mood

A Moment of Nostalgia

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

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Recently, I went to Memphis for the funeral of a friend’s father. On the way, I stopped off with my mom at the Wolfchase Galleria and walked around while she looked for a wedding gift for a friend of the family.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a FYE Music and Movies store. I thought those were all but extinct. Needless to say, it made my heart happy.

Best Buy and Barnes and Noble are all good and well, but I miss record stores, especially those in the mall. I can’t tell you how many Saturdays I spent looking through the cutout bins for a great deal. I got my first taste of bluegrass music in a record store.

I’m old school. I like for my books and music to be tangible. Nothing beats the musty smell of a book that’s been well used and well loved. Nothing beats the feel of a compact disc or a vinyl record in your hand.

Don’t get me wrong. I have my fair share of digital music that I listen to on my iPhone. But sometimes at night when I can’t sleep, I’ll hunt down the perfect CD for my mood, find my headphones and portable CD player, and drift off to music that was created by real people playing real instruments.

The Bible is replete with music. It’s a way of remembering your heritage. Just look at the Psalms and see how King David marked every kind of occasion, happy or sad, with a song.

Even now, a song on the radio can conjure up an old memory like nothing else can. It’s like a time machine to a defining moment in my past.

I hope that music store in Memphis can survive. Maybe one day soon I can go back when I have more time to kill.

 

 

Music, Music, Music

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / Leave a comment

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If you haven’t already figured it out by now,  I love music. As in I have songs playing in my head non-stop all the time. Usually, I have random songs that I find myself inadvertently singing out loud or whistling without even realizing it. That can be embarrassing sometimes.

Whenever I find good music, I like to let people know. I always assume that people will feel the same way when they hear the music I love as I do. Usually not. Not everyone shares my taste in music. Actually, it’s a rare few that like all the same music I do.

But I still like to share what I like.

I absolutely love a group called the Court Yard Hounds. It’s basically the Dixie Chicks minus Natalie Maines. But I really like their sound.

I also love, love, love a group called The Thorns. This group consisted of Matthew Sweet, Shawn Mullins, and Pete Droge. Their one album is probably in my top 10 favorite albums ever. They have a very Crosby, Stills and Nash vibe.

I really like Jacob Dylan’s solo stuff. As much as I like The Wallflowers, I prefer the solo albums. They are very much reminiscent of his dad’s music. You may have heard of Jacob’s dad. He goes by the name Bob.

Anyway, there’s nothing like the perfect song at the perfect moment to evoke a good feeling and a good mood. It’s like watching a movie where the song really enhances the scene and brings out all the emotion in it.

I’m becoming more and more of a fan of old school music as I get older. By old school, I mean artists like Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, and Billie Holiday. That music has a staying power than the newer stuff just doesn’t have. In my opinion.