It is crazy how much music can influence me. I have always had music in my life. As a child, my parents always seemed to have the stereo on. Of course the stereo of my childhood was a hug cabinet with a turntable, AM radio and "reel to reel" tape deck. My parents had gatherings (aka parties) just about every weekend it seemed to me. I remember my favorite cousin, whom I idolized, would be there and we would put on a 45 and sing along recording it on the tape deck. Some of our favorites were Joy to the World by Three Dog Night, several songs by Sly and the Family Stone (which I have on my iPod now LOL) and several Jackson 5 and Donny Osmond songs. Oh! I can't forget Tie a Yellow Ribbon Around the Old Oak Tree by Tony Orlando & Dawn was another one we played a lot. The Sly and the Family Stone songs were actually on an 8-track tape. My dad had managed to splice in and connect an 8-track tape deck to the big stereo. My cousin, whose nickname was "Pooh" and I would share a bright orange vinyl chair. The couches were a green, not quite lime but not quite avocado in color either. Of course the carpet was a red and orange shag and the upstairs carpet was a blue and green shag!! The color of the felt on the pool table and poker table matched the green in the shag very well... That's right, my parents were hip and happening in the 1970's!! LOL
Wow
my mind wanders and I digress. I started out with the intention of making the
point how music can really effect my mood as well. I am listening to playlist
on my iPod while I work and I cannot sit still for nothing! As a kid, I used music
as an escape. I would put on my
earphones and a record and zone out when I was trying to take a mental vacation
from things going on in my life. Don't
get me wrong, I did not have a bad childhood, but I was an only child - to
which I often refer to as a LONELY child.
My parents were unable to have more kids, and as a result of
miscarriages and difficulty getting pregnant, my parents were in their 30's
when I was finally born. As a result,
most of their friends and my cousins were all older than me.
When
I was young, I had this Panasonic radio (see pic above - just like mine and
same color). It was AM radio because
this was before FM was available for normal radio. This radio was shaped like
an elongated donut! The color was "banana yellow". It twisted open to exposed the tuning
dial. The speaker was on the side so it
could be heard when twisted closed. The
purpose of the shape was so it could be positioned on a table, worn on your
wrist or as I usually had it - hung on the handle bars of a bicycle! I almost
always had that radio with me - until the day my favorite radio station 10-Q
went to FM. Then I had to get a different radio that was FM friendly.
To
this day, even though it has been 30-40 years, there are quite a few songs from
that time frame, that when I hear them I think of the beach. We always had a
radio (or 2) when we went to the beach. I could swear some songs even come with
the smell of the beach!! Yes, I do realize it is a memory of the smell... but
with the smell comes the good memories.
Spent a lot of weekend days at the beach, with family and friends and I
am thankful for every time I hear a song that brings back those memories.
During my childhood, I learned to play 4 different instruments and even did
some student teaching for the studio I studied at, so music will always be a
big part of my heart. Plus, and probably
the biggest gift of music is I met the love of my life in none other than the
high school marching band!! MANY years ago!
Selections
from the song American Pie performed
by Don McLean
A
long long time ago
I
can still remember
How
that music used to make me smile
And
I knew that if I had one chance
I
could make those people dance
And
maybe they'd be happy for awhile
.
.
But
I knew that I was out of luck
The
day the music died
I
started singing
Bye
bye Miss American Pie
Drove
my Chevy to the levy
But
the levy was dry
And
good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing
This
will be the day that I die
This
will be the day that I die
I
met a girl who sang the blues
And
I asked her for some happy news
But
she just smiled and turned away
Well
I went down to the sachet store
Where
I heard the music years before
I
met a girl who sang the blues
And
I asked her for some happy news
But
she just smiled and turned away
Well
I went down to the sachet store
Where
I heard the music years before
But
the man there said the music wouldn't play
Well
now in the streets the children screamed
The
lovers cried and the poets dreamed
But
not a word was spoken
The
church bells all broken
And
the three men I admire the most, The father, son, and the holy ghost
They
caught the last train for the coast
The
day the music died
.
.
Songwriters:
DON MCLEAN© Universal Music Publishing Group, Song trust Ave For non-commercial
use only.
Data
from: LyricFind
