A reminder from the past.
Forget about the past and all your sorrows,
The future won’t last,
It will soon be over tomorrow.
“It Don’t Come Easy,” by Ringo Starr.
Sunday’s Theme Music
Burton Cummings and the Guess Who were an impressive group. After making it in their home nation of Canada, they hit the international scene. We loved them in America, with songs like “American Woman,” “Bus Rider,” “Undun,” “No Time Left for You,” and several enjoyable albums. Cummings went on to a solo career, and the band broke up. Out of that rose Bachmann-Turner Ovedrive (BTO), also a successful band.
But one Guess Who offering started streaming in me head last night. “Hang On to Your Life” ends with some verses from Psalm 22. It used to amuse me to tell others these verses. I selected this song today, though, because I thought it was a good song to end 2017.
Friday’s Theme Music
Closing out 2017, I figure it’s a good time to listen to some old music.
Funny to think of this song, “Reeling in the Years,” as old music. This song was released in 1972, when I was just sixteen. It remains fresh sounding to me. Yet, I know how different it sounds, and I know that Steely Dan broke up long ago, then got back together, and then Walter Becker died. The band’s symmetry is a perfect illustration of how life passes for most of us, with triumphs and struggles, but ultimately, somehow becoming finalized with our deaths. That’s life, in all its glory, cruelty, and normalcy.
Ironic to listen to “Reeling in the Years,” though, knowing one of them no longer reels in the years. I always wonder, is death really that much worse than living? Maybe something else goes on with the energy that is us as the body moulders and fades.
Yes, those left behind find it painful. It’s a hard path to follow, because when others die, we’re forced onto new paths. Some of the paths have only a sight variation, depending on how close we were to the deceased. But sometimes, it’s like we’ve fallen off a cliff and have to pick ourselves up and learn to walk again.
Sorry, off-topic. Let’s get more upbeat. Here’s “Reeling in the Years.”
Wednesday’s Theme Music
Getting ready for a better year. That would be next year, 2018. To get it started, let’s jump on the back of this song.
Here’s “Let the Good Times Roll,” performed by B.B. King and Bobby Bland. Sweet. Crank it, baby.
Friday’s Theme Music
We averted a small disaster today. While walking yesterday, I heard a train blowing its horn. I instantly twisted a long-lost song in my mind:
“There is nothing like a train,
Nothing in this world.
There is nothing you can name,
that is anything like a train.”
It was a sorry parody of “There Is Nothing Like A Dame” from the musical, “South Pacific.” I know the song and the rest of the soundtrack well, thanks to Mom. She had it on vinyl, thirty-three R.P.M., and often played it on the stereo while cleaning the house. Her house was — is — spotless, let me tell you. I heard that song frequently.
My parody remained in my headstream until late last night. I thought I’d need to post about it to relieve get me out of the loop. Then Rod Stewart singing “Maggie May” replaced it.
So, here we are. That’s Ronnie Wood on guitar. Take it, Rod.
Monday’s Theme Music
Today’s song, “Tin Man,” was released in nineteen seventy-four. Among the trillion events happening that year, I graduated high school and joined the U.S. Air Force.
The next year found me married, and the year after that, I was stationed at Clark Air Base in the Philippines. Our news sources were mostly the Pacific Stars & Stripes newspaper and the Armed Forces Radio and Television Services. Our local affiliate was the Armed Forces Network (AFN) Philippines. The big thing that always stood out about AFN is that they were constantly warning us about habus and finding unexploded ordinance.
I enjoyed “Tin Man” and America’s other offerings a great deal. I learned more about them because the group met because their fathers were serving in the Air Force. Thus, The Stars & Stripes and AFN carried quite a bit about them.
Here’s “Tin Man.” It’s a mellow song. Hope you’re having a mellow day, and not deeply into the many messes going on in the world.
Wednesday’s Theme Music
I was already a Humble Pie fan when this song came out in nineteen seventy, having seen them in concert. I ate this album up, but the first song from side two – there’s some vinyl lingo for you – was my favorite. Two things about this song and group; I rarely encounter people who know either one. Bummer. Nineteen seventy-two was a fun year, and this song fit it perfectly.
Here’s “Thirty Days In the Hole.”
Monday’s Theme Music
This is one of those songs that I know from my youth, but I don’t know who sang it.
The song is “Black Is Black,” and the group who performed it was Los Bravos. I’m streaming it today for reasons that my mind won’t reveal. It came out in nineteen sixty-six. I was ten, then, but was probably exposed to it when driving around, because pop music was always playing on the AM radio stations in that era.
Give a listen, and see if any bells chime when you hear it.
Saturday’s Theme Music
Bob Mustin commented on yesterday’s theme music. He wrote, “The song favored by my class at the Naval Academy was The Animals’ “We Gotta Get Out of This Place.””
I hear that. His comment summoned a memory. We were in Egypt in nineteen eighty-five as part of Exercise Bright Star. It was July, or maybe August. Living in a tent city in the desert, the ops portion was done. We were awaiting redeployment. There was a lot of down time. While enduring the Sahara heat in our tent’s shade, one of the guys played “Green, Green Grass of Home” on a small cassette player.
One of the other guys said, “Man, turn that off. It’s depressing.”
The player said, “I think it’s nice.”
“It’s about a guy in prison,” one person said.
“Nice,” someone said. “It’s not nice. Makes me remember my wife is suing me for divorce.”
“Yeah, and it makes me remember my home when I was growing up,” the first speaker said. “There wasn’t any green, green grass at our house. It was all cement and asphalt, even the playground. The ball field wasn’t paved, but it didn’t have no grass, either.”
“Yeah, and my folks are dead,” said another guy. “There’s no one going to be there to meet me when I get home.”
An argument arose about the song and its meanings.
Ah, sweet memories. We heard the Tom Jones cover in Egypt, so that’s what I’m playing for you.
Wednesday’s Theme Music
Been thinking about time today, and I think it’s time to post a song that is about time. This one streamed into my thoughts.
Honestly, I couldn’t remember what year it came out, or the performer. I know the lyrics, though, and that was enough to find the song in this Internet age.
Turns out, it’s performed by the Chamber Brothers. It came out in nineteen sixty-eight, when I was twelve. It’s called, “Time Has Come Today”.
Michael Seidel, writer 