MUSICAL ROOTS

Howdy all of you Rootie Kazootie fans. Rootie Kazootie is one of my earliest recollections of music. There were Rootie Kazootie cartoons...Rootie Kazootie books...Rootie Kazootie records. I was around 4 or 5 years old. Everyone was listening to Mary Had A Little Lamb... Twinkle Twinkle Little Star..
Itsy-Bitsy Spider...etc.
I owe my current musical roots to Lonnie Louis Boyd...my father. He had an ecclectic taste of music...minus anything country. My childhood memories are on Friday and Saturday nights...after he had a few Miller's Highlife brewski's...he would bring out the portable record player...and put on a little Glenn Miller. Mom and Dad would then dance to In The Mood...Moonlight Seranade...Pennsylvania 6-5000. Even now when I hear a Glenn Miller tune...it evokes fond memories. It's a little known fact that my Dad won a Jitterbug contest in London before he went off to fight a war...and had his toes blown off in a cave as he stepped on a land mind. I still have the purple heart. He also was hit in the chest with a bullet...but in his pocket...was a New Testament that he was given when he was deployed...and the bullet struck the New Testament...saving his life. If he had not had the Word of God...close to his heart...there would be no cute little Rodney (CLR)...writing this Rambling...and you would be reading something else this very minute.

Back to my early musical roots...my Dad would encourage me to listen to Brook Benton (way before a Rainy Night In Georgia) and his singing partner Dinah Washington. The were the Marvin Gaye and Tami Terrell of the 50's. I remember playing there songs A Rockin' Good Way and You Got What It Takes. When the opening riff of the strings kick off the record...it sends chills up and down my spine.

The first record that I bought with my own money..that my mom and dad gave me....at the age of 6 years old...was the theme from the movie JAILHOUSE ROCK. While my peers were singing...Mary had a little lamb.. little lamb...little lame...Mary had a little lamb...it's fleece was white as snow...I was singing...The warden threw a party in the county jail...the prison band was there...they began to wail...The band was jumping and the joint began to swing...you shoulda heard those knocked out jailbirds sing...LET'S ROCK. That movie also had one of the classic quotable quotes...when Judy Tyler (who died in a car wreck after the filming of the move...prompting Elvis to never watch the movie)...rebuked Elvis for kissing her by stating...Don't use those tactics on me. Elvis smile back and says..."Dem ain't tactics...that's just the beast in me."

As the years progressed...the music changed...society changed...I changed...and in 1970...the year that I made a committment to Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior....my musical taste...rooted in my father...now had new roots in my Heavenly Father. Old Hymns, Christian Rock, Scriputures set to music, Psalms...Hymns...and Spiritual Songs...Vertical Music....Praise...Worship.

RUMINATOR RECOMMENDATIONS: At Smyrna Assembly...one of my Pastors...Ronnie Meek is doing a series on POP CULTURE PROPHETS: Series 1-The Beatles. Each message is based on a Beatles song. I told Pastor Ronnie that ...this series is RUMINATOR WORTHY. If you can come...great...if you can't go..you can go to www.SmyrnaAssembly.org and listen to it. The series includes:

October 8 Elanor Rigby (Look at all the lonely people)
October 22 Help (I need somebody)
October 29 While My Guitar Gently Weeps
November 12 Nowhere Man (A bit like you and me)
November 19 Revolution (We'd all lvoe to see the plan)
November 26 Here Comes The Sun (It's alright)

I still love music of all styles...and thanks to my son Phillp...I even like country music...but to take my guitar...and begin to Worship the creator of music...and sing...

I Love You Lord
And I lift my heart
To worship you O my soul rejoice
Take joy my King
In what you hear
Let it be a sweet, sweet sound in Your ears

Love and Solid Rocking Good Way
Rodney "Thank Ya Very Much" Boyd