Songs That Take Me To A Specific Time and Place.....

Songs are amazing things. Some songs can take you back to a time and place years ago when you first heard them. I might not be able to tell you what I had for breakfast yesterday, but I can tell you about listening to a song forty years ago. Isn't that crazy? Here a few songs to show you what I mean.
Warning: most of these songs are from a long time ago.

1972 I Saw The Light - Todd Rundgren - My old family home.
     It was late last night
     I was feeling something wasn't right
     There was not another soul in sight
     Only you, only you
Todd Rundgren was a popular guy back in the day. He recorded a great album called Something / Anything. I remember listening to it at home on our huge stereo in the living room. My Mom was nearby. I told her, "Mom isn't this great? Todd recorded these songs all by himself. He played all the instruments and recorded it track over track." She replied with a classic line. "Why? Doesn't he have any friends?"

Marvin Gaye died too soon.

1972 What's Going On - Marvin Gaye - Bowling Green State University
     Mother, mother
     There's too many of you crying
     Brother, brother, brother
     There's far too many of you dying.
I came from a pretty much all white suburban high school. My freshman year at BG was a culture shock as my roommate was a very urban black youth. He would play that Marvin Gaye album over and over. Over time I really grew to like it. Even today when I hear it, I'm transported back to Kohl Hall in Bowling Green.


1974 Joy To The World - Three Dog Night - Blossom Music Center
     Jeremiah was a bullfrog
     He was a good friend of mine.
     I never understood a single word he said,
     Buy I helped him drink his wine.
Back in the day I worked at a local restaurant. All the kids there worked hard, and played hard. On occasion we would all get together and go to a concert. I can remember everybody singing along to that crazy song.

Johnny Mathis 

9/10/1977 Misty - Johnny Mathis - My wedding reception. Lakewood, Ohio.
     Look at me, I'm as helpless as a kitten up a tree.
     And I feel like I'm clinging to a cloud.
     I can't understand,
     I get misty just holding your hand.
For some reason, this became a favorite song for my wife and I. It became our wedding song.(Played by a live band. No DJ.) There we were, me in my tuxedo, and my bride in her wedding dress, alone on the dance floor. With all our hopes and dreams still ahead.

1978 Bullfrog Blues - Rory Gallagher old Agora Theater, Cleveland, Ohio.
     Well did you ever wake up with those bullfrogs on your mind?
     Oh did you ever wake up with those bullfrogs on your mind?
     You had to sit there laughin'
     Laughin' just to keep from crying.
Neither Rory nor the Agora exist anymore. Rory died in 1995. The original Agora burned down. It was located on E. 21st Street just north of the Cleveland State campus. Many acts such as

Rory Gallagher died too soon.

Springsteen, David Bowie, and others broke out at the Agora. Rory was a great blues rock guitar player from Ireland. He was a no-frills rocker. He just grabbed an audience with his music, and didn't let go. I was there with my buddy Mike. Even the members of the opening act band came out and hung with us for Rory's set. How cool was that!

Early 2000's Holiday Sampler - Parma City Schools
This is an instrumental piece for scholastic bands. When my kids were kids, they played in the school band / orchestra. The holiday concert was my favorite to go to. Holiday Sampler was sort of a medley of the greatest Christmas songs. Loved it. Maybe it wasn't played perfectly, but it sure got you in the mood for Christmas.

I've recently heard that some Alzheimer's patients, who have trouble remembering names of family members, can actually sing along with lyrics of old songs. It's amazing the power some songs have on our memory.

One more thing. Happy Mother's Day!