Retrospective choices
I have a friend that celebrates his birthday on an alternate date. It began as a professional subterfuge, and then when social media started reminding the rest of the world that greetings were due, he just let it ride. I mean, it doesn’t actually change much. Already done with being born, etc. Tonight, I decided to celebrate the (alternate) occasion with some musical retrospection.
Given that we haven’t had much face-to-face over the last few decades, it was convenient to distract myself with actual music from the good old days. And, YouTube makes that into a simple process. One difference: we never had the depth of material available now. Flipping the LP isn’t the same as a DVD quality concert recorded live.
First up, a documentary about Fairport Convention. I remember receiving a vinyl recording when our local radio station was clearing shelf space; it has taken me until now to actually ken where the group stood on the timeline. Pioneers, if you will, and still busy a half-century later (the vinyl was discarded, not garnered from the new arrivals).
This evening? Time to allow Jethro Tull to pull me down that special country lane that band owns. Flute playing, and an accordion? Not your usual instrument choices for rock music, then or now. I’m as enthralled now as I was when I first heard Locomotive Breath.
My children have grown with very different musical traditions. I hope they’ll still enjoy the content when this century hits the midpoint. If not, maybe they’ll come across a reference, and go for their own tour of the ‘70s (the 1900 version).
