Come The Day

I've forgotten much about the music that affected me in the early days. Going from being a kid playing folk in the churches in the 1960s to the boy playing pop in the restaurants in the 1970s to the man playing rock/blues/jazz in the 80s to originals in the 90s, and now, back to folk, one rediscovers the roots and some surprises.

1960s folk was not just protest music. Grounded in the Hootenannies of the late 50s, it was very spiritual. Gospel is as much the tap root of 1960s folk and pop ever since. We tend to forget that as we have become dance-centric. Now that I'm past the time I really need or want to play in the loud bands, I am enjoying rediscovering these roots and wondering how this will affect my songwriting. The influence has always been there with different emphasis but as my son pointed out when I was orchestrating "Fee Fi Fo Fum" for the children's play, "Dad, that's really the Mamas and the Papas soundwise" and he was right.

Come the day, I find I want these sounds back in my life. Perhaps as a fan once noted about "Sam (for Liz)", we come to an age where we need a little innocence back.

More Seekers... Judith Durham is medicine to the wounds.