It's funny I was born like 8 1/2 months after John Lennon died and my mom always joked about the possibility of me being him reincarnated. My parents are the Definitive Baby Boomers and my brothers and I were raised on the whole mythology the Atom Bomb, Elvis, JFK, The Beatles, LSD, Vietnam, Richard Nixon, Disco, etc.. We were sort of told that all the history had already happened. Now I'm on the other side, dealing with a generation who only know the World Trade Center in the past tense. The 80s & 90s kind of feel like a weird pocket dimension, a calm between two storms.
I knew the Beatles somewhat when Lennon was murdered. My cousin (who died unexpectedly in October) and I would sing “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” when we rode our bikes down the street and played in grandpa’s multiple broken refrigerators when we gathered at grandma & grandpa’s house.
I get weird looks from my kids when I tell them that my dad was home early from work to intercept my brother and me, directing us to the half of the house without a TV, making us dinner, keeping us from disturbing mom’s mourning period. My mother sat on the floor in front of our television, weeping, occasionally wailing, crying for hours and hours. Brother and I didn’t get it. And I’m not sure I feel that way about any of my favorite musicians (though I did watch hours of Cobain coverage, I don’t recall shedding a tear). I *might* be surprisingly emotional as REM dies, but it’s hard to know for sure and who says they won’t outlive me.
I want to be as connected to music as you are, and for some reason (maybe I just didn’t find the right stuff for me at that time), I’m not. I envy that in you.
It's funny I was born like 8 1/2 months after John Lennon died and my mom always joked about the possibility of me being him reincarnated. My parents are the Definitive Baby Boomers and my brothers and I were raised on the whole mythology the Atom Bomb, Elvis, JFK, The Beatles, LSD, Vietnam, Richard Nixon, Disco, etc.. We were sort of told that all the history had already happened. Now I'm on the other side, dealing with a generation who only know the World Trade Center in the past tense. The 80s & 90s kind of feel like a weird pocket dimension, a calm between two storms.
I grew up listening to the Beatles, too, though a couple decades later. They're timeless. I imagine it's similar with kids wearing Nirvana shirts now.
I knew the Beatles somewhat when Lennon was murdered. My cousin (who died unexpectedly in October) and I would sing “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” when we rode our bikes down the street and played in grandpa’s multiple broken refrigerators when we gathered at grandma & grandpa’s house.
I get weird looks from my kids when I tell them that my dad was home early from work to intercept my brother and me, directing us to the half of the house without a TV, making us dinner, keeping us from disturbing mom’s mourning period. My mother sat on the floor in front of our television, weeping, occasionally wailing, crying for hours and hours. Brother and I didn’t get it. And I’m not sure I feel that way about any of my favorite musicians (though I did watch hours of Cobain coverage, I don’t recall shedding a tear). I *might* be surprisingly emotional as REM dies, but it’s hard to know for sure and who says they won’t outlive me.
I want to be as connected to music as you are, and for some reason (maybe I just didn’t find the right stuff for me at that time), I’m not. I envy that in you.