Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Are you listening more to the Oldies?


Is it my imagination or are they playing more Oldies on TV shows and in movies these days? I hear old Eagles tunes and old Chicago tunes on CSI, ER, Law and Order and all kinds of shows it seems. Of course I love it! When I was actually living in the 60's and 70's, I was almost completely immersed in classical music so I heard this music but never knew the name of the song or the name of the band. It wasn't until the summer of 1970 when I worked at a beautiful outdoor Performing Arts Center that I finally got into the swing of things. I was a huge fan of Cat Stevens, Elton John, Chicago, Three Dog Night, and many, many others. It just seems a little strange that suddenly I'm hearing these songs everywhere I turn! How about you??

Monday, January 08, 2007

Baby Boomers and Music: Inseparably Connected

Baby Boomers, in case you've never heard of us, are folks that were born betweeb 1946 and 1964. My own family of origin happens to have five baby boomers: myself, born in 1948, a sister born in 1950, a brother born in 1952, a sister born in 1955 and a sister born in 1960. We all love music and grew up with radios, hifi's and finally stereo's blaring. Even though we were preacher's kids we loved the popular music of our day. I have fond memories of my sister and me standing on the sidewalk outside our home, holding sticks as pretend microphones and singing "Standing on the Sidewalk, Watching all the Girls Go By."
When I was about six years old I started hearing about Elvis. Now my Daddy was a preacher and in S.C. in the mid-50's, Elvis was definitely not someone my parents wanted me listening to. I remember hearing "Jailhouse Rock" and "Blue Suede Shoes" on the radio at a neighbor's house and feeling scandalized but I wasn't sure why.
I turned 13 in 1961 and vividly remember listening to the Beatles sing "I Wanna Hold Your Hand." I thought their music was wonderful and to my surprise, my parents let me stay home from church one Sunday night to watch the Beatles appear on Ed Sullivan. I was thrilled! I loved all the Beatles music as well as the Motown groups and most of the British invasion groups like Herman's Hermits and the Dave Clark Five. I loved Petula Clarkand Dusty Springfield and probably day-dreamed that one day I might have a group of my own. Instead, in real life, I turned to classical music and practiced scales and Beethoven sonatas for hours a day. Still, while a piano major in college, I fell in love with the music of Elton John and Cat Stevens. I bought a book of Elton's top hits to play on the piano when my professor wasn't around and it brought me wicked good fun!
In 1971 I got married. You can see the wedding picture on my site http://www.babyboomerarticles.com. My husband and I both loved the music of Elton John and soon I discovered Billy Joel, the piano man, and so many others. Every decade for the boomers has had so many memorable hits. Do you remember the first time you heard "Afternoon Delight"? I do and just hearing a couple of bars of any of the above songs takes me instantly to another time and place. Music is magical! Music is mystical! Music is better than a plane ticket for taking you to another time and place when life was simpler and teenagers were in love. Let's always remember this music and it's messages of "Give Peace a Chance," "Breaking Up is Hard to do," "Up, Up and Away!"

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Music at the Gerald Ford funeral


I watched the funeral of Gerald Ford yesterday with rapt attention. I remember him well. I was upset when he pardoned Richard Nixon because I didn't think Nixon should "get away with it." Now I understand that it did allow the country to move on and get past all of the scandal that Nixon brought to our country. As always, music brought back lots of memories yesterday. The orchestra played beautifully the Navy Hymn that had played continuously during John Kennedy's funeral. Denice Graves sang "The Lord's Prayer" like an angel, as she did during the service for 9/11 victims. As we baby boomers age, the amount of music associated with momentous events grows and grows. Personally, I'm glad because it helps me to remember things that have shaped my life and my world. How about you?