I began my four year college education in the late 1990's, an interesting time technologically speaking. I was sent to the University of New Hampshire with my first computer, along with just enough knowledge to get in and out of Word without too many problems, and how to use the internet.
Within a few days of living on campus I learned about the school network, and shared files, and mp3's. Suddenly music - of every variety - was at my fingertips.
At the time mix tapes still rocked my world (if you grew up in the 80's and 90's I know this resonates with you, think High Fidelity and mix tapes... "The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem." oh John Cusak... be still my heart... ) but by the end of my freshman year it was the mix CD that made my heart flutter. The fragile cases, album titles written in boy scratch penned with sharpies over silvery disks.
I spent hours listening to anything I could find, online, in friends dorm rooms. I had friends who were musicians and we'd stay up late as they would strum out requests for Simon and Garfunkel and Rustic Overtones. I was that girl with sections of white cement walls dedicated to words. Song lyrics and quotes fresh off the printer, cut into clouds and taped to the cold walls. The wall was outlined with soft yellow illumination by a strand of Christmas lights.
I loved words and music. Mostly the words. From early on I remember sitting next to the record player in the living room with my little brother. Moving the needle over the vinyl to find specific songs that spoke to my young soul. Jim Croce, Loggins & Messina and James Taylor filled my childhood. James Taylor's Gorilla album comes to mind most vividly. With every strum of the guitar, the notes he played still -to this day - weave into my heart and make pull at my heart strings.
While we did listen to children's music {I know every Raffi song by heart, and not because my children are acquainted with him, because they're not... } we mostly listened to my parents music. We grew up in a house of music, filled with song and singing.
In college I searched for new copies of the old songs I listened to, what I remembered. Along the way I found Cat Stevens and Joni Mitchell - new loves to add to my list that could have easily been in my parents record collection. New words that spoke to me and ended up on my wall. A creative writing class project was inspired by Joni Mitchell's songs, namely "A Case of You" and "All I want." I firmly believe that musically I was born in the wrong generation, although I can only imagine the trouble I would have gotten into if I was a college student in the 60's or 70's... .
Thinking back to those songs, those words I printed and taped up, those songs that I requested time and time again, they make me happy. They remind me of who I was then, who I wanted to be.
And I wanted to be a strong woman, passionate and creative. I wanted to live life and experience it through art and music and travels. I've done a bit of that. But I want more. It's time to pull out some Joni Mitchell and James Taylor, and dance.
I want to be strong I want to laugh along
I want to belong to the living
Alive, alive, I want to get up and jive
I want to wreck my stockings in some juke box dive
Do you want - do you want - do you want
To dance with me baby
Do you want to take a chance
On maybe finding some sweet romance with me baby
Well, come on
~ Joni Mitchell, "All I Want"
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Visit Jo at Mylestones for more Flashback Friday posts. This weeks prompt was Musical Memory...
