by Kevin Burton There is a picture of Olivia Newton-John that haunts me. The picture is of her at the end of “Grease,” her character Sandy riding in the car with Danny, John Travolta’s character. She turns around and waves at the camera as they ride off into the high school and movie …
Category Archives: 1970s
Baseball And Radio, A Perfect Pairing
by Kevin Burton The greatest marriage of all time marks its 101st anniversary today. May death never part the two. The two I speak of, baseball and radio. Baseball on the radio has been a comfort to millions of Americans all their lives. Baseball was the national pastime, radio a sort of national …
Drift Away: The Healing Power Of Music
by Kevin Burton Let me be clear: the beat, the rock and roll beat, does not free one’s soul. But in the secular sense it sure frees something. And that’s the heart of the great 1973 song “Drift Away.” Lawrence Darrow Brown was born in Simonton, Texas on this day in 1940. …
Mining For Radio Gold In Canada
by Kevin Burton The things we don’t say, can’t say, the things we won’t see and refuse to feel, these are the ghosts that inhabit a great 1971 song. I speak of “If You Could Read My Mind” by Gordon Lightfoot. The orchestration is good but it never gets in the way of …
Songs And Seasons In The Canadian Sun
by Kevin Burton Friday was Canada Day, which got me thinking about my favorite songs by Canadian musicians. The discussion started Saturday on Page 7 (“A Salute To Canada’s Greatest Hits,” July 2.) I have learned a few things just looking into it. For instance, Rush, a group I never listened to …
A Salute To Canada’s Greatest Hits
by Kevin Burton What in the world was “The Safety Dance” all about anyway? That’s just one avenue I walked down during my look into the best Canadian music in honor of Canada Day, which was yesterday, July 1. I set out to create a top ten list of favorite songs by …
Hearing My Story In The Rock And Roll
by Kevin Burton The stories, the images, the sound and fury of rock and roll, truly resonate when they hit close to home. By now we have enough rocking sounds to fill the seven seas. The messages are all over the map. The sheer variety is breathtaking. Not every song will get in …
Sunny Songs To Usher In Summer
by Kevin Burton Ready or not, here’s summer! Today’s official beginning of summer coincides with our usual Tuesday music discussion on Page 7 to bring you songs about summer. Summer started at 4:14 am Central Time today, according to the Farmer’s Almanac. But most people have a different definition of summer a …
Reality Intrudes Upon Laverne And Shirley
by Kevin Burton Shame on me for this, but there was a time when I believed every word of the song from Laverne and Shirley. That show ran from 1976 to 1983 on ABC. It was a big hit for its first few years, a spinoff from the very popular “Happy Days.” It …
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The Trippy Lyrics Of Strawberry Letter 23
by Kevin Burton From its carousel introduction to its abstract imagery lyrics, “Strawberry Letter 23” was, different. The song was released 45 years ago this month on Epic Records. You remember the tune? It was one of the quieter songs performed by the Brothers Johnson. Wikipedia says the 7-inch single was …
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