Do you remember where you were 40 years ago today? I know, I know, many of you weren't even born yet lol.
It was the day of the Live Aid concerts, broadcast simultaneously from London and Philadelphia.
I had just graduated college.
I was at home, living on Long Island at the time. I had pulled my car onto the lawn and I was working on it. I had my boombox on the grass next to me so I could listen to the performances. I kept running back inside to catch the TV broadcast. It was a warm and sunny day. My car was leaking oil and it was found to be due to leaky valve covers. I had jumped over to the auto parts store (I was always the only woman inside) and bought some new cork gaskets and sealant and then to the hardware store for a putty knife. I heard the phone ring inside and I ran in to get the call. It was my boyfriend, wanting to come over and catch the broadcast with me...he was calling to ask about bringing a cooler full of beer and inviting the neighbors. I said sure. When he got there, the hood was up and I was bent over the car, scraping the old gaskets off. My neighbor, a retired cop, walked over to see what I was doing. They both started giving me a hard time, even if in a good natured way.
I had to explain the reality. My boyfriend and I graduated the same prestigious university, the same day, similar degrees....but most men at that time, in that area, were able to walk directly into professional jobs...most women could not. We had another hurdle to clear, another rung to climb. We had to take a typing test, then do admin work for awhile before being deemed worthy of taking on professional work. This set us back, disadvantaged against men of our age and credentials... I hadn't yet reached the earnings of my boyfriend...paying someone to do a job I could do?
not part of my reality at that time.
After I explained my situation....they changed the subject....my neighbor walked back over to his house....brought back some supplies and proceeded to hand wash and wax my car by hand while I worked on it. Sweet guy, that Richie. My boyfriend worked on dialing in the music, getting the beers ready.
We all enjoyed the music...as I said, a great day in music history.

I remember. Tina Turner participated; she had recently staged an Ike-defeating mega-comeback after years of dealing with consequences of domestic violence.

I’d just graduated from Long Island University the year before and was working 2 full time plus a part time job to pay rent, keep the car running, and begin grad courses…spending more and working (unpaid) internships so I could be considered “professional enough” to do something in my field, so I feel you.

Aside from that, the ‘80s were a great time to be young and the music was (and still is) freaking amazing!

I remember Tina and Mick Jagger turning up the heat with thier duo as she Channeled that energy from the “Ike” mess to become a “Phoenix rising” with her deep and sassy vocal mantras raising awareness, inspiring, and validating so many other women to challenge the status quo of “chattel-hood.”

So many iconic change makers creating sounds never before heard that are still inspiring, and will be for generations to come.

Expand your playlists and see those icons live before we can’t anymore, and bathe in that energy again.

We really need it in these times as well.

Peace, Love, and great music to everyone…

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/13/2025 11:27PM by SBP.

I did not watch it as I was working 70-80 hour weeks in the 80s. But I recently watched the movie about Freddie Mercury and gained a new perspective on the event. Really enjoyed the movie "Bohemian Rhapsody".

I was living in an upstairs apartment with 2 of my sons, in North Hollywood, with a filthy roommate whose bedroom was carpetted with her daughter's used diapers. I was on bedrest at the end of a difficult pregnancy, while trying to watch both toddlers (mine and hers), and my oldest son in elementary school (off for the summer, going into 1st grade). To say that my oldest son was doing a LOT of heavy lifting trying to help me with the younger kids would be an understatement. I don't think I was able to watch Live Aid, but I sure don't remember why.

...and yet, these Long Island liberals allow men in women's sports. Personally, I'm against it, but you have to admit that some men took advantage of women yet again. At least the "right" women are against it also.

So you have yet "another rung to climb." Self-induced.

And so much for the allure of the "prestigious university."

@BarefootBliss wrote:

Do you remember where you were 40 years ago today? I know, I know, many of you weren't even born yet lol.
It was the day of the Live Aid concerts, broadcast simultaneously from London and Philadelphia.
I had just graduated college.
I was at home, living on Long Island at the time. I had pulled my car onto the lawn and I was working on it. I had my boombox on the grass next to me so I could listen to the performances. I kept running back inside to catch the TV broadcast. It was a warm and sunny day. My car was leaking oil and it was found to be due to leaky valve covers. I had jumped over to the auto parts store (I was always the only woman inside) and bought some new cork gaskets and sealant and then to the hardware store for a putty knife. I heard the phone ring inside and I ran in to get the call. It was my boyfriend, wanting to come over and catch the broadcast with me...he was calling to ask about bringing a cooler full of beer and inviting the neighbors. I said sure. When he got there, the hood was up and I was bent over the car, scraping the old gaskets off. My neighbor, a retired cop, walked over to see what I was doing. They both started giving me a hard time, even if in a good natured way.
I had to explain the reality. My boyfriend and I graduated the same prestigious university, the same day, similar degrees....but most men at that time, in that area, were able to walk directly into professional jobs...most women could not. We had another hurdle to clear, another rung to climb. We had to take a typing test, then do admin work for awhile before being deemed worthy of taking on professional work. This set us back, disadvantaged against men of our age and credentials... I hadn't yet reached the earnings of my boyfriend...paying someone to do a job I could do?
not part of my reality at that time.
After I explained my situation....they changed the subject....my neighbor walked back over to his house....brought back some supplies and proceeded to hand wash and wax my car by hand while I worked on it. Sweet guy, that Richie. My boyfriend worked on dialing in the music, getting the beers ready.
We all enjoyed the music...as I said, a great day in music history.

Hi SBP,
I bathe in that energy every day.....it's like water, light and oxygen to me.

Thank you for your uplifting words. and yes Tina...omg, can we say enough about her greatness? may she rest in peace.

It warms my heart that this thread invokes great memories of Tina and Freddie.

Hugs to my fellow shoppers!

I’m against men in women’s sports, so what does that say Mavi? I’m sure you consider me a lib. You have very linear thinking and assume that everyone else does too - based on political affiliation. It’s hard to take someone like that seriously. Are ‘Long Island liberals’ a different breed than the rest? Not all living there are rich, even to this day, so what’s your point?

I know where I live the honking of horns for Rump protesters is unreal. He has failed with everything he has tried to pull by flouting the constitution and using his political power to enact his own personal vendettas. Why would anyone (with common sense) think that he cares about them? Even his diehard supporters are turning against him over the Epstein files. He thinks he can get away with making his cabinet member take the hit and fight his battles. Blondi got that job based on promises she made in order to get it, and this was one of them. Similar to how RFK Jr. got his position in enchange for his endorsement. Blondi will be ‘hit harder’ b/c she’s a woman, just like Tulsi ‘dingbat’ Gabbard was. They can both kiss their political careers goodbye.

I learned early to stay out of the corporate world. It still hasn’t changed much. After I got the mortgage and paid off my car I started my own business and close to 90% of my clients were women with their own money. It went very well and I sold it 15 years after. I did notice that some of the men I worked with resented paying me more than they made, which made them more difficult to work with. The little digs and barely concealed resentment made it obvious. Never got that vibe from the females. I feel fortunate to have been spared being undervalued in a male dominated workforce, and avoid it to this day.

@Minime wrote:

I’m against men in women’s sports, so what does that say Mavi? I’m sure you consider me a lib. You have very linear thinking and assume that everyone else does too - based on political affiliation. It’s hard to take someone like that seriously. Are ‘Long Island liberals’ a different breed than the rest? Not all living there are rich, even to this day, so what’s your point?

I know where I live the honking of horns for Rump protesters is unreal. He has failed with everything he has tried to pull by flouting the constitution and using his political power to enact his own personal vendettas. Why would anyone (with common sense) think that he cares about them? Even his diehard supporters are turning against him over the Epstein files. He thinks he can get away with making his cabinet member take the hit and fight his battles. Blondi got that job based on promises she made in order to get it, and this was one of them. Similar to how RFK Jr. got his position in enchange for his endorsement. Blondi will be ‘hit harder’ b/c she’s a woman, just like Tulsi ‘dingbat’ Gabbard was. They can both kiss their political careers goodbye.

I learned early to stay out of the corporate world. It still hasn’t changed much. After I got the mortgage and paid off my car I started my own business and close to 90% of my clients were women with their own money. It went very well and I sold it 15 years after. I did notice that some of the men I worked with resented paying me more than they made, which made them more difficult to work with. The little digs and barely concealed resentment made it obvious. Never got that vibe from the females. I feel fortunate to have been spared being undervalued in a male dominated workforce, and avoid it to this day.

A——-men!

CNN is doing a 3 part series called ‘Live Aid: When Rock and Roll Took on the World’ mainly narrated by Bob Geldolf from his perspective. It was interesting to hear how it evolved from Geldorf being shattered by the news coverage/film footage of the Ethiopian famine. Leave it to the BBC to be the only news outlet who cared enough to report on it.

Looking back there were some faux pas with ‘Band Aid’, like the unfortunate line that Bono sang ‘Thank God it’s them instead of you’ and the noticeable lack of female singers, as Bono pointed out. The next episodes will go into the US involvement with Reagan issuing substantial aid to Africa, and Lionel Ritchie, Harry Belafonte (and MJ) (ugh) putting together Live Aid.

I too feel very fortunate to have grown up in the late 70s/80s when several musical genres were at their peak, we didn’t have detrimental internet exposure or major wars, and we intrinsically knew how to communicate with one another. If the latter doesn’t seem to matter to some, just look at how it has resulted in the crap music coming out these days. No mastery of any instruments, no real vocal talent and obscure, un-relatable lyrics with no hooks. Boring as hell but Gen Z views it as the norm. I haven’t purchased any new music in over a decade.

On a side note: As far as new music goes, it seems like there’s a push to focus only on very young singers who don’t create their own music or play an instrument. Young girls only have Taylor Swift to glom onto. Yet there is still an over-abundance of immature, broke, middle aged men who put together garage bands thinking they have a shot at being a rock star. There’s nothing more pathetic. A friend is going through a divorce told me that she had to fill out some personal type of psychological assessment forms for the court. One of the questions was ‘Do you want to be a famous singer or rock star? She said she was hoping her X would answer that Q honestly. LOL!

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/15/2025 05:25PM by Minime.

Music is old! I am partial to the stuff from a few centuries ago but have personal faves from newer music, including Tina and Freddie. I would love to hijack the time machine and travel through time, musically. I agree that as commumications are being reduced from expansive expressions to minimalist memes, "music" is now more often noise than music. (And if the untrained vocalists do not learn how to have an actual melody with only an occasional grace note or turn, I will... I dunno... outcaterwauler them, or somethng...)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/15/2025 10:41PM by Shop-et-al.

Thank you....I was not aware of this series...I want to look into it.
I have been fortunate to stumble onto some great music being made lately...but it's different now (naturally lol)
no radio or DJs, in the traditional sense, to promote it....so the musicians remain obscure or with a smallish fan following...
I am generalizing, but how I tend to see things then vs. now...is this way
at the time, the artists created their music as art and if they wanted fame and fortune and were fortunate...it got promoted and the fans loved their art and showed their appreciation through buying records....so we have the data from record sales as proof of popularity and the audience's appreciation for that art...and it was art ***and it has stood the test of time****
now, it seems things are reversed....
businesses seek out performers and then promote them...and the promotion leads to fandom and ticket sales and music sales...it's not art from the ground up, it's business from the top down.
it's music created for business....not all of it I know...but the most popular songs and performers..
AND...there's this huge entire industry built around tribute bands and cover bands.....imitation IS the sincerest form of flattery....they copy only the best.
do you seriously think this will last forever? it's just beginning to wane or at least that's what I see.

Speaking of lack of female participation....I am forever grateful to Steve Miller for his comment about women in music at his RHOF (Rock Hall of Fame) induction ceremony.
Speaking of Steve, we're headed to Bethel NY next month to watch his band play....looking forward.

2 or 3 cents of mine lol.

Exactly BF! Same as my thinking although you put it more eloquently. It has become a top down business model run by people with crap taste in music. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that with the advent of rap/hip hop, there was no real need to play an instrument, just sample other people’s work for a hook. I also think sheer laziness is a factor in terms of learning how to play music.

The legendary rock artists were offspring of the ‘greatest generation’ who weren’t tv watching couch potatoes. For entertainment they went to dance halls, learned how to play, became members of cultural clubs that had marching bands, etc. When you hear the the rock stars of the 60s/70s recount their beginnings, it usually started with a parent who played some sort of instrument, and music was playing in the household. From there their own influences evolved. Those types of connections seem to be slipping away.

The last theater outing we had was a few months ago to see ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin.’ It started with the story of each of their parents, narrated by each surviving member. For me that was the good stuff. The rest was great too because it had so much never before seen footage of their first tour of the US. Different clothes than what you normally see them in was the telltale sign it came out of a vault. One clip was totally grainy but they added it in b/c it was so special. So many close ups of Kimmy’s guitar playing in front of smaller live audiences… There will never, ever be bands like that again.

I absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE those interviews and I also comb through other references or their Wiki pages to glean details from their childhood experiences..whatever seeds were planted that bloomed into such greatness.
Yes, they often mention music played in the home when they were kids - that's a big one...or parents that were musicians - or whether they were brought up in a church and the church culture introduced them to musical culture (this more often happens to be a US Southern thing, from what I have noted).
and lastly, I keep a mental tally...it's a long list of famous performers who credit their fire being ignited by one of two major influences for Baby Boomers as kids: Seeing Elvis or seeing The Beatles.
It was an unimaginable era...the 20th century in the US....historically so very significant in so many ways.

Yes, Elvis and the Beatles - a solo artist and 4 piece band. Apparently the Everly Brothers too. (Per John Fogarty) : > I was remiss in not mentioning the gospel, blues, jazz and soul artists in the US who really started it all. I recently heard Keith Richards talk about his influences and he went pretty far into the lesser known artists of that era, and discounted anything current as ‘total crap.’ It’s good to see the lesser known musicians remembered and included almost yearly into the R&R HOF. Motown, Soul Train, 70s R&B…we had it all.

We recently saw the Temptations and 4 Tops together on tour, and I have to say it was a bit disappointing. They talked a lot, sat on stools and were a bit winded at times. You’re right, it won’t last, even with imitators. I love the Temptations video of ‘Papa was a Rolling Stone’ from a Soul Train appearance. Their voices, harmony, the pink bubble gum color 3 piece suits… Let’s just say you can’t touch that now. The closest I’ve seen was a performance from The Grammy Tribute to the Music of Paul Simon. (Or something like that) that aired on a network channel a couple years ago. Simon took part in choosing the artists and the arrangements of his songs, which was a very good call. There were so many great performances. My favorite was with a 6 piece black, male singing group called Take 6, backing up Billie Porter singing ‘Loves Me Like a Rock.’ It brought the house down. I’m sure there’s still a lot of untapped talent out there, but shows like American Idol, and that one with the 4 celebrities who fawn over the mostly mediocre singers are taking over the culture. After Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Hudson it was all downhill for me. Can’t stand the loudness of the audiences either.