// 001 // FIRST STEPS // GHOST BUSTERS THEME // RAY PARKER Jr

Once upon a time, there was a small boy.  He was, as all small boys are, obsessed with mud, things that explode and running away from girls.  He had a passing daliance with Star Wars (which he would return to with a vengence in later life) but the first truly awesome thing to swim into his purview was a film about, erm, men who bust ghosts.

I was obsessed with Ghostbusters, after seeing it in a cinema which is now a TK Maxx, and even went so far as to fashion my own unlicenced particle accelerator out of two Robinsons squash bottles, a vaccuum cleaner nozzle and a snake belt.  I had the sticker book, the view-master, the computer game on my Commodore 64 (although I never could guide Ray (or it may have been Peter, the sprite was so poorly rendered) thorugh the Stay-puft Marshmallow man's legs) and, in the days before VHS tapes - yes, it was THAT long ago - owning the soundtrack was the closest thing to watching the film again.

So it came to pass that the first ever single young Dan owned was the Ghostbusters Theme by Ray Parker Jr, bought from the record counter at Morrisons, back when such things were still, erm, things. Indeed, my copy still has a sticker on the sleeve with my name on it, from when I took it to a school disco, although I have long since lost the means to listen to vinyl.

The song itself stands up pretty well, in a sort of cheesy, borderline camp 80's kind of way, and I'm pretty sure it is the strongest song in Ray Parker Jr's back catalogue (pop quiz - can you name another song by him?)

So as first records ever bought go, I'm not at all embarrased by my choice.  The second song I ever bought was 'Hole In My Shoe' by Neil for the Young Ones which would have been slightly more embarrasing to admit to...