Funny how certain things can trigger specific
memories. Whenever I hear WAND'RIN' STAR
by LEE MARVIN, I think of the house I lived in at the
time, and the view from the top of the road of my primary
school, with the interior lights lit up against the darkness
of an Autumn or Winter morn. This was because it was
often on the radio as I got ready for school in the
mornings and was still in my head as I set off.
The movie was released in 1969 and the song
was Number One in the U.K. charts for three weeks
in March of 1970. That means there were only around
three months to go before I left primary school for the last
time, but in my mind's eye, it seems a far longer period than
it actually was. These days, when Autumn leaves are all a
swirl and I see a lit up building against a darkened sky, I
think of my former house and old school, and seem to
hear old gravel-voice's haunting 'song' as the
soundtrack to that particular memory.
So - works both ways then, eh?
Great song. Did you know, Kid, that the B-side was called 'I Talk To The Trees' by Clint Eastwood ?
ReplyDeleteI did know that, CJ, but only because I saw the single in a charity shop. Must track down a decent copy.
ReplyDeleteWhen I hear the Edison lighthouse song "love grows where my rosemary goes" I am immediately taken back to my house in Rutherglen playing a football game my pal at the time made up (similar to Subbuteo but with plasticine players) I can still picture that in my minds eye.
ReplyDeleteI remember as a kid all of us trying to sing "Wand'rin Star" in that deep voice of Lee Marvin’s (emphasising the word "Hell") obviously, to very little effect as 9/10 year old.
Another song that reminds me of my old house, McS, and, this time, secondary school, is Lou Christie's I'm Gonna Make You Mine, which was on the radio for weeks (or so it seemed) back in the early '70s. ('71 or '72.) Many, many years later, I bought a Lou Christie CD ('cos it had that song on it) from a shop across the road from my former abode, so the connection continues to this day. (I knew you were dying to know that.)
ReplyDeleteToday I certainly learned a thing or two about music and actors. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteWasn't there a British comedian who did a parody song called, "I Talk to the Trees, That's Why They Put Me Away"?
ReplyDeleteThanks, Arion. I'm glad someone's getting something out of these self-indulgent ramblings of mine.
ReplyDelete******
Perhaps that's Prince Charles you're thinking of, TC - he talks to his plants. Sounds like the sort of record Peter Sellers might have done.