Soundtrack, Part 5
By Mitch Berg
Nothing about my first week in the Twin Cities ever smacked me upside the head quite as hard as my first rush hour.
I drove Cedar to 494 to try to get to 35W, to drive from Burnsville to Vadnais Heights for an interview.
And 494 during the morning rush hour is still a cardio workout.
Back then? In a barely roadworthy car, learning the few rules that the road had?
I flipped on WLOL. This song started:
The buildup, in my memory, went hand in hand with the traffic, the weaving and ducking and lane-changing, built up around me, mirroring the mental frenzy I’d just merged into.
I’m sure my blood pressure and heart rate still rise when this song come on, anywhere.
October 9th, 2023 at 7:23 am
I first heard the Beatles on a day my mom kept me home from school. I wasn’t all that ill so I was puttering around my room when the WABC DJ announced the song by a new British group. I assumed he meant “beetles “ when he named them. It was, absolutely, the best, most original music I’d ever heard. I Want to Hold Your Hand. Indeed.
October 9th, 2023 at 10:31 am
Funny, doc. Good story. WABC? Is that NYC?
When I was young, my mom would get my dad to take me with him on house calls or visits to the hospital. Then I could cool my heels inside dad’s VW (Beetle) listening to the radio (AM) while he took care of business. I first heard the Beatles, “I Want to Hold Your Hand” like you, sitting outside a house while Dr. Dad was inside. I can still point out that house in my hometown.
October 9th, 2023 at 10:56 am
JD: yes, I lived in Connecticut. Big music stations were WINS and WABC, home of Cousin Bruce Morrow, who as of a couple of years ago had the 60s on 6 Sirius channel.