Farty's Fortunes

Sunday 24 June 2007

Music Challenge

I've been challenged by Jenny at Mountain Mama. Pick out music from the year you turned 18. Get all nostalgic and then write a post about how this music affected you. Trickier than it seems, what with me having a mental age of 14...

Bay City Rollers - Bye Bye Baby

We called them the Gay City Strollers, what with all that flouncing about in silly clothes and tartan scarves. But with all those girls chasing them everywhere, it was probly just jealousy. I did memorise the lyrics, of course. The only thing that sticks in my mind is that they picked their name by sticking a pin in a map. BCR was the second choice, as 500 Miles To The Inch was considered too avante-garde.

Rod Stewart - Sailing

I did love this one. I remember at some point much later on, thinking I couldn't stand that Rod Stewart bloke. Except for Sailing, of course. And The Killing of Georgie, In A Broken Dream, Downtown Train and in fact everything he's ever recorded. Alright, I confess, he's fab.

Windsor Davies & Don Estelle - Whispering Grass

"Sing, Lofty!"
'Nuff said.

Tammy Wynette - Stand By Your Man

This isn't working, is it? Just makes me think of the followup single - ah, the irony! - and Billy Connelly's excellent cover, D.I.V.O.R.C.E.

10CC - I'm Not In Love

Now that's more like it. Oddly enough, what this makes me nostalgic about is school. I was a stage-hand in our year's production of The Mikado, and we got the run of the school hall for rehearsals, building and painting props, fiddling with the lights and, most importantly, checking out the sound system. This consisted of playing 10cc over the speakers. Over and over. At full blast. Out of this world. Sometimes we swapped it for...

David Bowie - Life On Mars

Yes, I know this came out in 1973, it just took a couple of years to reach the wilds of Embra. I think the Viking project was in full swing at this stage, if not already launched for a rendezvous with the Red Planet in 1976. I love space, me. Anyway, I've no idea why we were never ever told to turn it down, the soundproofing wasn't that good! Maybe the music teacher liked Bowie? And everybody loved 10cc.

...and finally...

Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody

Arguably the first ever proper music video. Certainly the longest single I'd ever heard, even if I still don't understand the lyrics. Spare him his life from his pork sausages? What's that all about, Mama Mia?

God bless you, Freddy, wherever you are.

11 comments:

jenny said...

Queen!! Just last night Hubby and I were watching a Bio on TV about Freddy. I was never "into" Queen until I met Hubby. I actually never heard of them before with the exception of "We Will Rock You" but I had no idea WHO sang it. I have Hubby to thank for widening my music interests.

BUT nothing and I *MEAN* nothing can make me like Rod Stewart. Hubby has several of his albums and I just cringe at the mere ~sight~ of him. "Turn it OFF!!!" I holler when Hubby plays Rod. He has resorted to taking the CDs to the car and listens while driving to work and back. Everyone is happy!

Thanks for the link!

Timbo said...

What's that bloke from 10cc called? Something Stewart.
Anyway, his son used to be our upstairs nieghbour. He was a right cunt and we got him evicted.

So our views towards 10cc are somewhat tainted by association.

And Dreadlock Holiday (or whatever it's called) is a piece of unadulterated shit.

Unknown said...

Farty, I'll go with 10cc and queen.
What about Led Zep and Pink Floyd, and Genesis, and..............

Mr Farty said...

Jenny - I'd never heard of Billy Joel until The Stranger in 1977. Then I discovered he'd been the genius behind Piano Man four years earlier. Much like Rod Stewart in Python Lee Jackson.

Talking of which, I went to put something on the CD player today while we shared the Sunday housework and spotted Rod's Great Rock Classics Of Our Time right beside the machine, still wrapped in the cellophane. Picking it up, I asked Mrs F how long we'd had that. "Oh, ages, I've just never got around to playing it yet." I played it then and I'm playing again now. It's not Rock, it's Pop, but I like it.

Timbo - Eric Stewart. Yes, I googled him, I could only remember Godley & Creme without looking it up.

As for not liking 10cc because of his son, I totally get that. I was once knocked back in a nightclub by Liv Tyler* and that put me off Aerosmith for life.

Dreadlock Holiday...um...we all make mistakes. I don't like Reggae. At all.

John - Thanks for your support. I think Seven Seas of Rye was one of the first singles I bought.

I must have had quite a progressive school, I remember the music teacher sometimes used to let us bring in and play our own records. Someone brought Led Zep, another brought Genesis, I was too embarrassed to bring in John Denver. Pink Floyd, as I vaguely recall, entered my life in '78 or '79. I was too stoned at the time to remember.

* I may have dreamed this.

jenny said...

A shame you were too embarrassed to bring John Denver to school. I went to his concert when I was 16. I think there are lots of music that people think others will laugh at, and turns out they like it too.

Hubby read your post and he liked 10cc, too. I've never heard of them and Hubby says he is going to remedy that and find their album.

I'm glad I cant hear you playing Rod. All I need to do is flip the off switch on my hearing aid and my lovely world is silent again!

Mr. X said...

We'd hate to admit to
a) being old enough to remember them and
b) that we liked them.

- apart from Whispering grass, which is absolutely appalling.

Damn glad we didn't have to do this one, it would have been very embarassing indeed!

Brom said...

I liked 10CC, They did some innovative stuff. I often used to do a disco at the students union on a Friday, my party trick was to fade in the intro to Blockbuster by The Sweet just before the end of I'm Not In Love.

Cat said...

I'd have turned 18 in 1991. I have no idea what was top of the hit parade then. But I was definitely listening to The Smiths.

Mr Farty said...

Jenny - Street cred is very important when you're that age.

X - Yah.

Brom - Wasn't the Sweet's lead singer related to Taggart or something bizzare like that?

Cat - I think it works better if you go with what you were listening to. I'm thinking about doing one from when I was 36 along those lines.

Anonymous said...

goodness mr f - i suspect we're about the same vintage!

Mr Farty said...

Girlie - And a very good year it was, too.