Music can evoke such emotion and these are all things that remind me of mom and dad and make me smile. There are of course so many more, but these are the first 10 that pop into my mind! If you have any songs that remind you of my parents, either or both, please share, I would love it hear it.
10) 'Beautiful Boy' by John Lennon...
I really wanted a particular song that I could sing to Jonathan and that could be 'our song'. I tried a few on for size after Jonathan arrived. I really liked Beautiful Boy and continued to sing that to him. One day at mom and dad's, dad overheard me singing it and had to go find it on his iTunes. Before I knew it he was blaring it from his study! That alone made me laugh, but in the following days, he and mom started singing that song to him ALL THE TIME. I teased them that it was supposed to be just a me and Jonathan song, that they couldn't sing it too, but dad teased right back, with his usual come back to me..."You're not the boss of me!"...One of my favorite moments of dad with Jonathan, was just a couple of weeks before he passed away. I was driving, mom was in the front seat with me, dad was in the back with Jonathan. I heard dad softly talking to Jonathan, telling him he had the most beautiful big blue eyes. Then he softly sang a couple lines of Beautiful Boy. Mom and I were trying to play off the fact that we were listening! It was a precious memory.
9) 'Crazy' by Gnarls Barkley...
Amy and i had been together in the car and arrived back at mom and dads. We had just heard that song on the radio and we were singing it around mom and dad. One of them asked what it was and then some how we ended up in dad's study and dad downloaded the song off iTunes. The next thing I knew Amy, mom and I were dancing around dad singing "Maybe I'm crazy!" ...and we were!
8) 'These Boots are Made for Walking' by Nancy Sinatra...
On my maiden voyage of Dad's silver VW Bug (the last of many that he built) this song came on the radio. I perked up and said, I LOVE this song, he smiled at me and turned the volume up all the way! He and I cruised and sang at the top of our lungs. We laughed cause our favorite line was, "you keep samin', when you oughta be a'changin'!" - Who says that?
7) 'Unforgettable' by Nat King Cole...
I had a really hard time figuring out what dad and I would dance to at my wedding...the father daughter dance...it should be meaningful, sweet, touching, slow...I just couldn't land on something that fit that for us. We liked fast paced music. Mom and dad took me on a Pre-wedding trip down to Galveston about two months before the wedding. I brought wedding 'to do's' on the trip and one of them was finalizing music. I sat in the front with dad as he drove and we talked music going up and coming back. We went back and forth and all around and finally settled on Unforgettable and I'm so glad that we did. It was a lovely and special moment/memory.
6) 'Ice Ice Baby' by Vanilla Ice...
On the same Galveston trip that I mention in #7, I asked both my parents if there were any 'must play' songs that they wanted me to play at the reception. Mom was sitting in the back and she flew forward and yelled out, "you have to play Ice, Ice Baby!" dad and I bust out laughing! With out missing a beat, she started rocking her head around singing, "for-eva ice, ice baby...too cold...too cold". She was such a hoot! And yes, the DJ played it and yes, she danced to it!
5) 'Natural Woman' by Carole King...
One of the things I became really upset about after dad passed away was that I never talked to him more about certain things, one of them being music. One day I was crying to mom, "I didn't even know his favorite song." ...So as mom was in the hospital the last time, she and I would have really long conversations about things from A-Z. One day, with my note pad in hand, I asked her to tell me her all time favorite songs. To my surprise, she said 'Natural Woman' was her all time, absolute favorite song. What? I laughed and laughed. I never recall hearing her listen to or sing that song! I gave her a hard time, asking her if she had been listening to it in private all this time or something! But she held strong, at least until the next day when I came back, she told me she changed her mind and she really loved anything by Larnelle Harris! I told her it was too late to change her answer, I wrote it down in pen! Of course I was teasing, but it will always be curious to me that she said it was her favorite!
4) 'Wouldn't It Be Nice' by The Beach Boy's...
At first I actually put down 'any Beach Boy's song' but decided I need to stick to actual songs and not be generic. The reason that this song reminds me of mom and dad is because it was actually 'their song'!! Mom told me that this song had just come out right before they started dating. She said she could remember singing the words and feeling it was written for them! But then she laughingly told me that it was the 'song' of every dating couple of that time! I don't care, I still love that this is their song! I can just picture mom as a high school / college student driving around town in her yellow VW Bug singing and wishing she was married to dad!! ...the reason that Any Beach Boys song reminds me of them is because...growing up we would drive to El Paso every year. Without fail every year dad would pop in the same Beach Boys tape! Amy and I recently were talking about our trips to El Paso...we would usually be driving in the dark and West Texas after dark is pitch black since there is literally nothing out there. As we would approach El Paso you could suddenly see LOT's of lights on the horizon, after the 10 hour trip, it was always such an exciting sight. Typically dad would be listening to and possibly singing along with his Beach Boy's tape and mom, Amy and I would be waking up from an uncomfortable car cat nap...it is just a sight and sound combo that I will never forget.
3) 'Turn Your Eye's Upon Jesus' by Alan Jackson...
After my dad passed away, mom picked this song to be sung at my father's funeral (the hymn, not Alan Jackson). I didn't question it because I knew she and dad liked that song and it was always one of my favorite hymns too. But mom later explained to me that dad had recently purchased Alan Jackson's CD called Precious Memories, where he sings all the good ole' Hymn Classics. Softly and Tenderly, When we all get to Heaven, The Old Rugged Cross...etc and including Turn Your Eye's Upon Jesus. The last two weeks of my father's life, mom was in the hospital and dad didn't leave her side. During that time she said that dad played that CD over and over again. They both loved it, and sang together and talked about each song and what it meant to them. She started to tell me what he said when he talked about 'Turn Your Eye's Upon Jesus', but she got choked up and couldn't finish. She never did tell me what he said, but she didn't need to, I think I know. And I will always hold that song close to me.
2) 'Why Not Me' by the Judd's...
As probably a pre-teen we were on yet another road trip probably to El Paso; we were listening to something other than the Beach Boy's. This time it was The Judd's. We had listen to the album a lot and we all knew all the words! Amy and I were in the back seat singing away and mom turned around and said "you girls have such beautiful voices you should become the next family singing group!" And it's funny ever since she said that I have always thought in the back of my mind that that was seriously an option for me!!! Even though Amy and I did not peruse or destiny as the next country singing sister combo, it just always meant so much to have a mom who really believed in me (us) and said such sweet and encouraging things! I want to remember it so that I can pass it on to my sons.
1) 'So Happy Together' by The Turtles...
It was a little difficult to pick the #1 song because they are all special. But the second I hear this song it puts a smile on my face! Back when mom & dad were in High School they had been together in their Sophomore & Junior years but they broke-up during their Senior year. Mom won Homecoming Queen and one of the perks for all El Paso Homecoming Queens was front row tickets to The Turtles concert!! Pretty cool, right? Anyway, dad went to the concert too and just for fun he brought a date. So the good part of this story is my dad's version of what happened...when he was there, with this other girl and everything, he had a clear view of mom. She was down front with the other girls, dancing and having a good time! He told me that he couldn't keep his eyes off of her, she was so beautiful and everything he wanted, he knew he would get back together with her. Of course it didn't happen over night, but they did get back together on graduation night...and were 'so happy together' ever since! ...I just love their love story. I feel like The Turtles concert was a big role in my parents getting back together and therefore the reason I am here!!!
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| Nancy and Bill Ramage. October 19, 1974. |
I love that you have all that in your heart and memories and you share it! Your boys will love reading (and listening to you) these posts. Very sweet post!
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