by jessie voigts
Member since:
December 19, 2005

remembering '60s music, decades (and generations) later

December 11, 2007 03:13 PM EST (Updated: December 11, 2007 03:46 PM EST)
views: 190 | comments: 39

i was reading jennifer hodge's article today, about remembering 60's music, for the BOOM! group.

 even though i was born on the tail end of the 1960s (1969), my parents made sure that when i was younger, i was surrounded by music from that decade...

 my brother and i went to a john denver concert, when we were young! it was very exciting.

while sitting around the campfire at night, up at the cottage, my dad would sing lovely songs for kids - folk songs - peter, paul, and mary, etc.  - that never go out of fashion. even today, he sings these songs for lillie, around the campfire.

 

and yes, lillie sings some of these songs, too - almost 50 years later. she knows  the words to some of the songs my dad still sings - marvelous toy, for one! - and recently, we checked out of the library a book about puff the magic dragon - newly published by peter yarrow (of peter, paul, and mary) - complete with CD of him singing it!

 

do you think that this music is timeless? do your kids or grandkids listen or sing to '60s music? i'd love to hear! 

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Comments: 39

Lucky Stars Dec 11, 2007, 3:27pm EST
I grew up in the 60's and the music was mine.
My 29 year old daughter has always loved classic rock. She seemed to be born knowing the lyrics to songs I didn't even know all the lyrics to.

Some of the current alternative music seems to have a 60's feel to me. I guess that's why I am drawn to it.

I don't know if all music is timeless. It seems that some is. I guess the question should be why is some music timeless and other - not?
It's funny that you bring up PP&M as the Mrs. and I just listened to one of our PPM CD's the other night.

When I was a kid, Puff made me sad because I thought Jackie Paper died. I didn't realize the implications of the song until i was much older. Same with the Marvelous Toy. I was born in 65 so I have some memories of that music, most of my musical memories are from the 70's. Although I did inherit most of my older sisters' records so I got all their Monkees, Led Zeppelin, Beatles, Yardbirds and Frank Zappa albums from the late '60s so I have some good grounding in good music.
ChrisJerri S. Dec 11, 2007, 3:35pm EST
A lot of the music is just recycled, as I've heard many songs redone by the newer groups. Good music is always timeless.
jessie voigts Dec 11, 2007, 3:44pm EST
isn't it crazy? and you know - the musical tendencies i've gotten have been classical and jazz - with some musicals thrown in. my brother and my own global travels have led me to world music...i feel out of touch with current pop or rock music. i could sort of care less...and then lillie sings popular songs remade by kidz bop and we laugh.

thank you, everyone!
Deborah O. Dec 11, 2007, 3:46pm EST
my children are in their twenties, when they were teenagers they use to take my music and play it for their friends. Of course, I would then have to track down my music. Years later, I made CDs of their favorite stuff so they too can enjoy
Keep on going on ;-o
Dorine H. Dec 11, 2007, 3:48pm EST
The 60s, the era when I graduated from high school, had some of the most wonderful music ever. A few years ago I was delighted to learn that a niece who has just started college this fall had discovered and loves "my" music. Peter, Paul and Mary had some of the most singable! And Bob Dylan... Yes, I hope all today's children know and love the special folk, love and other songs of the 1960s!
Moh H. Dec 11, 2007, 3:51pm EST
A few years ago when my daughter was still in high school we were watching a show on TV that featured a classic rock group (no, I don't remember which one). My daughter (who was just coming out of a phase of "boy bands" craze) said, "Mom, how come the music of my generation is all junk and the stuff from your generation is so good? I can't IMAGINE listening to anything around now when I'm older." Yes, that statement was a bit extreme, and there is a LOT in the music realm from my youth that has blessedly "passed on", but a whole lot sure has survived!

The CD player in my room, by the way has 2 PP&M CD's (a couple of their newer ones, actually) and a Croce that I've been playing a whole LOT because they suit my mood of late.
Gerry Wass Dec 11, 2007, 3:56pm EST
I think Dorine has it right when she points out that the music was singable. I think a lot of it has timeless characteristics, as much as anything cultural can and may be around for a long time. I think it has to do with melody and clarity. You can't sing along unless you can understand the words, and I don't think it's as easy to sing along to today's popular music. Another characteristic of the era was that singers and bands had very distinctive voices, their own sound which their fans recognized. I don't know if it's me getting old or that today's music doesn't have that as much, but that's how it feels to me.
jessie voigts Dec 11, 2007, 3:59pm EST
yes, you all have made cogent points about singability and melody, etc...i thank you for your insight! it has helped a lot. my brother and i used to make fun of folk music (80's teenagers!) and now i don't mind it - in fact, i think that the singability is a key point. moh - i love your daughter!
RK C. Dec 11, 2007, 4:00pm EST
I still chuckle when I hear the term "Classic Rock"...it was simply rock and roll when I listened to it as a teen. :) My teenage boys went on a fishing trip with some friends, they took our van which had our CD's (they forgot their own). When they came home they kept asking me about that "new" CD I had by Jim McLean and the other new one from Phil Collins...
RK C. Dec 11, 2007, 4:05pm EST
One little point...let's not forget that all of the music was singable...I doubt if anyone sits around the campfire doing Zeppelin's 'Black Dog'...and does anyone really know the lyrics to 'Louie, Louie'???? :)
Denise B. Dec 11, 2007, 4:08pm EST
some music is some isn't :) my daughter likes SOME of "MY" music
Sonia M. Dec 11, 2007, 5:23pm EST
I didn't grow up with it (I'm older than dirt...) but I did like much of the music from the 60's....it was the end of an era for what I call 'real music'.... at least tome, a lot of what came after was a lot of discordant noises and not music to my ears at all! -

I grew up listening to my mother's music.....the big bands, the crooners.....
see? I told you I was older than dirt....
Katrina Hall Dec 11, 2007, 5:28pm EST
Hi Jessie!
If I still had my record of Burl Ives, I know my 22 month old granddaughter would absolutely love it! I love the old folk songs - Woody Guthrie's are so impassioned, and remind me of some of the struggles and politics of that time. And - I'm hoping to find her a really good Ella Fitzgerald cd! Had to laugh when I think of Lillie singing all those different era songs!
WM H. Dec 11, 2007, 5:38pm EST
A couple of years ago I took two of my kids to see Paul McCartney. They already knew all the words and sang along with everybody else.
jessie voigts Dec 11, 2007, 6:11pm EST
oh, yes, katrina - lillie LOVES ella!! we have many of her cds. and sonia - well, dirt might have a slight edge on you! :) william - were the tix big $??

i don't like most rock music - and so i fear that lillie will have a slightly different take on the music world. she knows the songs and lyrics from many musicals, though!

thank you, everyone!
Krista P. Dec 11, 2007, 6:39pm EST
yes, my girl always loved our music....I do believe that the best of it will last forever.
Joan O. Dec 11, 2007, 6:47pm EST
My kids are 23 and 26 and they don't mind 60's music, in fact my son likes Pink Floyd and some of the other rockers from that era.
Tonia, who hugs trees G. Dec 11, 2007, 8:59pm EST
My music tastes really run the gamut, and though I am not older than dirt, I tend towards Sonia's style of music - the big bands, the crooners, the immortals like Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. Of course, I certainly have my moods when Joan Baez, PPM and the more folk oriented stuff really fits the bill. My coming of age music was from the 80's - I didn't like most of it then and I still don't.
Sonia M. Dec 11, 2007, 9:07pm EST
Tonia, I knew there were other reasons I liked you......LOL

BTW, I watched 1954's White Christmas movie last night for the first time since it first came out.....sappy movie overall, but the music......!!!!! Rosemary Clooney and Bing.....Oh My! I thoroughly enjoyed going back to my era.....the 50's
Madame Donna C. Dec 11, 2007, 9:44pm EST
I loved the music from the '60s and my kids all grew to appreciate it and became familiar with it. I also liked the Big Band era, too, and that means they grew up listening to Benny Goodman too. I came from a very musical extended family so my kids have heard a wide range and I'm glad, but they still find me bopping around in the kitchen while I cook to some good old 60s oldies!
Miz Lynn aka/BooBoo Dec 11, 2007, 11:09pm EST
My kids grew up to music of the 50's, 60's, plus a whole lot more. About the only thing we didn't listen to was opera (although I do enjoy). I remember my son coming home from school one day and telling me there was a lyceum program featuring Celtic music. He then stated his classmates were pretty awestruck when he knew the words to "The Orange and the Green"...;))
Tonia, who hugs trees G. Dec 11, 2007, 11:30pm EST
jessie - sorry to hijack your thread

Sonia (and Donna) - if you ever have a chance to see "A Song is Born" - grab it! It is a Danny Kaye movie - quite enjoyable - it is the musicians that make it amazing - Benny Goodman, Louis Armstrong, Tommy Dorsey, Lionel Hampton - the best scene in the movie is when they all get in to a jam session. It was made in 1948 - I'm not sure whether it is on Netflix but is certainly worth looking for.
Madame Donna C. Dec 11, 2007, 11:45pm EST
Tonia, I love that movie! I had no idea you were into the "oldie" stuff. Those are my favorites...really, my all time favs! What a kick. Sorry, Jessie, but you started the conversation and we are goin' with it, gal!
jessie voigts Dec 11, 2007, 11:57pm EST
thanks, friends! i love this discussion. i just saw that we have white christmas (unpacking xmas stuff) so we'll watch it this week!! and will get that song is born, too! yahoo!! i LOVE these sorts of recommendations.

big band - i took up clarinet because of benny goodman!
Dannielle S. Dec 12, 2007, 12:09am EST
It's the "folk process" in action. Most of the old folk songs are set to tunes and airs that are much older than the songs we sing. As folks traveled and had no instruments at hand, they invented words to help them sing and thus memorize the melodies. The words could change over time as easily as the songs would change from one singer to the next. As such, there are some verses that appear in nearly every old song -- many ballads, for example, seem to have a rose that twines with a briar in a true love knot.

When I wrote my article on buildings that are like music, a fiddler friend of mine who read it told me that we play tunes that are older than most buildings.
Tonia, who hugs trees G. Dec 12, 2007, 12:51am EST
Donna - oh, I am way into that "oldie" stuff - the music and the movies. We just finished watching Gregory Peck in "Keys to the Kingdom". Wonderful somewhat schmaltzy movie about a priest who is a missionary in China. Really, I could go on and on about all the great stuff that I love - Gene Kelly in "Singin' in the Rain" and "An American In Paris" (I went to a screening of that in Boston and Leslie Caron was a featured speaker - now that was amazing!) - just about every Frank Capra movie - the great Katherine Hepburn and of course, Spencer Tracy - Sidney Poitier in "Lilies of the Valley" - the ever so debonair Fred Astaire - Eleanor Powell who was a phenomenon in her time - yes, I could go on and on.
John F Walter Dec 12, 2007, 1:35am EST
Yes, Jessie, not only timeless but not so long ago! The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Cream, the Doors, Jefferson Airplane, the early Rolling Stones....it´s just a shout away, kiss away......
Ishbel R. Dec 12, 2007, 2:14pm EST
I grew up in the Beatles era - saw them live on a number of occasions and even.... swoooon... met them TWICE...!

BUT, I also grew up in a strongly traditional Scottish family, with all of learning the pipes, the highland dancing and the folk music of our culture.

Many of my friends are part of the Scottish folk music scene today - and my children have grown up listening to those friends and my old records!
Alan L. Dec 12, 2007, 2:49pm EST
I have a 28 year old daughter, a 26 year old son and an 8 year old son. My older kids love the Doors, Led Zeppelin, Frank Zappa, The Beatles, Janis Joplin, The Who and more. They've also made me a fan of some of their music like Pearl Jam and Green Day. My 8 year old loves the Beatles and the Kinks.
Julia Schrenkler Dec 12, 2007, 2:53pm EST
Jessie, yes. I often include 60s tunes in mixes for the under-10yo set, and in many of my own playlists.

Your question about how timeless the music is...well, that's hard for me to answer. It is for me, but in the larger arc of human experience I don't know if it will be considered timeless four generations from now. Is the music from the 40s timeless? How about Tin Pan Alley? Has anyone put a swing album on the turntable lately?
It is amazing how my son loves the music from 65-75 as I do
I just moved into the wonderful room he transformed from a garage for me, and I hear it always now!
he whet though the head hurting metal with the base up full blast but decided on the music he was raised with. Of course he went to so many outdoor concerts back then some might consider it brain washed lol
Alan L. Dec 13, 2007, 3:14pm EST
Music from every generation has some things that are timeless. Stephen Foster, John Phillip Sousa, Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, Ellas Ftizgerald, Billie Holiday, etc. I think the 60's in particular may have more timeless music than any generation. Music for the first time was really changing drastically. As someone else mentioned it marked the first time that so many musicians were writing and performing their own songs. It was a time when social and political issues became ingrained in the music with the Vietnam War, drug use, love and peace. It became so much more than entertainment. To use a much abused cliche, it really did become the sountrack of our lives. Sounds of Silence and Bridge Over Troubled Waters, White Rabbit, Purple Haze, Everyday People, What's Going On, Mercy, Mercy Me, Big Yellow Taxi, Get Together, Come Together. The list goes on. So many important and influential songs.
jessie voigts Dec 13, 2007, 7:05pm EST
thank you, everyone!! does anyone still have a turntable? haha. my parents just got one that turns albums into MP3s. the digital age, indeed! such great thoughts. i need to write an article asking for memories of great jazz!!
Sonia M. Dec 16, 2007, 9:19pm EST
Oh, wow.....I'm glad I came back - Tonia, Donna, Jessie....I rmember A Song is Born...had forgotten all about it until you mentioned it. I will have to check it out again.

We used to go to evey single movie made by Danny Kaye, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, - I had a crush on Van Johnson at 13 so I tried to go see all of his also ....Ann Miller, Mitzy Gaynor, Kathryn Grayson, Mario Lanza, Ana Maria Alberghetti (sp?) - all of the big band movies - The Glenn Miller Story with Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson.....Love them, love them, love them! Too, too many to name.....but all of those old movies are wonderful except one....a big joke in our household is Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.....whenever it is advertised Anthony will invariably say, " hey mom, one of your favorite movies will be shown tonight "..... I think that was the only musical I thought just too corny....
Elsie Duggan Dec 18, 2007, 6:52pm EST
I love the music from my youth, which was in the thirties , forties and fifties, after that, it became diffrent, sure there are some spatterings of good songs from the sixties, but very few, but if you notice now, most all of the music played in the background of the movies now being produced are now using the old standards once again, especially if there is a patriotic or romantic undertone to them, someone knows they are what express the most to all of us, I guess what you grow up with will always be "your" music, and you will never fully enjoy or understand another generations,
d g. Dec 19, 2007, 12:28pm EST
Living nostalgia?

My mom taught us all the craziest jingles and songs (did you know that there are words for the Bonanza theme song?

Anyway, I know what you mean, some songs have ways of keeping their own beat.

The sun is a mass of incandescent gas, a gigantic nuclear furnace...
just had to come back to get a smile!
Robert Bruce Scott Nov 17, 2008, 7:26pm EST
60's - Beatles, Sinatra, Johnny Cash, Zepplin, Cream, Dean Martin - yeah - I sing all those songs. They go over just as well with kids as with the people who grew up with them.

I do recall a guitar teacher (who was one of my students) being surprised at "Blackbird". He said, "I didn't know the Beatles did anything that intense".... Man - go back and listen...

My cellist hates the Beatles - not sure why. He's really into eastern music and the Beatles really introduced that music to western culture.

rbs

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