A Musical Digression from the 1970s

I interrupt this blog to make the following announcement:

Jim Croce

If you belong to the Aging Broad's generation that had formative years in the 1970s, then you may enjoy checking out The Midnight Special TV Show YouTube channel. You may still enjoy it even if you aren't a part of that generation, though it holds a special nostalgia for those of us growing up at the time. For the past several months, they have been uploading episodes and performances from artists of the era in honor of the show's 50th year anniversary, including Fleetwood Mac, Jim Croce, Linda Rondstadt, Willie Nelson, Journey, Steely Dan, Al Green, King Crimson, Tina Turner and many more musical artists. The show also featured comedians such as George Carlin, Richard Pryor and Steve Martin, and had interviews of musical artists. 

What's different about this show from others of the time is that artists performed live, unlike on American Bandstand or Solid Gold, where they lip-synched their most popular tunes. In the era before MTV, many of us had never seen these bands perform and knew them solely from hearing their music on the radio or records, quite often through those memorable K-Tel albums that provided wondrous collections of the top hits. Seeing these live performances provides a whole new experience and understanding of the performers and their showmanship. I have a newfound appreciation for Genesis. I mean... I had no idea.

Since this is a blog about movies, I would like to provide an excuse for this digression by noting that music connects us to time and place, eliciting feelings and memories, which can be used to great effect in film, as I was considering while recently revisiting Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. I have no affiliation with Burt Sugarman's The Midnight Special and share this channel only because it brings me joy, and hope it does for you as well. 

Let me hear you say Yeah!

Genesis

Alice Cooper

Redbone

Donna Summer

The Byrds

Aerosmith

Kiss

Willie Nelson

Dolly Parton

David Bowie

George Carlin

Rod Stewart and Faces with Keith Richards

Richard Pryor

Tina Turner

Fleetwood Mac

Chuck Berry and The Bee Gees

David Bowie

Blondie

Message from Blondie:

"The abuse of nuclear power is merely a symptom 
of our troubled time. It is time for all Americans 
to take control of their own lives 
and stop being pushed around and poisoned. 
The race for nuclear superiority 
can only end with the destruction of civilization."