I am an audiophile.  I love music of all genres. My dream job would be: a DeeJay.  I have quite a collection of LPs, CD’s and Playlists spanning three generations and could hit the ground running with all sorts of selections, from one-hit-wonders to the man I listened to religiously for five decades: the talented, effusive, and irrepressible, Sir Elton John.

Like me, my love of music was born in 1960. The song “Theme from a Summer Place” by Percy Faith and his Orchestra was popular that year. This hopelessly optimistic melody provides a perfect soundtrack for my early years. When I was small, my parents had a nice collection of albums, including Harry Bellafonte, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana brass, Petula Clark, and Andy Willliams’ famous “Born Free”.  I loved the early sixties soundtrack and how it catapulted our country from the sock hops of the fifties into decades so rich with musical splendor and inventiveness  I cannot begin to scratch the surface of that LP.

We also had numerous 45’s by the Beatles, the Monkees, and Herman’s Hermits. “I’m Hen-ary the Eighth, I am” and “I’m a Believer” were popular tunes. We all had to pick a favorite Beatle. John was the most popular. My sister would be Paul or John. My brother was George or John. That usually left me playing Ringo which was okay by me. Our parents gave us drumsticks, but no drums. We played drums using the old basement couch cushions. it was a brilliantly quiet idea! It was if they knew what music lay ahead.

Enter hippies and the music that defined them from Pete Seger and Arlo Guthrie, to Joanie Mitchell, Jimmie Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Mama Cass Elliott, and the Byrds. Their music stood the test of time. For some, their lifestyles did not.  In the late 60’s we moved to Detroit and had a great selection of both Motown and Top forty tunes from of all places, the Windsor radio station, CKLW. I liked that station because  it sort of matched my initials and my fledgling musical tastes. We listened to the radio and immitated the DeeJays. We had small reel-to-reel tape decks and could overprint our young voices onto the iconic songs of 60’s.  We would dance with the  Jackson 5 and drift to sleep listening to tunes like “Riders on the Storm”, “Light my Fire”, and “The Boxer”  Many songs had double meanings. but we were way too young to care.  We just liked he way they sounded.

The 70’s roared in with amplifiers and Moog synthesizers and a tide of classic Rock legends. The stereo moved down to the basement and the volume cranked up. Elton John paid beautiful tribute to Marilyn Monroe with “Candle in the Wind”. The Beatles broke up shortly after “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” had us all scratching our heads looking for deeper meanings in lyrics and in life. But none of the Fab four would let us down. We listened to songs  and copied the art on the album covers. There were many classic British hits by bands like Pink Floyd, The Moody Blues, The Who, and The Rolling Stones. There were singer-songwriters like Cat Stevens, Elton John, Carole King, Carly Simon,  James Taylor, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young and Chicago. In Detroit, we had local rock stars like The J Geils band and Bob Seger. The Supremes inspired us to rise up and John Lennon said “don’t let me down” while he taught  us to imagine a better world.

We would roller skate to tunes from the Commodores and Earth Wind and Fire at indoor skate rinks. Disco was just taking off and the venues quickly became gleaming spectacles of lights and Beegees tunes. There were always talented skaters zipping around the dance floor, combining skating and disco moves.  There was an early fusion of disco in Motown leaving imprints on the ones to follow: Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Prince.

The 80’s brought in Punk Rock, Devo, Men Without Hats, and their hit “The Safety Dance” at college parties. Stereos were our most expensive possession. “Dream On” and Don’t Fear the Reaper” blared from open windows and the speakers barely fit in our fuel efficient cars. And then we lost John Lennon to a crazed fan. Giant speakers were replaced by giant boomboxes with cassette tapes. We all had that one Bruce Springsteen album. Fleetwood Mac inspired independence. We listened to legends like Michael Jackson, Madonna, Prince, Aerosmith, Journey, U2, REM, and once-again, Elton John. Music videos took dance to the next level. We tried to Moonwalk. It was a decade full of light hearted one-hit-wonders with catchy tunes like “Friday, I’m in Love” It described our escapist lives well.  “We are the World”  saved us from our self-indulgence and we looked up to see poverty at home and far away.  Farm Aid venues popped up; Willie, Waylon and the Boys showed up. CDs replaced Tapes, and we learned how to burn our own mix CDs.

Country Western had a resurgence then too. We escaped to simpler times with retro classics from Patsy Cline and Hank Williams Sr. Willie Nelson brought back the classics with “Stardust”.  That coincided well with our move to Texas where there were lots of jobs and country music, both.  We learned country-western dancing. We settled down and had children who knew every verse of “Deep in the Heart of Texas”. We waltzed across the state listening to tunes like “Amarillo by Morning” and “Lone Star State of Mind”.

The 90’s were dominated by Disney soundtracks: Aladin, The Jungle Book, Tarzan, and the Lion King by the now very mainstream Elton John.  There were boy bands like the Backstreet Boys and NSync. The songs “Hero”, “From a Distance”, and “I Believe I can Fly” lulled us and our young children to sleep. The music was quietly optimistic and so were we.  The Cranberries and U2 tried to get us to pay attention to the world, while Celine reminded us that Love is what matters most. We all stood on the bow of the boat, our eyes upon the next century. Then Elton John had to resurrect “Candle in the Wind” for the  loss of another iconic and beautiful soul, Diana. We were pulled back into a somewhat harsher reality.

We all rang in the Millenium  listening to Sting’s “Brand New Day”. Bruce made a resurgence and “Born in the USA” rallied us during the terrifying  losses of 9/11. U2 attempted to heal our pain with “It’s a beautiful day, don’t let it slip away”, reminding us to stop every once in awhile in our fast-paced and unpredictable lives, and turn up the volume on our Walkmans. Then the  Ipod arrived, and we would spend the decade digitally loading songs from our vast CD and LP collections. We were so busy keeping up with technology we hadn’t noticed the world and the music getting angier.

These were the  “Songs by Green Day or Blue October and bands with colorful names” years.  My kids rolled their eyes and put on their headsets.  The phones followed the IPod, and streaming gave us ready soundtracks where we all were the DeeJays for the day. We stopped listening to each other and listened instead to our custom playlists, comforted by the memories singing back to us.  Ear buds and noise canceling headsets protected us from the horrors on the news. The Dixie Chicks came in with attitude, and exited stage left with sass and a swish. They were clearly ahead of their time. Our children listened to a strong-willed Toby Keith, to the friendlier Rascal Flatts, to “Garage Bands” and angsty songs by “Linkin’ Park”. We could relate to “Numb” in a way they would not yet understand.  I shouted over the headsets: “that’s a hate your mother song! I don’t like it!”. Eminem brought a new level of anger to the scene but I liked 8-Mile because, well, east Detroit. I understood, he was Detroit. Flint was getting ready to implode. Even country music, that age-old safe haven was no longer safe, but edgy with Patriotism and poised to defend Old Glory.  Watching sons and daughters returning  from Afghanistan, we could relate to that too.

Recently the songs have mellowed. Our son now likes all kinds of music, including Frank Sinatra. Our daughter still prefers All Country, All the time. The aging rockers are facing their Encores. There are fusion restaurants with fusion music genres like Irish-Celtic-Ska, Czech-Christian, or Asian-Bolivian. We have awoken to a new era where the world is smaller, and the musical selections bigger. The next generation is more accepting, Lady Gaga and Pink talk about inclusion and motherhood and empowerment in a way Madonna never did.  Adele and grand-daddy Elton remind us that it’s still about talent and singing from your heart. Crazed gunmen still steal our joy and peace, but they cannot take our music.

The next generation is walking a different path of sustainability and caring, with a different soundtrack, but if you listen closely the lyrics are the same.  They carried their double meaning across the decades.  Their soundtrack is rich and rugged and streaming into our lives. Like the technology delivering the tunes, the message is immediate, not about the future or the past but about now. I like this new music scene, says the faceless DeeJay, converting decades of music to digital streams. I hope they remember to make backups of the most amazing last half century of tunes.

Now, Stream on fellow listeners!  🎶 (lwr 10/16/2017)