I grew up in a crowded house, but one of the things I could always count on for an escape was music. There was a huge console stereo in our living room. It was a beautiful piece of furniture. The wooden box with hand-carved scrollwork had been around as long as I had and I polished it weekly with Lemon Pledge. So, that meant it belonged to me. Its huge hinged lid was the escape hatch to a radio and turn table that gave the world to me. AM/FM, The Moody Blues, Steppenwolf, Simon & Garfunkel. I had it all!
When I was older, my parents had one of those Columbia House memberships where you could get any album on 8-track for a penny. A tape deck was added to our state-of-the-art sound system. Now I could pop a penny’s worth of Barry Manilow into the tape deck and dance like a Vegas show girl. It was indeed a true blue spectacle – a miracle come true!
In junior high I would go into the room I shared with my two sisters, shut the door and crank up I-95. It was THE rock station. They had a contest one summer where listeners could call in and win a hundred dollars for each time they said I-95 in one minute. I never called in because it was a long distance call. One time a DJ got stoned or something, locked himself into the control booth and played Blondie’s The Tide Is High over and over until the men in little white coats came to take him away.
I love music; all kinds. I did swear off Country because I know every word to every classic country song EVER recorded thanks to my grandmother. That’s all she listened to, well, that and anything performed on Lawrence Welk. This year has seen big losses of talented musical icons. This week the band Crowded House lost former drummer Peter Jones to brain cancer. He was only 45.
Crowded House is one of my absolute all time favorite bands. Their song Don’t Dream It’s Over made a mark on my heart when I was a young(er) woman. Every word of it is true. I tried to find a video of Crowded House performing on You (have to watch crap ads to pay for this) Tube and since I don’t want to advertise sneakers, here is the very talented Sixpence None The Richer performing the classic instead.
I love this song. Peace.
Honie Briggs 
Music has always been my favorite perk in life. I cannot go a day without music. Even if I am out of electricity in the woods camping I will sing. I also remember those Columbia ads. Getting a tape or CD for a penny was the coolest thing ever especially when we lived in remote rural areas.
Hey there Leah. It’s the little things, isn’t it. : )
Leave it up to you to comment on a post mere minutes after I publish it 😀 Thanks for the encouragement!
You and I have very similar views on music, though perhaps our tastes don’t coincide. (Except when it comes to country—I don’t listen to much of that either). And now I have a new band to check out!!
I just checked my email and there you were with your shiny new post. Way to get all that work done.
Music is something that connects us all no matter how different we thing we are. Death metal? Thrasher? Nah! Mosh pits are not my scene. No specific objection other than my hearing is already shot from standing underneath running jet engines. My husband whispers “miracle ear” every time I repeat something that isn’t even close to what he’s said. Best of the best music, for me, runs the full spectrum though. If there are lyrics, they have to reach my soul. Once that happens, it becomes part of the score for the merry band inside my head.