Maybe it was the Grammy Awards that brought back the memories of music from my younger years. I thought this year’s 54th ceremony was one of the best-ever with so many performances by oldies, but goodies like baby boomers Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney. (My sister N swooned over Paul when we were growing up. He truly was the cutest Beatle. I was quite young when the Beatles hit the stage on the Ed Sullivan Show, but I remember.)

Or perhaps, it was hearing about the sad passing of Whitney Houston. I used to dance to her tunes throughout the late 80s and 90s. I would turn up the sound and sway my hips whenever I Wanna Dance With Somebody Who Loves Me came on the radio. While I didn’t particularly like Kevin Costner and Whitney in The Bodyguard, I did love the soundtrack. Let’s see, which were my favorites? Ah yes, I Will Always Love You, I’m Every Woman, and Run To You.

I had new carpeting installed throughout my house two weeks ago. I felt like I was moving all over again. I had to pack up all the books and bottles on my three bookcases in my loft area where I have my home office. As I packed away all my records (yes, I said records) from the 70s and 80s, my heart started to beat a little faster.

My heart was beating faster because my memory was being jogged back to my college days. I could clearly picture the portable stereo and speakers on my dorm room desk where they used to sit. Was it more than 30 years ago? How could that be? Where has the time gone? Back then, my turntable was always revolving with many of the records that now sit silent on my bookcase shelf. I remember…

  • Janis Ian – Party Lights
  • Kenny Loggins – Whenever I Call You Friend
  • Boz Scaggs – Georgia
  • Linda Ronstadt – Blue Bayou
  • Carly Simon – Mockingbird
  • Dan Fogelberg – Leader of the Band (I played that song over and over and over. I was so sad when Dan passed away several years ago. He was such a great musician.)
  • Gordon Lightfoot – Bend in the Water
  • James Taylor – You’ve Got A Friend
  • Jackson Browne – The Pretender
  • Barry Manilow (I must have borrowed this album from a friend. Did I really buy a BM record?)
  • Judy Collins (Send in the Clowns for my namesake Judy.)
  • Cat Stevens – Wild World, Peace Train, and Another Saturday Night (I played this song every Saturday night when I didn’t have anybody to hang out with after I graduated and was single in the city.)
  • Bonnie Raitt – Good Enough
  • Bruce Springsteen…The Doobie Brothers…The Moody Blues…Donna Summers…The Pointer Sisters…Simon & Garfunkel…the Beatles, the Beatles, more Beatles

I have so many great music memories from my younger years. As was true at the Grammys this year and as the writer Farhad Manjoo says “everything old is new again.” I think I am going to buy an Ion Audio unit (as soon as one is available for sale) which converts vinyl records to digital files.  According to Manjoo’s NY Times article, “this technology is easy to use because you simply plug in a USB thumb drive to save your music.”  Plus, it only costs $70.

Ooh,ooh,ooh, I can’t.  Yes, it’s time for me to enjoy these songs of my younger years during my life after 50. I’ll be singing and dancing to these tunes again real soon.

Judi