My father was a drummer. While he was in the Air Force during the Korean War, he was the entertainment, or so the story goes. He willed his drum set to the Salvation Army Band. His love for music transferred directly to me, probably in utero. Big Band was his favorite, only logical, I suppose. I still have many of his old 33-1/3 records, very brittle and very heavy. I bought one of those retro radio/phonograph/cassette players and play them once in awhile. I can smell my father's Old Spice when I sit and listen. A few crusty music memories of my own exist, of about age 6. Spending time in my bedroom listening to my little record player. Similar to the one pictured above, I had a speed selector that would play each type, 16, 33-1/3, 45, 78 (was there a 16, that looks weird!). At 6 years tho, my choice of records was limited to children's records.
My 2 favorite records were vinyl, one was yellow, the other red. I also had one other very special record. It was a storybook record whereas each side had 2 stories. If you played the story and the needle went into one groove track, you'd get one story, the other grove track had a second story. You never would know which one you'd hear. One of the stories was "The Lion and the Bumbershoot," the other title is lost in the abyss.
My sister, 10 years my senior, would sit for hours and play her 45's over and over to pen the lyrics. I know most of the words to those songs too, brainwashed at an impressionable age. "Kathy's Clown" comes to mind.
I went on to learn to play the flute, soprano sax, piano, flirted with trumpet, and my favorite, the piccolo. Learning to play the piccolo part for "The Stars and Stripes" march to play in Detroit's Hudson's Thanksgiving Parade was my biggest challenge. Marching Band and Orchestra were the highlights of my high school years. My biggest accomplishment was of being selected to play in the Children's Orchestra, I guess around the age of 12 or so.
Music is still everpresent. I "plug-in" at work when I'm stressed and need to get major work done. It's my soother, my background, my constant.
I'm always singing a tune in my head, tho the music phrases seem to be shorter these days...and dh questions my selection of words sometimes. Who cares! Sounds good to me!
I last played my flute in 1976 when I solo'd for a wedding, but I think I could still "finger" the piccolo march part. Some things, like riding a bike too, you just don't forget. The flute is long gone, gifted to a budding musician.
Make a cuppa, and lay with me on the floor. Listen to "Moonlight Serenade" or choose something like, "You are My Sunshine". Pick out an early Ella or Frank or Clooney. Maybe a Dorsey or Goodman is your favorite? They're all there.
Psst...It's good to me back. Won't you post your Friday Flashback too?
11 comments:
This post could absolutely have been written by me. It's wonderful.
I am sooooo glad to see you post again!!!! we back!
I was a musician myself when years younger. I played klarinet and accordeon. Still like those marching music and one of my favorite musicwriters must be glenn miller.... even though I am only 35 yy....
hugs from the Netherlands
Winda
Good to see you back! Herb Alpert/Tijuana Brass is what hearkens me back to my childhood. It's the only thing I remember my dad playing. Music made my mom nervous.
Sue and I were just commenting on the 'lack of blogging' by our AZ friend. Good to 'hear' from you. Hugs, Bev
Hello there! Your post brought back lots of memories. My mother was in a brass band and a music teacher, I got to dabble with lots of instruments - piano (hated it), organ (likewise), trumpet, tenorhorn, tenor sax, and clarinet, but eventually settled on voice as the main one.
Oh, this prompted so many musical memories! Like when I, untrained, started picking out "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" on the piano after the family came home from a Christmas concert when I was a kid, and Mom promptly putting me in piano lessons so I wouldn't play by ear like she did! And all our storybook records with the musical accompaniments. And playing oboe in high school orchestra (one more thing that pegged me as kinda weird!). Thanks for memories. And welcome back.
This one did not inherit ANY musical talent ;-)
Great post momma! I jus hoe this isnt the only post for the rest of the year!! lol
Great post, Fitzy! I could conjure up visions of everything you said. I even remember the 16 setting on the "record player" (archaic phrase), but never saw a 16 record. My sisters played their 45RPMs and I remember "Chantilly Lace" and "Bony Marone" from those times. I too had a yellow record and a red one. The red one was transparent as I recall, and I would look at the world through it. Great memories. Thanks.
I have no flashback, but it was great to read yours. I'm glad you're alive and well!
Well, this is the BIG sis.....
Daddy did play drums in the Army Air Corps as it was called then, but only on furlough days. His regular job was stocking medical supply planes that mostly went to Japan.
In the 50's he played in a country club band in Illinois in the Freeport area. Another band member would come to the flat we lived in--he was black. Daddy was not prejudiced, unless it was to believe that Negroes could play good music. The band members wore pale blue suits. I remember how Daddy played the drums with brushes and cymbals. I used to like to play his old records too and loved Nat King Cole.
I'm working at learning to play the piano at age 60! I have a keyboard and have been going thru my grandsons lesson books. Our aunt teaches piano, but lives several states away, so I get lessons about twice a year when we visit each other. I'm working on "Over the Rainbow" now as it was the first song I tried to plunk out by ear on grandma's piano at "the store."
You know how they say, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks"? Well, you can, but it takes three times as long!!!!
Like your sister, I played my records over and over to pen the lyrics. Funny thing, I still have the records and a turntable to play them on. As Bob Hope used to sing: "Thanks for the Memories."
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