This is the second and final part of the interview I had the pleasure of conducting with John Jones from Buy Widget. I’m sure you’ll like it as much as the first!

PART II

MUSIC & YOU

When did you become interested in music? What was the first album or single you ever purchased?

At a very young age – growing up in Toronto in the late ‘60s, I listened to radio all the time. First single was Badfinger – No Matter What and first album was The Best Of The Guess Who. Probably the Canadian influence on the last one, but it actually purchased on a trip to the US!

Are you in a band yourself, or have you been in a band in the past? Is there a clip on YouTube or elsewhere we could watch?

Never in a band. However, I’ve had the good fortune to work as a producer in both live and studio environments and have worked with some incredible talent across genres from rock to alternative to jazz to blues to world. Here’s a link to some of my productions: http://www.fortyninegroup.com/radio-shows-and-live-and-studio-recordings/

Also, as a radio and TV producer I got to work or interview with just about everyone I had ever hoped to work with at some point. Here’s a link to a subset of TV productions: http://www.fortyninegroup.com/videos/

Musical likes and dislikes? Favorite artists?

No dislikes, only preferences for electronica, UK-based rock and post-bop experimental jazz… and one particular Canadian – at the top of the list – The Verve, Underworld, Neil Young, John Coltrane, Gil Scott-Heron, and two Bens (Ben Watt and Ben Harper). Lastly, pretty much any song Jimmy Page or Robert Plant have recorded.

If you had to name the song that moves you the most, what would it be? Can you pinpoint the reason why?

Silver Ponds (Ben Watt Dub of Figurines track) – Buzzin’ Fly 4

I use it as a warmup track on my iPod before Triathlon, Ironman and Marathon or running races I compete in – it tends to get the job done!

Is there a song that – to you – captures the spirit of your startup and what you have set out to do? What would it be?

Hmmm – I haven’t thought about this before. New Radicals – You Get What You Give. It’s older, but the title is entirely appropriate. Work, or the end product is based on what you give, what you put into it. Work = Force x Distance In a startup, it’s all about applying force over a distance to achieve what you want. So you get what you give.