Saturday, May 9, 2015

Trip back to Spring of 1967 - Courtesy of SiriusXM Channel 6

I often listen to Lou Simon's Satellite Survey on SiriusXM the weekend or the repeat Wednesday at 6 p.m. Lou recreates the top 40 from that week in a particular year. The best part is the bottom of the survey, where the songs live that, if they never rose into the top 10, rarely if ever get airplay.

Today, though, is different. Lou is playing 50 songs from the SPRING of 1967 - not just a week. That happens to be my most intense listening period, right when I turned 14 and got my first guitar (in photo). All great stuff, from the San Francisco Sound to British Invasion, Motown, one-hit wonders, and much more.

So, here I am in the future, 2015, with my Sony earbuds plugged into my laptop, listening to satellite radio streamed on the Internet, resuming my blogging.

Something about hearing old favorites brings back a special mood. And Lou is pulling out some real classics. Playing I Can't Seem to Make You Mine by the Seeds. How long since you've heard THAT one?

I actually play real music myself now, in my orchestra and Blues band - Tablues - which is a more fulfilling experience than just listening. But these classics evoke the feelings of adolescence, part of what made me who I am musically now. I guess the challenge is to enjoy this music and appreciate it while moving forward. I don't think I can feel the same about current music, but I have had some enjoyment from today's pop artists. These days, I listen to a lot of Jazz, which is my "adult" music. On an iPod, I can get the Beatles and Dave Brubeck in the same 10 minutes.

For today, though, it's two hours of classics--from my favorite part of my favorite year. Yes, I have to listen through Engelbert Humperdinck and Andy Williams, too, but that was what was on the radio the spring of my Freshman year of high school. But so was Ding Dong the Witch is Dead by the Fifth Estate and I was Kaiser Bill's Batman by Whistlin' Jack Smith!

And the fun continues.