Tuesday's Musical Notes - "When I'm 64" (The Beatles)

Welcome to Tuesday!!!  It's time for The Notes!  Today we take a look at a topic to which everyone can relate...getting older.  While we don't like to admit it, we are with each passing second gaining days to our age, becoming more experienced, and perhaps even becoming wiser.  T.S. Eliot said about gaining in years...“The years between fifty and seventy are the hardest. You are always being asked to do things, and yet you are not decrepit enough to turn them down.”   Comedian Bob Hope put it this way..."I don’t feel old. I don’t feel anything till noon. That’s when it’s time for my nap."  But this blog is about music so we must include this musical perspective on getting older. From 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, here are The Beatles:

 

"When I'm 64" - The Beatles - original speed and key

 

Tuesday's Musical Notes admits a love for the music of George, Paul, John, and Ringo.  We have demonstrated this in the fact that to date 4 of The Beatles' songs have been featured. They have distinguished honor of being the most featured artist of The Notes...unfortunately no statuette or award will be forthcoming... 

(Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Eleanor Rigby", Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Love Me Do", Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Got To Get You Into My Life", and Tuesday's Musical Notes - "All You Need Is Love")

Admittedly, it is difficult to write a music blog without acknowledging the impact that the Fab Four have had on music history.  This history is propelled by the way The Beatles went about recording their music.  If they could experiment with a sound, they did.  Today's feature song is a perfect example of such experimentation.   The result highlights how The Beatles wanted to be a different band.  "When I'm 64", while popular, never charted.  It was never released as a single.  It featured a clarinet trio as it's main instrumentation (2 Bb Soprano Clarinets, and a Bass Clarinet), and it was not released as it was originally recorded.  (The Sgt. Peppers recording is sped up to make McCartney sound younger).  Instead of being about youthful pursuits, it speaks of a young man's curiosity with how his life will be when He and his true love get older.  Something that everyone at one point or another has taken the opportunity to pause and contemplate.

The average life expectancy in the US today is in the 70s.  This is very different from the life expectancy before the great flood during Noah's time.  At that point, life expectancies would reach into the 800s.  Theologians much smarter that me have speculated as to why this might be.  If you are curious https://answersingenesis.org/ would be a great place to start researching this topic.  

Today we feature an article about the genealogy of Adam to Jacob...the great patriarchs of the Bible.  It details how long they lived and the overlap that occurred for their lives. Just click it.... "Ancient Patriarchs In Genesis"  I find it fascinating that Adam and Methuselah would have lived on the earth for 243 years before Adam died.  Also, according to the chart Methuselah, Noah's grandpa, died right before the great flood.  There is a good chance he would have witnessed the ark being built. 

These patriarchs achieved much in their long lives. On the other hand, Jesus lived to be only 33.  In that 33 years, He completely changed the world.   All of this age talk begs the question, regardless of whether we are as old as Methuselah, or have a short life like Jesus, what did God put us on this earth to achieve?  The Bible says that David did not pass from this life until he successfully accomplished his purpose on this earth.  As Christians, are we ever supposed to retire from God's work? 

Let's ask a man named Caleb.  He came along a few years after the patriarchs, but accomplished much in his life.  He was a compatriot of Moses and served as Joshua's right hand man.  One of the last things we hear of him doing is astounding in light of the age the Bible records him being.  Let's read about it in Joshua...

Joshua 14:6-15 NASB/The Message parallel

Caleb is ready to storm the land that God had promised him...at 85 years old.  You may say, "yes, but the Bible says that his strength had not faltered and God was with him."  The Notes totally concurs with that assessment and would like to add this encouragement...God is with you as well.  Regardless of how old you are, or perhaps how old you feel, God has placed you here to do specific things, to accomplish your purpose so to speak.  Your purpose probably would not be to lead your clan into battle, but perhaps it is to provide insight to your children and grandchildren so they can face their battles better.  God will certainly give you the strength and courage to do what He has called you to do.  The Notes wonders sometimes if we don't buy into the lie from the enemy that our aches and pains are indicative of a loss of skill and ability.  Certainly this plays a factor into what you are able to do, but as the only cliche says, "If God brings you to it, he will bring you through it."  Caleb seemed to be one of those fellas who always said "YES!!"  "Yes!! we can take this land that God has promised us!"  "Yes, we will defeat all of the inhabitants of the land and take their cities!"  And then at 85 he says "Yes!  I will lead my family into the inheritance that God has promised us!"  When is the last time you said "Yes!!" when called upon to serve.  Please remember the church is the facilitator of the Good News of Jesus, not the Red Cross, Salvation Army, or any number of good charitable institutions.  So friend, to what are you willing to say "YES" ... as you get older, losing your hair...you are still needed...when you're 64...

'Til Tuesday,
Serving HIM by serving you,
Randy

Tuesday's Musical Notes - "While You See A Chance" (Steve Winwood)

As you enter the portals of today's Tuesday's Musical Notes, we must acknowledge the death of one of the greatest DJ's of all time...Casey Kasem.  The last edition of The Notes of 2013 were a psuedo-tribute to the soft voice and seemingly mild persona that not only was the sound of music's greatest chart countdown show, but the voice of Scooby-Doo's beloved Shaggy.  Here, from December 31, 2013 is Tuesday's Musical Notes tribute to Casey Kasem....

 

 

 Tuesday's Musical Notes - "The Final Countdown" 

It's Tuesday...the middle part of the week and today...the middle part of the month!!  Welcome to the crossroads of encouragement and entertainment...the junction of enlightenment and enthusiasm...the blog featuring some of musiclands biggest hits with a hearty helping of the Bible to boot...it's Tuesday's Musical Notes...coming at you electronically from deep in the heart of the USA...it's time to get started...will you join me?  Can you say Steve Winwood?...sure your can...

"While You See A Chance" - Steve Winwood from the 1980 album Arc Of A Diver

 

One of the biggest chance takers in all of Rock history is Steve Winwood.  We've told you a bit about this prodigy, who would play with some of the biggest names ever in popular music.  Must be nice to call Eric Clapton a friend...but we digress.  In fact, one of his songs was the feature for the  February 12th,  2013 edition of Tuesday's Musical Notes..he must be really important...que flashback music and click...

 

 Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Higher Love".  

Steve Winwood has been associated with some of the biggest acts of the 60's and 70's.  His work as a keyboardist and vocalist have allowed him to play as a session player on some of classic Rock's biggest platters.  Lou Reed's Berlin, Robert Palmer's Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley, George Harrison's self titled album, Christine McVie's (Fleetwood Mac) self titled solo album, Billy Joel's The Bridge, and Miranda Lambert's Four The Record are just a few of the records to which this still in demand musician has contributed.  

He has been in the music industry since the early 60's, yet it would be 1977 before he would release his first solo album, Steve Winwood.  The album would peak at #22 on Billboard's 200 album chart, but see no successful singles.  Three years later, he would take the biggest chance of his career as he would write and cowrite, produce, provide lead vocals as well as back up vocals and play all instruments on the album that would solidify his position as a solo artist, Arc Of A Diver.  It would peak at # 3 on Billboard 200 and spawn the #4 single, "While You See A Chance".  

There are those who would say that being a follower of Christ in today's culture is taking a big chance.  With each passing day we see the evidence globally and even in the United States of Christians being persecuted.  We have been told that this will come to pass...Matthew 5:11-13 NASB, The Message parallel and John 15:19-21 NASB, The Message parallel  In both of these passages, Jesus tells us that as followers of His we will find the same reaction to the Gospel that He found.  Some will believe, others won't, and some others will even want you to stop talking about it.  

So what is our response to be?  Maybe we can take advice from Mr. Winwood...

Don't you know by now
No one gives you anything?
And don't you wonder how you keep on moving?
One more day your way, oh your way
When there's no one left to leave you
Even you don't quite believe you
That's when nothing can deceive you
While you see a chance take it


You see we have to find a way to continue to tell other people about Jesus.  And as the culture all around us continues to follow the path of the enemy, we may have to be very creative about how we promote the Gospel.  There is very little if any coincidence in the life of a Christian.  Our daily interactions with people are not happenstance.  What if we listened to the telemarketers spiel if they promised to give us the same number of minutes to tell them about an important thing?  What if we sent a gospel track back in the self addressed, postage paid credit card solicitations that we get EVERYDAY in the mail?  What if we asked our cashier if she is scheduled off this Sunday and would like to attend church with us?  What if we forwarded the link to the most Gospel centric of Tuesday's Musical Notes to our friends?  The ideas are limited only by your imagination and your willing to see a chance and take it...



Stand up in a clear blue morning
Until you see what can be
Alone in a cold day dawning
Are you still free? Can you be?
And that old gray wind is blowing
And there's nothing left worth knowing
And its time you should be going
While you see a chance take it...


Mark 16:14-16 NASB, The Message parallel


Here's another song from the early '80s for your contemplation...


"Jesus Commands Us To Go" - Keith Green from the posthumous 1984 album Jesus Commands Us To Go - (this one's a bit long, but take a chance and watch it all the way through)


'Til Tuesday,
 Serving HIM by serving you,
Randy

Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" (BJ Thomas)

Welcome to the rainy day edition of Tuesday's Musical Notes.  In our part of the country, we are pretty excited to see rainbows pop up occasionally because it seems it has been raining for 40 days and nights!  The good news is that Tuesday's Musical Notes are readable regardless of the weather.  So pop open an umbrella, put on your galoshes and let's get started with the June 10th incarnation of Tuesday's Musical Notes...remember..."behind the clouds...the sun is shinin"...

"Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" - BJ Thomas from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

It is difficult to believe that Paul Newman and Robert Redford only made 2 movies together.  It seems like they were a team in the vein of Crosby and Hope or Lewis and Martin, but 1969's Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid and 1973's The Sting were the only movies these Hollywood legends would star in together.  The modern generation may know these gifted actors by their food line (Newman's Own) or the movie festival and television network (Robert Redford began both the Sundance Movie Festival as well as the Sundance Movie Channel based off of the title character of Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid.  The chemistry between these two venerable actors was evident as they went through both of these films with an obvious ease and comfort with each other.  In 2003, the movie would be selected by the National Film Registry for preservation in the Library of Congress.  

Aided by a Burt Bacharach/Hal David soundtrack, the movie quickly became a fan favorite for years.  It also propelled "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head", sung by BJ Thomas, to #1 for 4 weeks on Billboard's Hot 100. Critical acclaim came as well as "Raindrops" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.  It would be Thomas' follow up to his gold record "Hooked On A Feeling" (not the version from the Guardians of the Galaxy trailer...that's Blue Suede) and solidify him as a pop star in the 60s and 70s.  He had cross over hits in Country as well as Christian music.  In fact, all of the Grammys that BJ Thomas won were for his Christian music.   Here is an example:

"Home Where I Belong" - Grammy Winner Best Inspirational Performance 1976 from the album of the same name

Rain is a popular subject among songwriters.  For a list of some of the most popular "rain" songs in music history click this link:  30 Songs About Rain That Rock - Yahoo Voices.  This list includes the Blind Melon hit "No Rain" featured in the October 16, 2012 Tuesday's Musical Notes:  Tuesday's Musical Notes - "No Rain".  Many of these songs have a theme that rainy days or rain in general emotes a "blue" mood or rainy days "always get me down".  The Notes admits that rainy days can potentially have their downsides, or maybe we should say "downpoars", but we have always found them uniquely enjoyable.  Those of you who have lived in rural areas probably hold fond memories of rain falling on the tin roof of a barn or shed.  Perhaps the rain meant a day off from outdoor labor and enabled you to read a good book and take the break you needed.  And the smell of the outdoors after a spring rain is one of those odors that are simply unexplainable.  Regardless of these endearing memories, rainy days do have a tendency to cause us to ponder or reflect on the times in our lives when everything seemed to go against us.  We all have those days. On those days when nothing seems to go right, our focus seems to deflect to all the negative in our lives and even the negative in our world.  It is easy to begin to ask the age old question, "why do bad things happen to good people?" or the converse, "why do evil people succeed at all?".  As with so many questions about life, the Bible has answers.  They may not always be answers that we like, but the answers are there.  

One of the most studied passages of scripture is Matthew 5. The entire chapter is familiar to us as the "Sermon on the Mount".   It contains what are commonly known as "The Beatitudes".  Dictionary.com defines this as a "supreme blessedness".  The first portion of the chapter finds Jesus pronouncing blessings on those who would not have normally been blessed by the lawgivers and religious rules of the day.  Later on Jesus begins to teach about specifics of discipleship and the life of one who would follow Him.  He sets the standards by which Christians should live.  In the last 5 verses, Jesus teaches about our relationships with others.  He says:  

Matthew 5:43-48

The Message (MSG)

^43-47 “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.
⁴⁸ “In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.”

maybe you are more familiar with it this way:

Matthew 5:44

New American Standard Bible

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷ If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? ⁴⁸ Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

In essence Jesus is telling us to quit worrying about the good or the bad that comes our way.  We should praise Him in both. He is also telling us that we should love everyone in spite of their sin-filled or sin-forgiven condition.  Love, not condemnation, is what He displayed when He traveled among us, and love, not condemnation, is what His followers should display as they travel through their lives.  Holding others accountable for sin or telling them they are not right in context of Biblical standards is not condemnation as long as it is done in a manner that displays our concern for their eternity.  This will show our love for them.  This is an attitude we should have..."In The Early Morning Rain", in "November Rain", or even in "Purple Rain".  God causes it to rain on the good folks as well as the bad folks.  Our challenge is to remember that...."because I'm free...nothins worryin....me...." cue trumpet solo.....

'Til Tuesday

Serving HIM by serving you,
Randy

Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Chapel Of Love" (Dixie Cups)

Welcome To June!!!  Can you believe 5 months of 2014 have passed?  Wow!  Time keeps on slipin', slipin', slipin'...yep, there's a Musical Note in the making just waiting to happen...but not today for today we celebrate the month that has for centuries been associated with weddings!  Which means on today's  Musical Notes..."...we're goin' to the chapel and we're... gonna get married..."

Dixie Cups - "Chapel Of Love"

1964...what an incredible year!  Those of us born that year just turned 50!  It was also the year that sisters, Barbara Ann and Rosa Lee Hawkins, joined with their cousin, Joan Marie Johnson to form the trio, The Dixie Cups.  The Dixie Cups, took "Chapel of Love" to #1 where it stayed for 3 weeks.  It was the only #1 hit for the Dixie Cups, but it was an influential enough song to be listed at #284 on Rolling Stone's Greatest 500 Songs countdown.  (500 Greatest Songs Of All Time - Rolling Stone Magazine).  "Chapel Of Love" had 2 previous attempts to make it to the charts recorded by Darlene Love and The Ronettes respectively, but it was the 1964 Dixie Cups version that would solidify the song in Rock-N-Roll history.

"Chapel of Love" details the wedding day of a happy bride.  It is one of those "ear candy" songs that upon hearing it, is hard to stop singing.  It has appeared in a variety of films from "Full Metal Jacket" to "Father of The Bride" (The 1991 remake of the 1950 film of the same title.)  The later movie has become the recent life of our family.  Our middle child gets married this week!!!   "I'm Getting Married" - Father Of The Bride  Yep, Steve that pretty much captures it. We meet this happy day with mixed emotions.  I confess, I have not been able to watch "Father Of The Bride" since having the "permission conversation" with our new son.  We have happily lived moments from the movie.  No, I haven't been chased by dobermans or fallen into the in-laws pool. We love our new son and his family and have a great and growing greater relationship with both.   Tammy has been watching most of my steps closely to avoid any such pratfalls  through the process and Saturday, I get the honor of being Father of the Bride/Officiating at the wedding.  Congrats Justin and Kelly!!!. Cue the fade out music as we segue back to The Notes...sniff, sniff, sigh.

 

There was a time when every girl's dream was to be a June bride.  Perhaps you have heard this your whole life as I have.  While many folks do get married in June, it is not necessarily the month of choice as much any more. Believe it or not July is the most popular month according to recent research.   Here are some other interesting facts about weddings from the same research that perhaps you did not know:

Wedding Facts

In the Bible, we read about the wedding where Jesus performed His first miracle, changing the water into wine.  You can read about it here: John 2:1-11 NASB/The Message parallel  If you travel to the Cana of Gallilee area in Israel that is referenced in this passage you will find there are 2 different churches that celebrate the miracle.  They are in the same vicinity, and they each claim to be the actual wedding site where Jesus revealed His deity for the first time. They both are incredibly beautiful places of worship and serve as a reminder that Jesus thought marriage to be an important event in people's lives.  This passage is used in countless weddings as it is one of the only ones in the Bible to actually feature a wedding celebration. 

Throughout the Bible, the legitimacy of man and women coming together as one in marriage is stated from the outset.  Our current culture deems this "old fashioned" and a precept that is past its time.  Our culture is wrong. Jesus went about loving people.  He did not hesitate to tell them when they were not doing the right thing, yet He never failed to let the person scolded know that they were loved by Him.  This is missing from so many people in the cultural debates that are currently being bandied about through our state legislatures and federal government and yes even in our churches. I read in a recent article something that in its simplicity is profound.  The article stated that if we as followers of Christ, redeemed liars, cheaters, adulterers, homosexuals, and murderers, would say 2 phrases to people all around us who are living in their sin, we could transform the world.  Those phrases are "That's wrong" and "I love You".   ("Why Homosexuality Is Not Like Other Sins" - Churchleaders.com)  In essence, this article is calling Christians to love others enough to hold them accountable for the wrong things they do.  This accountability should always be given in the context of brotherly love and in a loving manner.  That is the missing element in the vitriol from both sides that is mistaken for debate regarding the uniting of man and woman in matrimony because of the love they share for one another.  Seems ironic when you think about it.  Hatefully debating about love...

Ultimately love will conquer all.  There is another wedding referenced in the Bible.  It is in the book of Revelation where the "Bride of Christ" will one day be gathered to the bridegroom for the ultimate wedding feast and celebration.  The Bible serves as our invitation to this wedding.  The only thing we have to do to RSVP is accept the invitation.  Become a part of the Bride of Christ by believing in the bridegroom Jesus... and we'll never be lonely anymore...

'Til Tuesday,

Serving HIM by serving you,
Randy