I was thinking about music the other day and how at the moment I hardly ever listen to it. I find it quite intrusive, especially if on a radio. But that could be as much to do with having to listen to the DJ droning on. I find that I prefer listening to the wonderful Radio 4 with it's talking, whether about the news or an afternoon play. And if that's not on, hearing the birdsong outside makes me feel alive.
And yet music has always been really important to me and my life is punctuated with melodies that when heard now transport me back to a far off memory. From my early childhood of Perry Como singing Magic Moments, a song I still sing when I'm driving and need to keep awake. My Mum's favourite song when I was a child was called, 'When I marry Mr Snow', I think it was either in Carousal or South Pacific and she would always be singing it when she worked around the house.
To the teenage delights of Albatross by Fleetwood Mac, one of the records that I used to set my Dansette record player on repeat and sit on my bedroom window sill with the curtains shut listening to it over and over again, hiding from any family that bothered to come in my room.
In fact 1968 was THE year for music for me.The songs from that year that are imprinted on my brain as the best songs ever. I wonder if we all have a year like that when we are on the cusp of adulthood and all the music seems to speak to us of a glowing future.
The list is long from around then, obviously the Beatles,and others like Simon and Garfunkel, the Beach Boys, Procal Harem, Amen Corner, Scott MacKenzie, Booker T and the MGs,Marvin Gaye. My tastes were always eclectic, so a mixture of popular music, along with hippy West Coast, and a huge amount of Northern Soul and Tamla.
Then music seemed to disappear for a while, the 70s were a bit lost on me musically, as actually so were the 80s come to think of it in terms of pop music. The exception was of soul and jazz the stuff of Tom Scott,Spyro Gyro,The Average White Band, Pat Metheney interspersed with Frank Sinatra and even, dare I say it a Barry Manilow album! and many many more. I have hundreds of CDs none of which I ever listen to anymore.
In fact when I get a new CD, cause I mainly listen to any music in the car, then it is played to death, never to be listened to again once I've heard it a million times. The only exception to this is Pat Metheney - 'off ramp' which is probably the best album in the world and can be heard always.
So Duffy's latest is the current CD in the car given to me at Christmas and I'm sick of it and never have the time to change the wretched CD when I get to go anywhere. So I don't listen to anything musical at all.
Perhaps I should make the effort to find something new to listen to.... any suggestions?
