for having a large family. Shame this is not so common anymore probably to costly nowadays. Some good life skills can be learnt having a few siblings. There was this good looking straight swedish guy on cam4 the other night without a gf saying he had no brothers/sisters and grew up alone with no one his age and while he is very chatty on cam4 finds it very difficult to get a gf. He was telling a recent girl she was stupid because she was!

Anyway, its great doing boy stuff (non sexual) together with a brother growing up. I think they do tend to look up to you as a role model and while the elder brother is entrusted with greater previlages it is balanced against getting stitched up by the younger brother's tricks. Either, parents believe the younger brother and if they don't then you should have known better. Looking back it feels a shame those days are gone but being that age again probably glad they are over, if you know what I mean.

Undie

 

[lovelumps]

My brother is 5 years older than I. He's a professional musician, so growing up we had a lot of fights about music. That's what I remember most. He had a full stereo on which he played much classical and jazz music, very loudly. I had a boom box that played the radio and cassette tapes. He had headphones, I didn't. If I was in my room listening to my 80s music, we'd have wars. He always won.

I took piano for years and he tried, really hard, to mentor me positively, but I always felt he was being critical, not supportive. He did everything better than me, I believed, and although I worshiped the ground he walked on at the time, I was insanely jealous of his talent. I learned that I was not less talented, just differently gifted than he is, and so I started pursuing different hobbies.

It wasn't until I was in college that we realized that we weren't in a competition and we could just hang out and get to know each other and we became great friends. We've had so much fun together over the years. He's not, surprisingly enough, perfect, and neither am I, so we help each other through the rough patches. He is someone I admire fiercely. I'm proud of him, not always his behavior as he's a huge drama queen, he's a good man.

My mom worries and runs in the other direction when we get in the kitchen together, though. It's the one area where we are still really competitive. It can cause problems if we are trying to cook something together, so we usually avoid that! We each have our specialties, so usually we don't even try

I took every opportunity to taunt and torture him right back during stereo wars, though. He hated this song something awful!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=barLaHrtvoM

 

[cumrag27]

Boy stuff only a brother could cook up

My brother (half-brother) was 8 years older than the latest arrival, me. Consequently I looked up to him as my "big" brother. I barely remember him before he was 14 as he lived and attended school in Baltimore, MD where his father and step-mother resided and was actually home with us only in the summers and the occasional holiday. It seems that times in the early 50's were "hard times" too financially speaking and not unlike today.

When I mentioned earlier that I looked up to him, it was..."very up to him" as he was already 6'4" at 16 where as I at age 8 was not much above waste level on him with his very long skinny legs. He was always bending forward when going through a doorway. He was gregarious, handsome, well liked, and had his running buddies where ever he went. I was too young and wisely left out of this equation. Around the house, he would be into pulling a lot of tricks on the "baby" in the family, me. He would dare me for a "dime" to run outside dressed only in my underwear and a towel hanging out the front and back as if I was an indian. Then, he would never pay up! As we lived on a very busy street on a corner lot, I am sure many passers-by would anticipate something outrageous as they approached driving up to our corner. I was, after all, a captive audience and free for the asking when tormenting was in order.

At 16 he was a bit thin at only 160 lbs with narrow shoulders, soon to be filled out. He was always a product of France in WWII and he brought the war back with him when he immigrated to the US 2 years before I was born. As I grew up, he was perpetually playing "Army" in the backyard using the lawn mower to carve out streets and conducting precision military maneuvers including blowing up tin solders in our backyard with the carefully aimed rock, occasional firecracker, or, if really lucky, a cherry bomb. I remember him reversing his handlebars and taking off the fenders from his bicycle to suggest it was a "racing bike" and wearing his billed cap back wards, far from the norm back then. He was always fiddling with the chain, brakes, and flats. He worked during that summer at a golf course driving range on the outskirts of the city and I remember him, on a particularly rainy day, returning home soaked and with mud streaked and road film up the back of his shorts and shirt as a consequence of removing the rear fender from his bike. As an 8 year old, I thought this was funny as any small brother naturally would.

He loved camping out, hiking, and exploring with his running buddies. On those dreaded occasions, he would often return home with large snapping turtles he collected having his bike basket filled to overflowing with them. He liked few things more than to terrorize me, his kid brother, while holding one in each of his large hands. I remember these summers with him bronzed and shirtless and totally oblivious to everyone else in the world except for his buddies as is the norm for anyone his age.

These are some of my fonder memories of my brother.

Cumrag27, aka Stimpy

 

[joninliverton]

Excellent post Cumrag, I just wish I had a brother to write such good times about.

 

[aquarius]

I still remember my mother being devastated when she found out she was pregnant with my brother. I was twelve when he was born. I guess it was because she was so upset about his coming - he was her favorite and I didn't mind at all. He was the better looking of us by far, the most fun at a party. He loved motorcycles, but I don't think I ever saw him ride one. He loved horses and both his sons were high school rodeo champion ropers. He loved music and managed a couple of rock bands but couldn't sing a note or play an instrument. His mother-in-law loved him almost as much as his mother did.

When he was three my sister and I tried to teach him to jump the septic tank while it was being repaired. He didn't make it. My mother and I hosed him off and she scrubbed him with Ajax and took him to the hospital for a round of shots. He held a grudge for nearly a year.

I tried to watch your video, jon, but I'm not strong enough. He died five years ago and I still miss him. Two of his Harley friends rode hogs at the head of the procession to the cemetery and there were cowboys and Indians and hippies and professors and barflys and deacons there. "Amazing Grace" was sung in Cherokee and we all stayed to visit while the grave was closed.

 

[joninliverton]

I still remember my mother being devastated when she found out she was pregnant with my brother. I was twelve when he was born. I guess it was because she was so upset about his coming - he was her favorite and I didn't mind at all. He was the better looking of us by far, the most fun at a party. He loved motorcycles, but I don't think I ever saw him ride one. He loved horses and both his sons were high school rodeo champion ropers. He loved music and managed a couple of rock bands but couldn't sing a note or play an instrument. His mother-in-law loved him almost as much as his mother did.

When he was three my sister and I tried to teach him to jump the septic tank while it was being repaired. He didn't make it. My mother and I hosed him off and she scrubbed him with Ajax and took him to the hospital for a round of shots. He held a grudge for nearly a year.

I tried to watch your video, jon, but I'm not strong enough. He died five years ago and I still miss him. Two of his Harley friends rode hogs at the head of the procession to the cemetery and there were cowboys and Indians and hippies and professors and barflys and deacons there. "Amazing Grace" was sung in Cherokee and we all stayed to visit while the grave was closed.

The last paragraph is so sad Rifle xx It reminds me of an old friend of mine Alan who lost his son 2 years ago this coming January. His son took his own life for no apparent reason (to everyone else). His son must have been in his late twenties but we never met, he was a motorcycle dude and the meet after the funeral in my local pub was full of motorcycle dudes. All dressed in suits mind with their hair washed and tied back in respect of their lost buddy.

Alan and his wife have never gotten over it and are at this moment holidaying in Egypt, I hope they have a relaxing time.