It's been happening a lot to me lately. The stars must be aligned in the right order or some such.
In my weekly D&D game, the group just went into a desert area. (I still need to write up the game summary for that; maybe tomorrow night) An NPC met them there, and he told them that there was an oasis nearby, where they could rest.
So I start humming that mid-70's song, "Midnight at the Oasis." It gets stuck in my head, though I really don't recall all the words, just the opening line. I do recall the tune. This past Saturday, on the way to get my new laptop, the song is still in my head, and I sing the first few lines. Lou looks at me like I have grown a second head - I'm quite used to that look, actually. So I ask him what is it this time. He wants to know what I'm singing. I rattle off the lines and the tunes a bit more, but I'm still getting that look.
He's never heard the song. What?? This song was all over the radio as I was growing up, I think. He may be two years younger than me, but come on!
Of course, I should point out that I think my dad had different musical tastes. We had an album, called "Good Vibrations" - one of those you'd buy on TV I think. It had "Dead Skunk (in the Middle of the Road)" amongst others on it. Now my dad also loved Spike Jones and his City Slickers, and big band music.
Anyway, to get back to the synchronicity...today I am helping my boss Kate set up OSX on her computer. She's having problems getting Eudora for X to work with Brown's Kerberos settings. She has to go into a meeting, so I volunteer to finish the setup while she's meeting.
She has a stack of CDs next to her computer. Kate has a lot of CDs, we share some musical tastes, but not all. This stack is different in that it is psychedelic, it has a collection of music from the 70s on it. Five or so CDs. I start looking at the backs of the CDs, and start remembering all the songs from my youth.
Of course, as you know if you've read this far, the last CD contains "Midnight at the Oasis" as sung by Maria Muldaur. I borrow the CD, intending to rip the track so Lou can hear it, and of course he'll recognize it once it's sung by someone with better musical talent (well, not that much better) than me.
I decide to rip the whole CD, actually. It has more songs from my youth. Life is a Rock (but the Radio Rolled Me); Please Come to Boston; Beach Baby; Billy, Don't be a Hero; Radar Love; Rock Me Gently; The Night Chicago Died. My younger sister Jill would probably remember most of these, and she's three years younger than me.
But of course, we grew up in the same family. So I bring them home, and play MatO for Lou, who still give me that "That's nice, dear" look, refrains from patting me on the head, and wanders off back to Fallout Tactics. I catch him later, have him listen to the beginning (he won't stay) to Life is a Rock. Gods, I remember trying to get all the words to this song down pat! Replaying the record over and over, trying to catch everything he was saying. The liner notes on the CD say that this song is the "We Didn't Start the Fire" of its day, but with only pop culture references. I get that now, I don't think I did then. Hell, I probably didn't get half the references, and listening to it now I realize that I never pronounced Kama Sutra right. Didn't have a clue what it was when this was out. Hell, it was 1974 according to the CD, I would have been going on 7.
Anyway, Lou shakes his head again, wanders off. And I decide to listen to all the songs, and write a little entry about this. That turns out to be not so little, but hey...it's the first time I'll use that MORE option in MT.
Comments (3)
I had fun with my little sister when the movie 'Wayne's World' first came out - She is thirteen years younger, and that is a huge difference as far as the world of music goes. Of course, they were playing 'Bohemian Rhapsody' all over the airways, in honor of the movie... and she told me what a cool new group Queen was. I laughed hysterically and invinted her over for a day-long music fest of Queen, all on vinyl... she declined, but it was fun to see her face as she realized how long the band had been around...
Posted by jenn | February 9, 2002 10:44 AM
Posted on February 9, 2002 10:44
Oh dear...the "new group" Queen.
Is it just me, or does everyone now feel really old?
Posted by julia | February 11, 2002 9:27 AM
Posted on February 11, 2002 09:27
Yes, I feel really old. I remember getting "The Game" for my 12th birthday.
Posted by anne | February 11, 2002 10:18 AM
Posted on February 11, 2002 10:18