Reflecting on years gone by about our favorite music, with
some associates, got me thinkin’. Nearly
everyone – with possible exception of cloistered nuns – has gone to at least
one concert or live music venue.
Personally, I bought music, then attended concerts based
upon the music. Others go to concerts,
then buy music to refill those personal events.
Either way, the experience is particular to the fan who can recall the
total environment.
Concerts are unique to the artists with some using lights,
lasers, and smoke to enthrall the crowds, while others use dancing,
pyrotechnics, and special audio effects to make those concerts memorable.
Yes, I recall troubadours with lutes playing on a stage in
ancient Greece. But I am referring to
more modern concerts such as the Doobie Brothers, Jimmy Buffett, ELP, and
Gloria Estefan.
My associates brought up the names Rush and Neil Diamond and
nearly every band in between. The
discussion was lively and exciting if just to know these folks had not lived
sheltered lives. Then, the innocent
banter took an odd turn. Someone
mentioned the Eagles.
The Eagles were/are a band from the 1970’s that toured the
country with their music. Their songs
peppered the airwaves of both AM and FM radio, and were hits with the FM crowd,
in particular.
Radio came I two flavors – AM and FM. There was a time when cars came with radios
that only received AM stations. All the
DJs talked fast and were your best friend, and filled voids in the music being
played over the raspy AM conduit. Then,
some radios began broadcasting their signals on FM.
FM radio was clearer and absent the static that normally
comes from thunderstorms, bad sparkplug wires, and using the blender. The downsides were the limited range of FM,
and all the new FM station DJs talked as if they were stoned. Most were, as their broadcasts primarily
originated from college campuses with students serving as the emcee.
Most of that FM stuff was horrible, something the other
listeners termed “genius” and “cutting edge.”
The songs they played were ‘deep cuts’ that were normally simply
recorded to fill the void between the few good songs on the album. Nobody but the guy with the bong behind the
microphone understood the song playing or why these DJs needed to whisper as if
they were on the ninth green at Pebble Beach; I could turn the radio down if I
needed to. But, I digress.
The Eagles were/are one of the anti-establishment bands of
the era. They continuously ragged on
“the Man,” who, in real life, was played by your boss, and the perpetually
un-hip who didn’t ingest drugs. These strong
community messages were not the sole property of the Eagles, though. Plenty of bands idolized the use of narcotics
and promoted the recreational use of other illegal products such as weed.
But it is the anti-establishment part that really irked
me. These guys – some of whom still
sport too-long hair, while pushing their walkers on stage – are beginning to
use canes and hearing aids to impress their audiences.
It is this same group of geriatrics that wanted the youth to
rebel against “the Man” who had all the money and was greedy and refused to
give the common man anything for nothing, that now charges up to $1500 per
ticket! Who’s sticking what to
whom? Perhaps the price of Polident has
skyrocketed.
Let’s pray that the Rolling Stones do not have banners for
Depends or Geritol at their concerts.
Uncle Paul gives advice at: http://easternshorefishandgame.blogspot.com/p/ask-uncle-paul.html
Uncle Paul gives advice at: http://easternshorefishandgame.blogspot.com/p/ask-uncle-paul.html
