Birthday fun

My birthday isn't until Monday, but tonight my family got together to celebrate. My cousin's birthday is also in a few days. We've been celebrating our birthdays together since she came along five years after I did. It was a good evening - a little calm before the storm of excitement of Zac's arrival Wednesday, her wedding next Saturday, and our departure the following Tuesday. So we all sat around, like we have done for 30 years, and spent time together. Who knows when the next time will be.

I got the usual gift of money from a couple family members. Yes, we still do presents in my family. We're like that. We're a pretty small family, so there aren't many people to buy for and we like to spend money on each other. If I was from a family of 10 cousins, I'd imagine we wouldn't be able to be so generous. I got a new journal, some note cards and some picture frames for the fridge. Neat stuff to write with and such.

I also got one of the coolest birthday presents I have gotten in a very long time from my parents. I actually had to try and hold it together when I opened it. I don't think anyone realized how much it meant to me, but I didn't want to lose it tonight. So I just didn't look at mom or dad when I opened it. And I tried not to talk about it.

It was five CDs. Not just any CDs, but five CDs that all hold a special place in my heart. My Dad (and Mom) love music. All kinds. They have an amazing music collection. Megan and I were lucky to grow up in a house where music was frequently playing - Motown, Classical, R & B, Rock, some Country, everything. We'd listen to everything. MPR was on a lot in the house and classical music was on pretty much every morning during the week. We'd also listen to the Morning Show back in the day, which had it's own eclectic assortment of music.

There would be music and we'd dance in the kitchen and in the living room. It would play while we played cards and board games. It was always there. It seemed like every time we'd set up the house for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, Dad would toss something on and we'd all sing along and groove while we put stuff out. There'd be some Chicago, Doobie Bros., a little Spinners, maybe some Temptations, BeeGees, Barry White, it didn't matter. Something to jam to.

So I opened my gift today and found these:


J.S. Bach - Great Organ Works

A CD of classical organ music that rattles the windows and makes your internal organs feel like they might explode. I love pipe organs. I love the way they sound, the way they make you feel. And Bach could be so dramatic with his music. I just love the way it all comes together. I'm not a great classical music scholar, but I know what I like, and I like this.


Chuck Mangione - Children of Sanchez

According to my Dad, this is the best music made for a movie that was never released. (The movie that is.) It's stirring, it's fun, it gets your heart going. I can't quite describe it. You really should go to the bn.com site and listen to 30 seconds or so. It's one of those instrumental albums that I "sing" along to.


Al Green - Let's Stay Together

You want smooth? You want this album. I can't count the number of times I've watched my Dad dance with my Mom in the living room to this song. And then he'd dance with Megan or me. Any rhythm I have I can attribute to my parents' love for soul and R&B of the 1970s. Even when I was a little kid, I could tell that the Reverend was cool.


The Big Chill Soundtrack

Do you need to clean the house? Do dishes? Make pasties at church for six hours? This is your album. You can listen to every song again and again. And I have. It's like a sing-along album. I have fond memories of being at church for a pasty making Saturday and having a kitchen-full of 20 people singing, "I heard it through the grapevine" loudly. This was also a staple of family game nights. I can't count the number of times I've wished I could sing like Aretha. I dare you to tell me there isn't a single song on this album that you don't like.


The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds

I love this album. One that you can throw on at a party. Well, I'd throw it on at a party, even though it came out 11 years before I was born. And I wouldn't want to know anyone who objected to me playing it. They can leave my party if they don't like Pet Sounds. My parents listened to a lot of Beach Boys. Like I said, I'm not a music scholar, but I do know that Brian Wilson is regarded as a genius. And I do know how accessible their songs are, while still being musically significant.

So those are the five. Different in many, many respects. But they are all part of my life's sound track. And I was so delighted when I opened them up. To think that even if I'm a half a world away I can listen to "Let's Stay Together" while I set the Thanksgiving table, or sing "Ain't To Proud To Beg" while I clean the house, or dance with my kids in the living room humming along to "Children of Sanchez." They aren't the CDs you ever think to buy for yourself, but it is the music I've heard for 15-30 years, and I would miss it if it were gone. And it was a genius birthday gift. The best. My folks know me well.