
You'll be missed.
My world was filled with wonder in 1969. I recall a teacher fumbling with a television antenna so that the class could watch Neil Armstrong's mission to the moon. I witnessed slimy puppies squeezing out of my dog's hindquarters. And even with all the amazing music emitting from my transistor radio, a scratchy song about the Bible stood out. Who were these Israelites? Is this weird song holy or sacrilegious? And what kind of music is that, anyway? A few years later, Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" was such a big hit that it merited a newspaper story that I stumbled upon. The article linked Nash's smash to "Israelites." The story went on to mention a promising new Jamaican artist named Bob Marley. The man who puzzled me back in 1969 with "Israelites" was, of course, Desmond Dekker. After the Specials hit, I rediscovered Dekker and was thrilled to learn that he had created several other great hits, including "007." Dekker died in England yesterday at the age of 64.
Is it just me or is your music collection a kind of freaky death jinx?
ReplyDeleteHeroes are dropping by the score. Maybe I'm just getting old.
Irish- Another blogger accused me of "ambulance-chasing." When I attended a funeral here in KC on Wednesday, I was paying respect to the deceased and his family. These sad posts are intended the same way. It would be strange, I think, to neglect to acknowledge someone's passing. In fact, a friend recently chided me for not posting about the death of musician Nikki Sudden.
ReplyDeleteOh I agree; I don't think you have any option but to acknowledge such sad passings.
ReplyDeleteI think it's indicative of the scale of your personal collection and illustrates the more you like, how much you lose.
As an emigrant, probably because of circles I move in, I tend to miss out on reported deaths that I would have caught back in Ireland and Britain, and they seem to be increasing which is most likely me getting older. I missed the passing of Ali Farka Toure recently and it really does feel like losing an old, albeit distant, friend.