The College Blues

There’s no excuse for the young people not knowing who the heroes and heroines are or were.
Nina Simone

The College Blues

Here at the Profound Bartender, we know the value of music. It keeps the toes tapping and the glasses clinking.

It is hard to listen to music now. Harder than ever before. One almost has to shut out the world with a phone and earbuds to listen. Could there be a stereo in your house? How about a record player or CD player. Something has to soothe our savage beast.

We’d like to listen to more music but we don’t have the time. Our lifestyle is jittery and distracted. Many songs today rely on the hook and endless repetition without a broader thought to the music.

While I have a Bachelors and Masters degree, I’d say that the most lasting thing that came out of college for me was the music. I remember that first bootleg tape of the Grateful Dead with the instructions, “Listen to Dark Star. This is Ohio ’73.”

The music is about the friends. One guy might like country hippy and listen to The Band or New Riders or Little Feat. Another might be into Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters or B.B. King. Still another could introduce you to Coltrane and Bird and Miles.

Albums. Artists. Careers. Decades of music. Show tunes, Jazz, Folk, Disco, Punk, Swing, Vocalists and on and on. The memories are like old friends too, listening to music with friends.

Maybe it might be best to take the time instead of saying that you don’t have the time?

Nina Simone was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year. I love her and feel like I’ve been listening to her music for decades. Still, I wonder if I know anyone today who even knows her name!