A Legacy Of Bigotry

Back in 2002 I was working as a full time musician in Naples, Florida. I had a 5 piece band called the “Bungalow Band”.  While leading the band, I was blessed to work with some great musicians. At one point I had hired a piano player named Dan to be a part of the group. Dan was a fine player and I really liked Dan. I had planned on using Dan throughout the 2002 -2003 season. That was until another keyboardist named Greg became available. I believed Greg would offer more to the group. Because Greg sang it would give the band an added dimension.  I made a professional decision to go with Greg. I was faced with the task of telling Dan that after a certain date that I would not need him anymore. Being the professional he was, Dan took the news with grace and dignity and he responded by giving me a philosophical line that stuck with me. He said, “Don’t worry Chris, 70 years from now it’s not going to matter.” The comment immediately shifted the mood and I knew by it that Dan understood it was just business.

After the call I stopped to think about his comment. Seventy years from now it WON’T matter!! Wow!! What perspective! What insight! What presence of mind! From that time If I have parroted this line once, I have parroted it 1000 times. It has been a great tool to help me not take things TOO seriously. But as time goes on and wisdom grows (hopefully), beliefs can be called into question.  

About a week ago I looked on my bookshelf and saw a book that I had bought my wife as a gift a few years ago. It is by Nathaniel Philbrick and is titled “Mayflower.”  I bought it for her when she was knee-deep researching her family’s genealogy. I don’t know what possessed me to pick it up. Maybe my love for history, the book’s pretty cover, or just a God inspired idea. Whatever it was, once I picked it up I could not put it down.

Mayflower is one of the finest books that I have ever read. Not only is the story enthralling, it moves along at a fantastic pace and is incredibly well written. It documents the flight of the pilgrims from the old world to the new, and continues up through the 2^nd generation in the new world.

The book demonstrates how WITHOUT the Indians help the Pilgrims simply would not have survived. The good nature and the assistance given by the Indians to the new settlers was a benefit to future generations that is impossible to calculate.

One of the beautiful stories in the book is how the English diplomat Edward Winslow had built a wonderful relationship with the leader of the Pokonoket Indians named Massasoit. The respect they had for each other and the vastly different ways of life, laid the fertile ground on which America bloomed.

Massasoit - Leader of the Pokonets

As effective as this first generation Pilgrims and Puritans were in establishing peace with the existing inhabitants of the New World, their children were equally adept and undoing it all. The sons of the two allies were Josiah Winslow and Metacom (known by his English name Philip). Upon their first meeting their relationship was tenuous at best. By the 1660’s pure hatred coursed through their veins and by 1675 war engulfed all of New England.

As I read the about the way the war evolved, I couldn’t help but see Josiah Winslow as a sniffling little brat who somehow embraced the idea that he was BETTER than the Indians. This was not a learned trait from his father. It was a greed for power and privilege and by virtue of his father’s prestige, he was able to “get what he wanted” and that was fertile farm land of the Indians.

Josiah Winslow

Not lacking in an ego of his own was Phillip who had dis-affectionately been renamed “King Philip” who would not honor the agreements of his father and sold land that was not his to sell.

The actions of these 2 narrow minded men, threw the New World into major disorder and resulted in a 2 year long war called the King Philip war. It wiped out about 8% of the Puritan and Pilgrim male population and 60 to 80% of the Native American male population. It remains the deadliest war per capita ever fought on American soil. Women and children were not saved from the treachery. Both sides had innocent blood on their hands. Some Indian children were butchered and slaughtered and others sold into slavery.  White women and children were routinely scalped.

The bigotry which Winslow expressed toward the Indians gave license to other Puritans and Pilgrims to do the same. With it came an “US” vs “Them” mentality that sadly has been handed down generation by generation and is still with us 350 plus years later.

Now the “THEM” part of the equation has been different throughout history. It at times has been the JAPS, the BLACKS, The SPICS, The RUSSIANS, The CHINKS.  It is not limited to those outside of the white race. Ethnic or social groups are in the fray.  The OKIE’s, The REDNECKS, The DEMOCRATS, The REPUBLICANS, and those damn LIBERTARIANS. Oh and let’s not forget the GAYS. Dare they want to marry!!

So I have to change my point of view. In 70 years things WILL matter. Maybe not all things, like whether I get my laundry done tonight, but there are THINGS that really matter and will last beyond our lifetime; just asked the Pilgrims. 

members of the Westboro Baptist Church- Topeka Kansas

The Land Of Canaan is in Decatur, Georgia???

You never know where the winds of fate might find you. Such was the case for young Emily who had just moved with her family from Connecticut to Decatur, Georgia.  Emily’s father Don was taking the position as a Professor of Theology at the esteemed Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta.

As with any move there was much anticipation as to how things will work out. How will the new job go? How will my family be affected? Will we like the new place we are living? These are all legitimate questions that a father would ask himself. One would never assume that the question be asked “How will this move affect the world of pop music?” No, that wasn’t on the short list of questions that the Salier’s family were asking themselves as they made their way south.

Daughter Emily spent her time growing up in Decatur, Georgia where in school she met Decatur native, Amy Ray. At some point in high school the 2 got together they started performing together as Sailier’s and Ray. They both shared a passion for singing and songwriting. Both went off to college out of state and after a year of being homesick, found them back in Decatur where they resumed their singing careers as the “Indigo Girls.”

The duo had a raw acoustic sound. They had a very powerful style that emphasized the “rock” in Folk Rock. They had very interesting vocal harmonies that were not always in parallel with one another, sometimes blending 2 separate parts together in a mysteriously beautiful way.

The Indigo Girls are a rarity in pop music, that being a singer/songwriting female DUO. Only the Judd’s of country music fame have had equivalent success as a female tandem. Female duos are not to be found in pop music. There are several trios to note such as Wilson/Phillips and Sister Sledge and several girl bands like the Go-Go’s or the Pussy Cat Dolls but nere’ will you find another duo that has had success remotely to that of the Indigo Girls.

There first big hit was in 1989 with the song called “Closer To Fine”. It reached 22 on the pop charts but immediately gained the group a core following of which I am one.

Included on the album was a song titled “Land Of Canaan.” It is certainly a favorite among the fans of the Indigo Girls and features the kind hard pushing aggressive style they have been come to be known for. The title makes reference to the biblical land of Canaan that was a most desirous locale in what is now current day Israel. It was an area which was considered prosperous and abundant and the term “land of Canaan” is used now as a metaphor for prosperity and abundance.

The lyrics speak of a scorned lover not putting up with the doubts of another anymore.

The first verse and chorus reads:

You can go to the east
to find your inner hemisphere
You say we’re under the same sky babe
You’re bound to realize honey, it’s not clear
I’m not your promised land
I’m not your promised one
I’m not your land of Canaan
Waiting for your under the sun

I’m lonely tonight, I’m missing you now
I’m wanting your love and you’re giving it out.
I’m lonely tonight, I’m lonely tonight, I’m lonely tonight. …..

With biblical reference in consideration, the song is an anthem that empowers women to demand respect in relationships. It reinvigorates their self-worth. Essentially saying, “DON’T string me along while you try to find yourself. I’m valuable and my feelings matter.”

The song is highlighted by an incredible acoustic lead guitar solo that proves that they are no musical slouches. It’s one of those solos that automatically put a smile on your face.

The group has gone on to last 25 years. Not only have they inspired countless musicians, they have set the bar high as social activist for various causes.

Decatur, Georgia may not be the “promised land” but it sure will go down in history as giving the world the Indigo Girls who are incredibly unique and as priceless as pearls.

Songs to listen to

Closer To Fine 

Land Of Canaan

Hammer And A Nail

Galileo

Virginia Woolf

You and Me Of The 10,000 Wars

Would You Like Some "Wisconsin Cheese" With That "Biblical Whine?"

    I was sitting around waxing nostalgic about my early school days at Hildebran Elementary School in Hildebran, NC. I recalled how we started our day with a prayer and a bible story out of Ms. Pitt’s bible story book. There was nothing unusual about it. It was just part of our routine. I mean after all, she was just sharing the “truth”, RIGHT?  How innocent was I to not even know of or think that anyone would ever object to this kind of activity. 

The Old Hildebran School - Hildebran, NC

    To be honest, I didn’t give it a 2^nd thought. I was just a kid. It was just a prayer, it was just a bible story and I still hated math! Well, not really, but you get the point. By the time I hit 5^th grade , the bible stories were no longer a part of the daily routine, however my teacher Ms. Watkins taught us all how to say the “God is great” prayer in sign language. Every day before lunch we would stand up and motion the prayer and recite it together as a class. It was cool.

    In 6^th grade it was all business. Just like all the years before, I would show up, full of energy, and have to confine myself to a desk and learn about the Civil War and slavery. Not to mention a host of other topics that I hated THEN, but strangely enough, find great interest in NOW!  Go figure?! Yet, my days of getting any spiritual nourishment had passed!

    Fast forward to my 20’s, where I became more of aware of the debate surrounding prayer in school. It wasn’t a terribly big deal to me and I didn’t give it much thought at first, yet as my social awareness grew with age, I begin to form my own opinions. I begin to question whether it was right for my teachers to have included those things in our routine and wondered why they did. I also wondered why there was such a hullabaloo over it by those who opposed it.  Were they overreacting? Is there or could there be a common ground reached by these opposing sides?

Where did this debate come from? Where did it start and why?

    These kinds of are what motivate me to investigate matters of faith and hopefully gain a greater understanding of the underpinnings of such arguments. This quest for the truth led me to the town of Edgerton, Wisconsin where in 1886 the “Edgerton Bible Case” and essentially the “prayer in schools” debate began. 

   The story goes that in the 1880’s the school teachers in Edgerton would start each day reading the King James’ version of the bible to their classes. This upset the minority of Catholics who preferred the use of Douay-Rheims translation. They held the belief that theirs was the only correct version of the bible and did not want their children hearing an alternate translation. A court battle ensued and over the next 2 years the case made its way to the Wisconsin State Supreme Court. In 1888 the Court ruled that the practice of reading the bible to the children was a violation of church and state and therefore considered it unlawful to do so.

     The current status of the “Prayer in School” is that a school teacher can’t engage in religious practices or teachings in a classroom setting. This would be a violation of the first amendment and the “Establishment Clause.” This however does not prevent a person’s right to pray (in private) in school OR wherever they may choose. To prevent one from praying in a private way, would ALSO be a violation of the first amendment and the “Free Exercise” clause.

    One of the strongest organizations that advocates for prayer in schools is the Liberty Institute located in Plano, Texas. After looking at their website I have to admit that there is cleverness to their tact. While they are not aiming directly for prayer in the classroom, they are challenging for the right for a student to pray at ceremonies and the right for expressions of faith at functions outside the classroom. In one of their cases they advocated for the right of the Kountz High School cheerleaders to use a banner that includes the bible verse Phillipians 4:13 (I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me) to help inspire the football team to victory. On May of this year, the cheerleaders won their case and can continue to display bible verses on spirit banners.

    It brings up an interesting question about those who desire the right to pray publicly; The question is simply WHY? I personally see no need to pray publicly. Yes, it can be part of a ceremony but it doesn’t HAVE to be. The cheerleaders could choose other words to display on the spirit banners. Why does it have to have a religious tie in? After all, isn’t God for the other team too?? I am going to be very assumptive in saying this but I believe that most who pray publicly are more worried about their performance than connecting with God. If you don’t believe me, just asked the next person you know who is asked to kick off a Rotary meeting with a prayer. They are generally nervous and worried about how they’ll do. In the case of the cheerleaders I believe it is more about proselytizing than it is about lifting the team. Maybe I’m jaded? 

    Please know that I am not offended by public prayer nor am I advocating its ban, but for the high school senior who wishes to pray publicly at his graduation ceremony, I fear its more about their ego than it is centering the whole audience on God. What’s wrong with taking time to pray in private and then mentioning how much their faith means to them in their public statements? That is allowed by the way. There are no rules against it. Isn’t this a better way than serving the individuals egotistical needs to be heard praying, not to mention wasting tax payer dollars in legal wranglings on such frivolity? I tend to get riled up when I see someone pushing their own personal agenda upon others and that is what I feel has happened with the prayer in schools debate. The Conservative Christian movement is wanting to impose the will of its faith upon others. Although I consider myself a Christian, I don’t think that this is the Christian thing to do. It would eventually lead to the infusion of all faiths being given the opportunity to express THEIR faith. If it continued, I could imagine years down the road, the Bible reading followed by a reading from the Koran.  How would THAT fly in Texas? I wondered also if the Liberty Institute would be there to support that cause. So I emailed them to ask. The following was the response I received from one of their legal assistants Melissa Sanz:

“Thank you for contacting Liberty Institute. While most of us here are Christians, our goal is to protect religious liberty, regardless of which faith. We are able to help in cases where the right to religious expression in houses of worship, in schools, or in public has been threatened. We recognize that freedom of religious expression as guaranteed in the first amendment must exist for all faiths or else it will not truly protect any religion.”

Melissa Sanz 

Legal Assistant 

Liberty Institute

     While I do appreciate advocacy groups that seek to protect our First Amendment freedoms I don’t believe that school is the place for prayer nor is it the place for faith based actions that express in other ways. At the end of the day we can thank those “Cheesehead” Catholics in Edgerton, Wisconsin for first bringing the issue to light. 

Scratching The Ears Of Divinity

I am close to finishing reading the book “The Case For a Creator”, and found chapter 10 of the book to be quite fascinating as the author Lee Strobel interviews American Philosopher J.P. Moreland.  I like a lot of what Moreland has to say about separating the mind and soul from the brain. There was one thing though that I have to take exception to. Moreland was asked by Strobel if animals had souls? Moreland’s answer didn’t surprise me when he said yes. He even answered with and emphatic “ABSOLUTELY!” but then offers a follow up statement that I admit left a little baffled.

J.P. Moreland

Moreland states:
“ You see the human soul is more complicated because it is made in the image of God. So we have  self-reflection and self-thinking. And while the human soul survives the death of its body, I don’t think the animal soul outlives its body. I could be wrong but I think the animal soul ceases to exist at death."

Most pet lovers feel certain of the fact that an animal’s soul is ongoing even if no tangible proof exists. They would contend that their pets are as immortal as they are. The love an animal shares is special. It is an unconditional love that man could certainly learn from. From my perspective of faith, I don’t think any expression of love will ever die. So I whole heartedly disagree with Dr. Moreland.

The comment says more than just claiming pets souls die. It indicates that it is hard for humans, as educated as we might be, to see God in any other form. The image painted by Michael Angelo on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel titled “The Creation Of Man” is an image that is emblazoned on our collective consciousness as “HUMAN” beings. God is that old man with a long white beard, who lives in the sky, RIGHT?  It leads me to conclude that not only has art served to celebrate and glorify God but it has served as the vehicle to cement the images of God in our minds and makes it hard for us to imagine God any other way. Paintings of a humanistic God coupled with the creation stories in Genesis have defined our image of God for centuries.

The Creation Of Adam

Well here is a fun exercise….. Imagine the image of God in the painting touching Adam's finger, being an eagle, or a horse. Maybe you might choose a mythical creature like a Unicorn, a Minotaur or a Jack-a-lope.  How does that make you feel? Do you feel less than, more than or do you feel as I do a connection with all things? 

To say that this is a far fetched idea, one not need to look beyond scripture to find validity in the different ways God (or Spirit) is expressed. 

From Matthew 3:16-17

16. After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God decending as a dove and lighting on Him. 17. And behold the voice out of the heavens said, “This is my son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Dove Descending

Not limited to animals here is this passage about the Burning Bush

from Exodus 3: 4-5

4. When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses! And Moses said, “Here I am”
5. "Do not come any closer " God said. "Take off your sandals for the place where you are standing is holy ground."
6. Then he said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob." At this, Moses his his face, because he was afraid to look at God. 

Moses and the burning bush

Today I invite you to see God in everything. Take time to appreciate God in every living creature and thing. Expand your awareness of God by scratching behind your loving pets ears or by holding them close and making kissy faces. 

Me and Molly

Strawberry Fields Forever .... Ok, Well, maybe just sometimes

It was October of 1966 when a controversial quote by John Lennon appeared in Datebook magazine. The quote said:

Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I will be proved right. We're more popular than Jesus now; I don't know which will go first - rock 'n' roll or Christianity. Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me.

John Lennon

This quote spawned widespread protest, especially in the southern USA. There were Beatle bans on the radio. There were Beatle album burnings. Although the Beatles would not break up until May 12^th 1970, this quote began the bands slow decline to their ultimate end and would also serve as the catalyst for the assassination of Lennon by Mark David Chapman.

The quote led the band into a self-imposed exile. There were concerns for their safety. Not having an outlet for adoring fans, the band amped up their creativity and released some of the most revolutionary albums of their time and some would argue of ALL time.

The song Strawberry Fields Forever was written in 1967 about 6 months after the band had decided to retire from touring. The lyrics intrigued me, especially in considering when they were written in conjunction with all that was going on at that time in their career. It starts:

Let me take you down cause I’m going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real
And nothing to get hung about
Strawberry Fields forever

Strawberry Field was a Salvation Army orphanage that was located near where John lived as a boy. It was reported that John would love to go a park near the home to hear the Salvation Army band play. It brought him great joy as a child and one might speculate inspired him on a musical path.

Calderstone Park - Liverpool England

In the aftermath of the controversy it is easy to see why someone would want to retreat in thought to happier times. After all, like the song says, “nothing to hung about”. Who wouldn’t want to live in a place where there is nothing to be upset over?

Strawberry Fields Forever was one of the first psychedelic rock songs that the Beatles released and it was hailed by critics for its creativity. It was released as a double A-side single with “Penny Lane” and was later included on the Beatles “Magical Mystery Tour” album. This song seemed to represent the Beatles desire to escape the pressures of stardom and the responsibilities that came with it.

Many people have their own Strawberry Field to retreat to. For me it is sitting by the fire pit in my back yard burning the wood that has fallen on my property. Yet as much as I love to sit there and get lost in the fire, I can’t imagine staying there all the time. To quote Ecclesiastes Chapter 3 : “To everything there is a season”. Despite what the song says, I can’t imagine John staying in his dream world forever. Had John decided to stay in his Strawberry Field forever, the world would have never heard “Imagine” Or “Woman” or “Give Peace a Chance.” 

I appreciate all the Strawberry Fields in my life and the renewal they can give me, and listening to his body of work, I’m sure John did as well. 

Are you Open Minded?

It was 1968 when a young college student named Dick Fosbury turned the high jumping world on its head when he won the gold medal for the high jump in the summer Olympic Games held in Mexico City.

High jumping requires that you run and jump to clear a bar that is about 7 feet off the ground. The most popular technique that was used at the time was called a “Western Roll.”  There was also a “Staddle Method” and a  “Scissor Kick” method used to navigate the bar. As a young high school amateur Fosbury had trouble adapting to each of these styles and decided to work on a new approach to high jumping. His new style included running toward the high bar at an angle and then launching himself backwards (head and back first) over the bar. It became affectionately known as the “Fosbury Flop."

Dick Fosbury and the "Fosbury Flop"

This was an unorthodox technique that had never been used by anyone before Fosbury, and it took some time to perfect. As he continued to master his new style, he began to have success. He won a state championship in high school, and prior coming to the Olympic trials in 1968, won the NCAA championship for the event. People were starting to take notice of his early successes but it was the world stage of the Olympics that would really catapult him and his technique to fame. When Fosbury won the gold medal for the event, the “Fosbury Flop” became the new standard for all high jumpers.

In reflection on his success, I recognized that none of it would have been possible if he had held on to the conventional wisdom of “what worked.”  He had to have an openness and willingness to change his mind and try something new.

Can you change your mind? Are you open to a new way of thinking? Most of you would say “SURE, I’m open minded”, and maybe you are about some things. Religion and politics seem to a most people’s stumbling block when it comes to being open minded. Our society strongly encourages you to “never discuss religion and politics” especially with strangers. These two topics can be VERY polarizing so I make it a personal challenge to always be open-minded in these areas. Is there something I can learn from a different perspective? Can I adapt a new way of thinking? With that mindset, when someone suggests a book in these topics, I don’t want to prejudge it. I try to give it fair shake.  

Recently I was given a book by a family member of whom I know we share a different philosophy on religion. To honor their gift and to keep an open mind, I wanted to see what the book had to say. It was a book by a prominent Christian author named Lee Strobel. It is called “The Case For A Creator.”

       

 

In the book he shares his personal story of once being an atheist and only after he noted big changes in his wife’s personality after she became a Christian did he become intrigued by Christianity. So he set out to investigate the faith using his skills as an investigative reporter. In this book he was tackling the question of where the world came from. Was it made by a creator or did it just happen?

Being intrigued by the origins of the universe myself, I was up for the ride of where this book might take me. In the book, Strobel lays out his case nicely and has reputable scientist substantiate his belief in an “intelligent designer” or “God” if you will. Each of them use science, physics and mathematics to systematically stake their claims and to explain the complexities of the universe. There is nothing wrong with their method or their conclusions. They will believe what they want to believe but I had the most interesting thought while reading the book that took me outside the book and employed my Fosbury thinking.

The thought is : What if our current understanding of mathematics and physics were primitive systems of understanding and computing things? 

Euclid's Elements on papyrus. Euclid is considered the father of geometry.

Is there a system beyond numbers and algebraic and geometric equations that has not yet been discovered, much less been employed that would further and better explain the universe? I admit it’s hard to fathom. I mean 2+2 is 4, right? But what if  & + # = @ and what would those values represent? To further the thought, even eliminating the +, -, x, and / signs in our computational processes and having new ways of tabulating everything. Is there a math beyond math, or physics beyond physics that a thousand generations from now will be employed? Furthermore, is there a math or a system that can compute the variables of a man’s soul?

The Calibi-Yau manifold. An artistic rendering of theoretical physics and string theory

These are all hypothetical questions that can’t be answered with any ease in this forum but maybe you will take the time to chew on the thought and see where it takes you. You might find yourself discovering your OWN philosophical  flop!

The Average Bureaucrat

While living in the Tampa/St Petersburg area in the late 90’s, I became a big fan of the surrealist painter Salvador Dali and the magnificent Dali museum that is located in St. Petersburg. During that time I performed every Friday and Saturday at the Vinoy Resort hotel which is an icon of downtown St. Pete, and I would frequently point the guest to the museum. Hopefully some of them took me up on the suggestion and got to see the brilliant works for themselves.

The funny thing about art is that it is hardly ever about the painting itself but rather about the artists relation to painting. At first glance most of Dali’s works would not make sense to the average person. Images of dripping clocks and burning giraffes or a cross suspended in mid air would leave onlookers either intrigued or disinterested thinking that the artist must have had quite a good drug trip while wielding his brush across the canvas. While I won’t rule out the latter, his works are definitely more than meets the eye and his images are loaded with meaning, both philosophically and politically.

some of Dali's more popular works 


The Persistance of Memory -1931

The Hallucinogenic Toreador - 1968-70

Hundreds, possibly thousands of works are on display at the museum, You could take a week to take all of them in and really appreciate all of the subtle meanings and nuances in his works.

One of my favorite paintings in the museum is called “The Average Bureaucrat” It is not one of the masterworks which are about 9 feet by 13 feet, The Average Bureaucrat is only 36 x 40 inches in size, which is significantly smaller. Even though it isn’t prominently displayed, it stood out to me.

The Average Bureaucrat - 1930 

The painting is a representation Dali’s father who was a prominent government employee in his town. Dali had a very tumultuous relationship with his father. He would cycle in out of favor with him throughout his lifetime. The image shows a bald man with concave indentation on his head. The indentation is filled with seashells. The image of the seashells represents the lack of knowledge or understanding that he believed his father to exhibit. In the background of the image are 2 small figures that represent the close relationship he had with his father when he was a boy.

This glimpse into the personal life of Dali was most fascinating to me. I appreciate all that this image says of the pain that he felt in no longer relating to his father anymore. They were real close when he was young and he always desired that kinship again as an adult.

This painting screams these personal questions: What happened to you the moment you stopped looking at your parents as mom and dad and started seeing them as just another person? What happened when you started reconciling the past and holding them accountable with your understanding of “how things should have been” as an adult?  What happened to how you remember them being when you were a child?

The image will likely will have its own unique impact on you and the questions it invokes might even be different, yet is serves as a brilliant example of how art can mean as much to the observer as it does the creator.

My Favorite Songs

It’s Time to knock the rust off your noggin and think way way back to your first memories of hearing music. Have you ever wondered which song was the first song that you ever heard? Chances are you don’t consciously remember it. It was most likely something playing on the car radio as you made your initial trip home from the hospital after being born. It’s possible some would argue, and maybe I agree that hearing your first song occurred while you were still in the womb. Your hearing is developed at around week 16 of the pregnancy, some 20 weeks before full gestation. 

If I had to pick a moment in which I remember specifically the song, the time and the place, it would be in my living room at the age of 5. I remember playing my toy guitar to Glen Campbell records. I would sit for hours and pretend to play and sing. It is truly one of my fondest memories at that age. No one knew it at the time that it would be a precursor to my eventual career. I was fully engaged in the moment. Galveston, Wichita Linemen, By The Time I Get To Phoenix, are songs that still ring in my ears.

These early musical memories are wonderful and I can recall these songs at any moment. It makes me think of why some songs stick with us and some don’t. Aren’t all songs created equal? Why do some have more longevity? What makes a song a POPULAR song?  What makes it appealing? What makes it stick in our memory?

Songs that become popular GENERALLY have one or all these qualities

Catchy melody

A good rhythm

A good message

A song that has these three qualities and that is given the proper promotion generally leaves their mark on our pop culture.  A perfect example of the perfect hit song is “Stand By Me”.  It exudes all of these qualities and has been a classic for over 50 years.

There is one key ingredient that the listener brings to the table of great songs, that being personal emotion. In order for a song to have longevity in our personal lives there has to be an emotional component. It has to embody something we relate to. For me the Glen Campbell songs represent my happiest memory from that period of my life. It has little to do with the songs themselves although the songs ARE fantastic.

So I got to thinking, if I had to choose, what are the 3 greatest songs in my life?  What songs the greatest impact on me?

Without question #1 is :

“Rocky Mountain High” . The melody, the message just spoke straight to my heart. It sings of one man’s self-discovery and does so with such beautiful imagery. John Denver’s guitar playing, his vocals, his message…… whew!!! It’s a wonder I’m not living in Colorado…. YET!

# 2 “Girl From Ipanema”. This is a musical gem with intricate chord progressions that intrigued me musically. It is one of the finest musical compositions ever written in my humble opinion. Yes it has been covered by a multitude of artists (including me) but I never tire of this song. It led me into jazz and to an understanding of music that I didn’t have prior.

#3 “How Great Thou Art” – With my interest in religion and spirituality, this song was a powerful song that promotes the awe factor of God. Although I don’t hold to the idea of an external deity, I still love this song tremendously. There is a spirit to the song that I feel with every fiber of my being. I feel the power of God when I hear this song.

Songs help us express our emotions. It can be a love song that draws us to our lover, such as “Longer” by Dan Fogelberg. It can be an anthem for a cause that we believe such as “Give Peace A Chance” by John Lennon. It could be a song that recalls a personal experience we’ve had such as “Garden Party” by Ricky Nelson.  

I’d like to hear what are some of your favorite songs and why?

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