10/08/2010

You've Got to Have a Little Grace

At the coffee shop today the radio went from the Los Lobos' 1980's remake of "LaBamba" right into the Weird Al Yankovic classic, "Lasagna."

I was transported back to my childhood, to the two or three times each year when my mother and I would drive from Atlanta to Milwaukee. I was in junior high school and had a real penchant for grunge and heavy metal, before someone decided that alternative rock and hair rock were antithetical. My mother, an ardent fan of Carol Carpenter and Celine Dion, and I had the requisite disagreements about music on the sixteen hour drive.

Ultimately the only things were could agree on were Weird Al and Jim Croce. This music has, in the years since become, a point of bonding between us and remains the only non-seasonal songs to which my mother and I both know the words.

As it turned out, the barrista had a nearly identical childhood experience. Curious.

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2 comments:

nursemyra said...

Does Karen Carpenter have a sister called Carol?

peony said...

actually, if memory serves (and my memories of those long drives and shared lyrics..which I STILL remember...are among the best moments of my life) my favs at the time were Carol King and Mary Chapin Carpenter. Of course, I couldn't name a single one of the bands you liked aside from Queen..and there your taste was beyond reproach. It's good to know you remember it with fondness. Mum