Everything sublime is as difficult as it is rare. Baruch Spinoza

Sunday, November 20, 2022

Wine. Music. Memories.


🎵 Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right. Here I am, stuck in the middle with you. Yes, I'm stuck in the middle with you. 🎵


 It's Keetah's fate in life.

We sit in the snug, known as the sunroom in summer, before dinner, Mark with a Wild Turkey and I with a glass of red wine. I have the fire lit and the cats and Keetah join us. It is routine, a long ingrained ritual in our home. We are joined by music. Music of our youth, for the most part. I am a classical music lover, Mark not so much, so in the evening it is music of our generation. We listened to Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd last evening. It's the only album they put out that I like. Some of what's on The Wall I like but not much. You realize you are not a kid anymore when the music you relate to is 50-60 years old! Mark and I, totally unbiased mind you, feel that the 1960s to early 1970s were the most prolific and innovative time in generations for output of music. 

I was and am a fan of Shawn Phillips. He is a niche person so not a lot of people know who he is. I told Mark when I was a teen if Shawn walked into a room, tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I wanted to see the world with him I would have gone, like that! Mark doesn't care for him. 😄 I did take Mark to see him at the Guthrie in the late '70s and then in the late 2000s, again at the Guthrie. The seats were packed with grey-hairs that time! How could you be a teenage girl and not swoon over a guy with beautiful hair past his waist?

I could wander down the musical lane of memory for quite awhile. I was fortunate in where I lived to see many, many concerts. I had season tickets for years for the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, some of it during the years that Itzhak Perlman was music director and brought in Isaac Stern and Yo Yo Ma. I used to drag my son to those concerts, as I said, Mark is not a fan. I dragged that kid to lots of things boys of his age didn't do. Poor kid. 

I won't go on. My own magical musical tour is over! We have sunshine, not seen for a long time, and warmer temperatures for a week or so. Mark meets with the radiologist tomorrow. She is a Harvard Medical School graduate, which, whether it should or not, gives a sense of confidence. Life carries on. One foot after the other.




17 comments:

Boud said...

I like your music musing. Me, I'm an early music fan, medieval,renaissance. Very few people know who I mean when I say I like Josquin!

Sandra said...

I would be one of those people. I have to admit I haven't spent time with that music! You never fail to surprise me, Boud.

Boud said...

A lot of sixties and seventies pop owes licksto early music. The phrase California dreamin' is a straight medieval phrase. Huge respect for the music knowledge of the Ms and Ps. Likewise the wall of sound effect in ABBA comes from Josquin and Palestrina. I could go on, but won't! There's a long history.

Sandra said...

Life continues to be a learning experience, Boud! I'll have to look into them. I had a girlish crush on Denny Doherty. I had a girlish crush on many musicians!

Lori Skoog said...

I am a fan of all kinds of music. Singing and playing my uke has been a real upper and soon I will be gathering with some old friends to do some African drumming….which I did for years at the college. A fire and good music…what a combo.

Far Side of Fifty said...

I only like late 50's and 60's music and a bit in the 70's. After that or before that it is just noise to me. I encountered the lead singer for Pink Floyd once...he was a jerk. I was working at the Holiday Inn in Fargo dealing blackjack...he couldn't win to save his soul..one on one Blackjack...he got horribly mad stood up and swore at me. The Pit Boss came over after he left and said you just had to piss that guy off... Ya so? don't you know who he is...I had no idea... a poor looser I guess...so I don't like any of that music:)

Anonymous said...

What a terrific read! My go to piece of music is Air on G String by Bach . I found an old REM concert ticket stub from long..ago while cleaning out box of stuff...memories.
Good Luck to tomorrow,
Kaye

Pixie said...

I like variety, a bit of this and a bit of that. I don't listen to music with other people around though, I find it too distracting.

Sandra said...

I know you are. Lori. I get to listen to snippets of your group. African drumming sounds like fun!

Sandra said...

Far Side...Wait..what? You dealt blackjack?! Roger Waters is a controversial person with some strong opinions I don't agree with. I can very easily see him being that guy. I still like the album. :)

Sandra said...

Pixie, I very much enjoy the strings, particularly the cello. Bass guitar, which there is quite a lot in the album I referenced. I am a self-taught once-upon-a-time piano player. which is to say I am lousy, but I enjoyed it before my hands got arthritic. I do love the music of my youth, though. We generally have music in the evening.

Sandra said...

Kaye, good memories! I'm from Minnesota yet I saw Prince in Atlanta. I've always found that sort of amusing! He lived about ten minutes from where I do now. Odd little things we remember.

Val Ewing said...

Music. I love all the oldies and then I was a huge fan of New Age music. I like instrumentals like The Piano Guys, I like Fray, Reulle, and so many others along with the likes of Pentatonix, Wailing Jennys and others. There is electronic music I like to listen to as well as classical.

When I grew up, Mom only listened to Country, Dad only listened to classical and we listened to Rock. So I have no favorite style but love all music.

Sandra said...

Val,I'm not a big fan of country, although I like the Waylon, Willy and the Boys music. I also like Merle Haggard. Folk music and Rock are my mainstay. I like Blues. Spanish guitar, we used to go to a Blues bar in St. Paul and a nice restaurant, also in St. Paul, with a Spanish guitarist. I just love music! I have an echo and an unlimited musical library to listen to.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

I really liked reading about the tradition of sitting in the snug, enjoying a drink, and listening to music, even more perfect with a fireplace. We enjoy classical usually played in the bedroom as it is most calming. My favorite are the Bid Band sounds of the 30-40-50s as well as rock 'n roll from the 60s mostly. Easy listening and jazz are played throughout the apt most of the day. My husband cann't be in a totally quiet environment.

Sandra said...

I like all of that music, too. Not crazy about infusion jazz, though. I am a person of ritual, or habit. We have had that habit of a drink before dinner forever. That small, cosy room is perfect in winter.

Val Ewing said...

Old country is good but this other stuff? Meh.... that is why I listen to other kinds.