Well, we’re about to wrap up the era known as BFMS. Maybe we should do an little recap. What have we learned so far? I liked what I felt was a wide variety of musical flavors. Pop music, Folk music, Disco, Rock and Roll, Classical, Show tunes, and Soundtracks just about anything except for country. For some reason country music like Johnny Cash and those guys just never appealed to me even now. I can appreciate Cash’s role in the musical landscape of our nation and I can listen to it and even enjoy it a little. I just can’t get fired up about it. I like Brad Paisley’s Me Neither. It is clever and funny but songs about daddy lettin’ me drive the truck just irritate me. I don’t know what happened. We watched Hee-Haw when we were growing up. Why can’t I like country music?
Anyway, back to the recap. Up to this point my main influences have been my mother, my cousins and the radio. I lived in the city and spent summers in Vermont. Then went to school in Vermont and spent my summers in the city. I learned to ski and went every chance I got. I loved the extended twilight that you get from living in the mountians. Ghosts, and Star Wars were favorite subjects. Certain aspects of music that I found appealing include, electronic sounds, eerie compositions, multi-layered orchestration, theatrics, the beat, thoughtful lyrics.
If you’ve been following along, you’ve heard a large portion of the tunes that got me to this point. The next leg of our journey takes us to high school at Vermont Academy. There I lived on campus with just shy of 300 kids from all over the world. I was about to meet a whole new realm of influences but before we go there, let’s go back to the Bellows Falls Middle School Gym for one last middle school dance.
Pointer Sisters – Fire
A Taste Of Honey –Boogie Oogie Oogie
Donna Summer – Love To Love You
Donna Summer – Sunset People
Sunset people has long been a personal favorite
Chic – LeFreak
Alicia Bridges – I Love The Nightlife
I find her announciation of Ax-shown disturbing.
Bee gees – Don’t Throw It All Away
Donna summer – The Last Dance
I cannot express how much I have enjoyed reminiscing about middle school and the music that I discovered during that time. I usually don’t spend much time thinking about the past. This project kind of forces me to and I have to say that while I find it really pleasant and I like listening to all these old tunes, there is an element of sadness that come with it. With the music playing and a little thought, I am transported to my past and can vividly recall not only some of the moments in time but the underlying emotions associated. I find myself missing being 13 more than I ever thought I would.