"Write to Remember" - 37Days

I have only completed the forward and like the beginning of Chapter 1 of "Life is a Verb" by Patti Digh (of 37Days)and already I am compelled to write here. My thoughts are pouring over each other because I keep getting this sense that I should write it all down before I forget. That's why I keep coming back to the blog...I don't live an extraordinary life or have original or extraordinary thoughts, but I want to remember the stories of my life and the things that have brought me comfort, sadness, satisfaction, joy, anger, ambivalence, peace...Now that I am 41 years old, some of the older memories seem almost crowded out, so I feel like this is the external hard drive of my mind.

So, in my previous post, I mentioned telling how "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" came to be an important part of my world...I will still save that story because I remember it clearly right now...I was thinking that I would write a couple of things down that I don't remember as clearly.

Last night, as I fell through the YouTube rabbit-hole, I was struck by the strange conglomeration of embarrassingly uncool music, popular and completely obscure obsessions I have in my collection. Today, I was thinking about Patti Digh's passion for Johnny Depp...made me remember some of the people, things, songs, books I have been passionate about in my life. Some of my passions were the objects of derision and mockery, some were popular at the time, some I have held onto all these years while others have fallen by the wayside. I want to enjoy the passion I have for things and people and not feel ashamed or embarrassed that something strikes my fancy. I'm pretty sure that this will be of no interest to anyone but me, but just think of it as sneaking a peek into my hard drive.

So here goes:

Music:

Most popular-then-unpopular-then-completely-uncool-then-popular again group: Peter, Paul and Mary



Singers I have been mocked for liking: Rick Springfield, Barry Manilow, Clay Aiken, Peter, Paul and Mary, John Denver, Air Supply(I know there are more...I just have to remember them all...I'm a music geek)

Groups I liked while they were unknown: Everything But the Girl, River City People, Wilson Phillips,

Artists I didn't warm to until well after their popularity had already peaked: Foreigner, Madonna, Pink, Paula Abdul,(it was the 90s - gimme a break), Culture Club, Duran Duran, Prince ("Purple Rain" era), Eurythmics (there are many, many more)

My most abiding and enduring crush/obsession/love: Rick Springfield (I have all his albums, I was in his fanclub, I had posters of him on my ceiling and I still LOVE him)

I liked the group BEFORE the lead singer got famous: Kenny Rogers and the First Edition (the first pop song I ever learned the words to was "Something's Burning" when I was about 4 years old. The 8 track tape came with the 8 track player my parents bought. I wish I had a video of it..."Something's burning da-na-na-na-na, Something's burning da-na-na-na-na, and I think it's loooo ooooovvvvve...")

She was better when she was only 15 years old but she is probably still at it: Tanya Tucker (Greatest Hits - she's in a car on the cover... I love "What's Your Mama's Name Child?" and "The Jamestown Ferry" and her version of "Delta Dawn", but really the whole album rocked)

I loved him and thought his stories were true - I remember listening to one of his songs and crying because I thought it was real...It was rare for me to meet anyone who really listened to him when they were a kid: Mac Davis ("Whoever Finds This I Love You" made me cry - even when I was 6 years old)

First album I ever owned: An Evening With John Denver
(All the classics are here. "Matthew", "Grandma's Feather Bed", "My Sweet Lady", "Rocky Mountain High", "Take Me Home Country Roads", "This Old Guitar", "Annie's Song", "The Eagle and the Hawk". I was born in Aurora, Colorado, my mother was from West Virginia, so I pretty much thought that all his songs were written for me or her. I wanted to marry John Denver when I grew up. I am still saddened that I never got to see him play live. )


First album I ever bought with my own money: Kristy and Jimmy McNichol (I'm not saying I'm proud of it...)






Best album I ever took from my mother after she bought it: Peter, Paul and Mary In Concert

First "cool" album I ever got as a Christmas gift: Journey "Escape" (and I saw them in concert for the Escape Tour - go uncool, me!)












First cool music I listened to because my sister had the album: Styx "Paradise Theater" (although I was a long time fan from the first time I ever heard "Castle Walls" on the "Grand Illusion" album)













Favorite songs while living in Europe (ages 6-9): "Seasons in the Sun", "Fernando", "Mandy", "WildFire", "Love Will Keep Us Together", "Cats in the Cradle", "Crocodile Rock", "Afternoon Delight" (I know but I didn't know what they were talking about...), "December 1963 (Oh, What a Night)""I'd Really Love to See You Tonight", "Sister Golden Hair", "All By Myself", "Dream Weaver", "Devil Woman" (more to come...once I open the floodgates...), "Laughter in the Rain", "Billy Don't be a Hero", "One Tin Soldier", "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves", "Cherokee People"

First music I was introduced to that was completely not what my friends were listening to: Indigo Girls

The first musical I ever listened to: "A Chorus Line"

The First musical album I ever became obsessed with and geeked out my musical tastes forever: "Annie" Original Broadway Cast

The first musical theatre cd I bought before I even owned a CD player: Original London Cast of "Les Miserables"

First professional musical I ever saw performed on stage: "Cats" with Roby and Shirlee and Bob.

First musical I saw on Broadway in NYC: "Starlight Express" in a Sunday Matinee with Roby.

First musical as a movie that I totally grooved to: "Grease" in 1977

First musical as a movie that I fell in love with and wanted to watch every day for months: "West Side Story"

Well, I am down another rabbit hole, but it is fun to reminisce...And I have always been a musical geek. I think that much is obvious. But I'm ok with it. I like what I like, right? It's all good.

**Please note that I have tried at least 5 times to bold all the categories I have listed here.  For some reason, the formatting is intermittently disappearing and I just don't want to do it again. Sometimes Blogger is great and sometimes it annoys me.