Hooked on Rock

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Rock and Roll’s icons such as Santana, James Brown and Led Zeppelin are some of the most well-known and influential people on the planet. Why? Well, for one thing, because we’ve heard their music over and over again. It has endured the test of time. Consider, for example, Volkswagen’s recent use of Elton John’s forty year old song ‘Rocket Man,’ to sell cars. (By the way, just to sweep away any confusion, he didn’t sing, “Burning up the room with cheap cologne.” He sang, “Burning out his fuse up here alone.” I’ll bet you’re relieved to get this cleared-up after all these years.)

Hmm, after all these years, I wonder if everybody on the planet has by now heard ‘House of the Rising Sun.’ Well, maybe not everybody. But millions of us certainly have and lots of other songs are stuck in our heads as well. Elton John pointed this out, “The words she knows the tune she hums”…Tiny Dancer.

I was reminded of Rock and Roll’s omnipresence when my wife and I visited a local state park recently. I was driving and as we rolled slowly up to the window at the welcome center, the attendant stepped out to greet us. As she did, I noticed her Beatles baseball hat. It certainly wasn’t part of the standard-issue park ranger uniform which made it stand out even more than it would have to a fellow music lover!

Jumping to a quick conclusion (my only exercise that day) I figured she was probably a fan of Rock and Roll. I leaned out the window with both arms extended and hands up, as if appealing the ref’s call in a basketball game. With a big smile I proclaimed, “Don’t mess with me because I’m B-B-B-Bad to the bone.” In an instant, the lady’s face brightened and she started laughing. Her quick reply, “I’ve heard of that one!” Three other people in the little building overheard our strange little greeting and stepped out the door to join our conversation sharing their favorite Rock and Roll songs. Within seconds, I was 4 for 4. I had connected with four people because of a common interest. This made me smile and I hoped my wife was as impressed as I was to connect with others over music.

Here’s the way I see it: I’m not sure we’re hooked on phonics but we sure seem to be hooked on Rock and Roll and we probably always will be. Consider this comment from musician Toni Braxton, “I’ll probably be 80 years old and still performing. Music is like fashion, it changes. But some things will always be the same.” One thing that stays the same is that we’re always in the mood for a melody, looking for something to make us feel alright, just as Billy Joel pointed out in his great song, Piano Man.

Rock and Roll has us hooked and we are hooked in a major way. Boston knew this when they told us, “Nothin’s gonna help you more than Rock ‘n’ Roll”…Feelin’ Satisfied. They have a good point but they’re off by a few degrees because March Madness is here. This time of year college basketball is bigger than almost everything – even Rock and Roll – but only for a few more weeks. After that, rock on!

Keep on Trying

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hurdle
Bernie Marcus, Founder of The Home Depot, made this observation, “It’s a misnomer that our talents make us successful. They help, but it’s not what we do well that enables us to achieve in the long run. It’s what we do wrong and how we correct it that ensures our long-lasting success.” Whatever you are trying to accomplish, you might fail a few times but it’s helpful to keep in mind that with every new sunrise you have another opportunity to accomplish your goals. So, don’t lose faith in yourself. Consider these words from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, “I have no expectation of making a hit every time I come to bat. What I seek is the highest possible batting average, not only for myself but for the team. Theodore Roosevelt once said to me, “If I can be right 75 percent of the time, I shall come up to the fullest measure of my hopes.”
I think it’s reasonable for you and me to conclude that we can be whatever we want to be, even if we haven’t gotten a hit every time we’ve been up to bat so far. For us, this is still true, “Well you could have been anything that you want to and I can tell the way you do the things you do”…The Temptations, The Way You Do The Things You Do. Motivational author, Robert Collier, made this assertion, “We can do only what we think we can do. We can only be what we think we can be. We can have only what we think we can have. What we can do, what we are, what we have, all depend on what we think.” Thoughts are the thermostat that regulates what we accomplish in life. Doubt, disbelief, and discouragement bring us down but thoughts filled with vision, vitality, and victory help us raise the bar a notch or two. Shoulda, coulda, and woulda are never good enough. Don’t lean on any of these and don’t get discouraged because in every moment there is a reason to carry on.
Determination is the key. It’s what you need and it’s what I need. According to the great French Emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, “The truest wisdom is a resolute determination.” Thomas Fuller, chaplain to King Charles II of England made a similar observation, “The real difference between men is energy. A strong will, a settled purpose, and invincible determination, can accomplish almost anything; and in this lies the distinction between great men and little men.” Likewise, a couple centuries later, legendary football coach Vince Lombardi asserted, “The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.” I see this truth in my own life because if I really do want to do something, I’ll find a way. If I don’t really want to do something I’ll find an excuse. You’ve probably had a similar experience.

Black Friday Idea

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Many of you are likely going to stand in long lines for great deals on Black Friday. With so many stores opening on Thanksgiving day this year many will even be in line right after Thanksgiving dinner. Why not bring along some great tunes and a copy of “13 Things Rock and Roll Can Do For You” to keep you company while you stand in line? The book is available as an e-book, too, so you can read it on your phone, iPad, Kindle – or whatever fancy electronic device you’re picking up this year!

Music Bridges the Seas

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Here’s what I think: “Music is the traveler crossing our world. Meeting so many people, bridging the seas”…The Moody Blues, I’m Just a Singer in a Rock-N-Roll Band. Music does bridge the seas. It connects different worlds.

Here’s an example – In February 2012, Mick Jagger and B.B. King stopped by the East Room of the White House to play some blues for the president, his wife and others in the packed room. Mr. Obama couldn’t resist the urge to get involved so he got up and sang, “Come on, baby don’t you want to go.” Clearly savoring the moment, the President declared, “This music speaks to something universal. No one goes through life without both joy and pain, triumph and sorrow. The blues gets all of that, sometimes with just one lyric or one note.”

The musical group O.A.R. put it this way, “Something always comes from the music anyway. Came into my life and it stole me blues away”…Anyway. Billy Joel offered this assessment, “I think music in itself is healing. It’s an explosive expression of humanity. It’s something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we’re from, everyone loves music.” Okay, I’ve made my point so I’ll move along. Before I do, though, here’s one more testimonial for the value of music, “There are two means of refuge from the misery of life – music and cats” – Albert Schweitzer. While I’m not too sure about the cat part I definitely agree with him on the music part.

Indeed, there can be misery in life. Perhaps because of this stark reality, Muddy Waters, in his cool song Hoochie Coochie Man, asserted, “Then the world wanna know, what this all about.” That’s for sure. We’d like to know what life is all about because at one time another, each of us has probably asked these questions, or ones very similar: What is the meaning of life? Why am on here on this planet. Where am I going? What is my purpose? What is my destiny? What happens when I die? These are normal thoughts, just as Theologian Thomas Aquinas asserted, more than seven hundred years ago, “There is within every soul a thirst for happiness and meaning.” Well, we can find happiness and meaning because rock and roll offers up some great insights worth considering. Consider this advice from Billy Joel because it might point you in the right direction:

“Don’t go changing, to try and please me
You never let me down before
Don’t imagine you’re too familiar
And I don’t see you anymore
I wouldn’t leave you in times of trouble
We never could have come this far
I took the good times, I’ll take the bad times
I’ll take you just the way you are

Don’t go trying some new fashion
Don’t change the color of your hair
You always have my unspoken passion
Although I might not seem to care

I don’t want clever conversation
I never want to work that hard
I just want someone that I can talk to
I want you just the way you are.”

You and I might as well put to use the helpful stuff we learn from rock and roll because these valuable nuggets of wisdom can keep us out of trouble. This is easy to do because rock and roll is a timeless gem that has entered our lives, stuck in our heads, and become a mainstay in society. It’s been a long strange trip, just as the Grateful Dead told us. But, the journey is far from over. Read my book, 13 Things Rock and Roll Can Do For You, to learn more.

The Wisdom of Dads

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It’s funny how time changes our perspective on things. Over the years our views shift as we learn more, gain life experience and get a bit of experience of our own. Hindsight is 20-20 and time brings a lot of clarity. We have lots of opportunities to learn from those around us and the sooner we open our eyes to the wisdom of those around us the better off we’ll be for it. I’ve learned this lesson myself over the years in how I viewed my father and the wisdom that he held. Turns out, he was right.

4 years old:      My daddy can do anything.

5 years old:      My daddy knows a whole lot.

6 years old:      My dad is smarter than your dad

8 years old:      My dad doesn’t know exactly everything

10 years old:    In the olden days when my dad grew up, things were sure different.

12 years old:    Oh, well, naturally, Father doesn’t know anything about that. He is too old to remember his childhood.

14 years old:    Don’t pay any attention to my father. He is so old-fashioned!

21 years old:    Him? My Lord, he’s hopelessly out of date.

25 years old:    Dad knows a little bit about it, but then he should because he has been around so long.

30 years old:    Maybe we should ask Dad what he thinks. After all, he’s had a lot of experience.

35 years old:    I’m not doing a single thing until I talk to Dad.

40 years old:    I wonder how dad would have handled it. He was so wise and had a world of experience.

50 years old:    I’d give anything if Dad were here now so I could talk this over with him. Too bad I didn’t appreciate how smart he was. I could have learned a lot from him.

It’s Saturday. You’re Watching Football. Read This.

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Life in general, and sports in particular, offer plenty of opportunities for terrible injuries, such as the one suffered last Saturday by Tulane’s Devon Walker. It’s true that people get seriously injured in all kinds of ways, but a football injury like Walker’s, seems especially sad and unnecessary.

As with any topic that generates mass hysteria, most people reside on the fringes. One side wants to eliminate the sport altogether and the other thinks that so much concern over injuries, which are part of the game, is just another example of the fact that we’re not as tough as we used to be. Either way, a reverence for college football means that it’s here to stay, hard hits and all. Billion-dollar TV deals and multimillion-dollar compensation packages for coaches make it clear that we just can’t get enough touchdowns, last-second field goals, and burly running backs plowing linebackers into the ground.

Life can change fast, real fast, just as it did for Devon Walker, so don’t miss your opportunities to do the things high on your “bucket list.” Today is the only day you have. Beyond right now, everything is just speculation.

I recently read about a professor who asked his students to write biographical sketches in just six words. This idea occurred to him when he learned that Ernest Hemingway wrote this poignant bio: “For sale: baby shoes, never used.” Wow, imagine the sad story behind those words. Well, you certainly don’t want to look back some day and realize that these words applied to you: “Shouldn’t have worked almost every minute.” or “Never found time for his kids.” or “Never took that trip he wanted.” Before it’s too late, every now and then, you ought to find time for just doing whatever you want to do. The world is full of workaholics and that’s too bad. We know this old saying is right on target: “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” This happens because work can get quite a grip on us. Work often becomes the source of a person’s identity. I have seen this happen to many people around me and I think that being too busy is almost like a red badge of courage or some sort of status symbol. If you’re working too much and not having enough fun, maybe your pace is your problem. It’s no good if your life has closed in on you and become a chore instead of an adventure.

Slow down. Put your feet up, just like John Fogerty noticed these guys doing, “Early in the evenin’ just about supper time, over by the courthouse they’re starting to unwind”…Creedence Clearwater Revival, Down on the Corner. After a while, put your feet back down and go have some fun. Recall this line, “He’s Bill or Billy or Mac or Buddy and he’s plain ugly to me. And I wonder if he’s ever had a day of fun in his whole life”…Sheryl Crow, All I Wanna Do. Billy may be ugly but there’s still plenty of ways for him to have fun. You have plenty of options as well. Maybe you ought to take the trip you have been thinking about, “Aruba, Jamaica ooh I wanna take ya to Bermuda, Bahama come on pretty mama”…The Beach Boys, Kokomo.