Talking to the cats and feeling good. World is warming back up to thirty outside our window. Snow on the ground has gained an icy veneer. “All that’s okay, but the wind,” the cats say, “listen to that wind. Feel that wind. We don’t like the wind.”
“You’re alright, floofdudes. The wind is outside and you’re inside.”
“You sure? Because listen to those hisses, whispers, and howls.”
“Yep, we’re okay? Feel the heat? Have a treat. Don’t you worry ’bout a thing.”
And there it was, Steve Wonder’s lovely reminder, “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout A Thing” (1974), a perfect song to release some tensions by singing aloud and dancing with your floofs.
I had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal. Good friends, casual friends, and new friends were there.
During one point in the evening, I remarked, “Times are changed, times are strange.” Then I thought, wait a minute, those are song lyrics? What’s the song?
The song noodled in and out of my thinking stream through dinner and into after-dinner conversation until, eureka, yes, that’s from Ozzy Osbourne, “Mama, I’m Coming Home” (1991). After remembering that, the song stayed in my head through the night and into the morning.
So, here it is. I could be right, I could be wrong, but I think this is a good Friday theme song.
It’s Thanksgiving in the United States today, a holiday imbued with myths and traditions, and many memories for someone like me.
I have some wonderful Thanksgiving memories. Mom worked hard to make holidays a success — except Mother’s Day (yeah, d’uh, she took the day off, didn’t she?) — and Thanksgiving was always terrific at her house. Later, in the military, my wife took on the same role. Overseas, she coordinated and orchestrated Thanksgiving dinner among several families, and we always invited the single people to come over so they felt less alone.
I benefited from that, too. My Uncle and his family had me over for Thanksgiving when I was in basic training, saving me from a chowhall dinner. I had a great time with them. There were other Thanksgivings with co-workers’ families a few times when I was stationed overseas on temporary unaccompanied duty, like the time with Tony’s family in the Philippines. There were also a couple chowhall Thanksgivings, though.
All that brought the Alan Parsons Project song, “Time” (1981). It came out the year that we reported for duty in Germany. We lived off based that first year, and it was one of the times when it was just my wife and I. It was still memorable.
Why “Time”? Because of the lines, “But time keeps flowing like a river, to the sea.”
Yep, although it does make me think, there’s a sea of time out there, somewhere.
“Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me” by Elton John and Bernie Taupin was released in 1974. I’ve been hearing a live cover by George Michael, with Elton John as his guest (1991) at the coffee shop. Naturally, it ended up stuck in the stream, looping around a few times.
There are many memories associated with the song (like dances, kisses, and good-byes). It came out right after I graduated high school and went into the military, so it’s branded as part of that era, that transition from teenager living at home to adult on their own. As the Michael version came out during my final tour, it almost exactly bracketed my military career. Just a little coincidence, but one that ends up attaching sentiments to the song for me.
I was just up (peeing, actually), when the lines from “While You See A Chance” (Steve Winwood, 1981) came to me.
When some sad old dream reminds you
how the endless road unwinds you
while you see a chance, you take it
find romance, fake it
because it’s all on you
I always enjoy that section in particular. It’s an uplifting song to me, one of several favorites that Steve Winwood put out as a solo artist. Looking for confirmation a bit ago, I verified that he didn’t write the lyrics alone, that it was co-written by Will Jennings. I thought that I’d read that but couldn’t recall the details. Thanks to Wikipedia for the reminder.
The title, too, always strikes me; not, ‘when you see a chance’ but ‘while you see a chance’. Act while you see it, not when you see it. Like that subtle difference.
I’ve been reading a lot about walls in recent months for some odd reason.
Walls. Are they needed? Do they work? Are they being built? How much do they cost? Can’t we just buy a DIY at Home Depot?
Wondering why there’s all this talk about walls was obviously an invitation for “Wonderwall” by Oasis (1995) to slip over and around my walls and into my stream.
It fits as a song for the times, though; wonderwall, in the modern urban sense, is about a person you’re infatuated with.
Lots of people seem infatuated with walls these days.
Looking at the stars last night on a beautifully clear night, I thought of David Bowie’s “Ziggy Stardust” (1972). Love this video of David and his band – look at that fine young dude.
I’m afraid today’s music is another one that just snuck into the stream and refuses to depart. I don’t know why it came in – I was cleaning the kitchen at the time and planning my day.
“Rosanna” by Toto isn’t a bad song at all. I got to know it and all of Toto IV (1982) intimately. I was stationed at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa, Japan, at the time. My best bud, Jeff, loved the Toto IV album. The harmonies enthralled him. We used to go camping up at Okuma, where the military had a recreation area, and Toto IV with “Rosanna” was always played a few times a day.
Good ol’ Jeff. Fun, smart guy. Haven’t heard from or about him in decades.
Today’s song penetrated the stream with no obvious reason. No memories or brain cells are standing up to say, “I did it. It was me.” Investigations and research have ended with no solid leads.
The song came out in 1961. I was five. Don’t know if I heard it that year, but I’ve heard it a buncha times later. You probably know it, too. It’s still in my head, and I need to get it out, so I’m foisting it on others.
