Thanks, Mum

Thanks to Andrea for the inspiration. As you know, I haven't participated in a meme now for months. But as soon as I read this, songs immediately popped into my mind.

My mum passed away almost three years ago now. Thanks for the love and happy memories.



Top 5 songs that remind you of your mother.

Cherry Pink (& Appleblossom White)
This was an old 78rpm record that had survived in our family for ever, it seems. I remember hearing it as a young kid. I dunno why it immediately jumped into my brain when I thought about this in relation to my mum tho. I have a mental picture of the old record player we had all those years ago too.

My main memory of this actual record 9as in the piece of vinyl), is that my brother accidentally knelt on it one day, and it snapped in two. It was an accident - I watched it all happen. But mum was really quite upset, holding the two pieces of 78 vinyl in her hands.


Dancing Queen - Abba
This is the obvious one! We got this 45-rpm single record back in c.1976, when Abba was just starting to crack it big-time here in Australia.

This song will always remind me instantly of my mum. She used to play it constantly, and dance around the front room with it on high volume, singing and swirling away.

Hearing the song on the radio immediately brings back vivid happy memories of dancing around the front lounge room with my mum, still wearing her read apron twirling around, singing away joyously.

Wow.

I've still got that actual 45 vinyl here somewhere too.

This particular song will always make me think of mum with much joy and fondness.



Ask Me Why - The Beatles
When I was going thru my major "Beatles" phase as an older teenager (and I'm still a Beatleholic to this very day! lol), I'd play their first album, "Please Please Me", a whole lot in the front room stereo, simply because it had a really great sound out there. Much better than the small little tinny-sounding thing I had in my own room (that I got when I was about 12).

So yeah... mum would be in the kitchen opposite, working away, and singing along (as much of the words as she could remember, that is). The thing that sticks in my memory is that she always used to call this song "Misery", because that's a line they sing in the chorus. Just made me giggle, because, me being the allegedly know-it-all Beatle-expert at age 14... hahahahaaa.

I can still hear hear singing "doo doo doo lahh...". That's lovely.

Memory and music are powerful tools.


Play That Funky Music - Wild Cherry
No, mum was not into funk music at all. But we had a copy of this album laying about somewhere (which I still own! [cough]). She'd try to do the same 'dancing routine' as with Abba's "Dancing Queen" to this song - and fail miserably!

Can you imagine, my mum singing, "There was a funky singer, playing in a rock and roll band..."? hahahahaa! Fun memory.


Amazing Grace (Hymn)
This is a little more oblique... but yeah... we played this song at my dad's funeral, using a lone piper (bagpiper). It's what he wanted. Very strong impression, that sound. And the song.

Fast-forward about six months. We'd managed to bring my mum along with us, as a family, to our regular local Sunday morning church service. No worries at all. Mum loved the contemporary choruses at the start, and sang along with happy vigour.

Then they played a song they rarely did... this one.

Poor mum. She burst into sobbing tears, and we had to take her outside, so she could regather herself.

Of course, she immediately connected this song with my late dad.

Music and memories, yet again.

Peas be with ewe

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