Indianapolis, Indiana. February, 1981.
Since I went to high school 30 minutes away from where we lived, I spent many evenings driving home with my father after he finished work. At the end of a long day, my father desired silence and had no patience for any of the rock I favoured. On the rare occasions he did allow the radio, it had to be set to news or the 1001 Strings station. On one of those rare occasions, I was scanning through the few FM radio stations available in Indianapolis at the time, when the strains of the beautiful mandolin solo near the end of Rod Stewart’s Maggie May fell out of the car’s speakers. Knowing my father’s especially strong dislike for Rod Stewart, I quickly scrolled past, until my father spoke.
“Wait. Put it back on that classical guitar.”
“It’s not …”
“Put it back there!”
“… Maggie, I wished I’d never seen your face …”
“What the hell is that? Change the station.”
I moved the radio dial to the 1001 Strings station.
“Who was that?”
“Rod Stewart.”
“He’s a pervert. I don’t know how anybody can listen to that trash.”
“Nice solo, though.”
My father never responded. We drove the rest of the way home in silence, while 1001 Strings played their arrangement of Here Comes the Sun.
Postscript:
Yea, my dad had no fondness for Rod Stewart. He once heard Da Ya Think I’m Sexy? on the jukebox of a local pizzeria and about lost it. Of course, now I sit in a millenial coffee shop and wonder how anyone thinks some boy singing in a register he has been trained to reach over a monotone synth track is music. But, then, I’m right.
Stereo story #526
Great, reminiscent story Marcus. I love this song. And I could picture a dad saying that about Rod the Mod. The whole story/song takes me right back to the ’70s. Well done.
Thank you! Dads know what they know and what my dad knew about Rod Stewart, he didn’t like. Still, it was a great time for good music.
A great song, that’s for sure.
And a nice reminiscence, Marcus.
“Every Picture Tells A Story” is a wonderful album.
Thank you! The ’70’s were good.
Marcus! I am LMAO over your piece. Of course I knew your Dad quite well and I can just see him doing that. For that matter I probably did the same thing to my kids when they were wanting to listen to whatever the latest thing was. But the bit about coming in on the solo and him thinking it was classical music…too much. your Dad and my Dad were cut from the same cloth!
Nice writing!
Thank you! Our dads were definitely brothers. There is no doubt about that. I’m glad you found my piece here. This is a great site.