What's On My Jukebox?

I have always wanted a Jukebox. I have enough 45's to fill one, but I don't have the room, the money, or the type of house to really get one. So...I'm going to build a virtual Jukebox here, on-line. Stay tuned. I will even teach you what a 45 is, although I really, really hope you know.

My first attempt to "own" music didn't work out so well. I was in grade school - either 5th or 6th grade and Bobby Goldsboro had a great song out. "Honey". I really, really loved that song and I wanted it so bad. After enough hints my mother finally gave in. She had quite a had quite a nice collection of records herself and that was where the problems began.

Her records were from the 1940's and were known as 78's - meaning they played on a record player that rotated them at 78 RPM's/ Evidentially in the 1940's an artist would record songs and then another artist would record the same songs on their record and you could buy the artist that you preferred. However, I didn't know that, so when she kept asking whose album I wanted that song on, I kept saying I just wanted the song.

So I got the song. On a "new" album that was 33 1/3. (which means that it played at 33.33 rpm's ya' know). However, it was not a Bobby Goldsboro album. It was Kate Smith. Now, if you are at all familiar with the Billy Graham crusade's of the 1960's and 70's you will know who Kate Smith is; otherwise click here. Now I'm sure that my mother had the best of intentions and that if Kate Smith was good enough for Billy Graham, then she certainly should have been good enough for me. And I love Kate on some songs - no one can sing How Great Thou Art like Kate Smith (except George Beverly Shea, but that's for another time), but "Honey" just wasn't the same.

My dad sang one song over and over again all through our childhood, we all knew the words. When we got older we discovered that it was really three different songs that he just rolled all together. With this great musical background, Dad decided to come to my rescue. He bought me another album. (Listen - it's not what you think it is. This is on the album and was written by an inmate at Folsom Prison.)

Just what every pre-teen desperately wanting to fit in needs. It was almost enough to make me quit, but instead it was just the start of a classic collection. (Of course there was never and will never be a juke box that plays this size record.) However, it did open my world to country music and I now have quite an extensive collection of Johnny Cash albums. This is a reminder to keep an open mind and what you hated at one point in your life, you may love at another point.

After the Johnny Cash Album, I was able to convince both of my parents that at 45 was a "cooler" option for me and at only 79 cents it was a bargain too. First 45's in my collection? Tune in next week.