Remember the classic song by Stealers Wheel? It came to me as I was preparing to write our July column. It couldn’t be more appropriate for this moment in time, as we begin to understand that the pandemic is not coming to a close as we’d all hoped by now. Instead, we seem to be “stuck in the middle” for the foreseeable future.
So, how can we seniors keep ourselves safe and entertained at home? If you’re running out of Netflix movies to watch, how about enjoying some of our generation’s classic tunes performed with the help of today’s video conferencing (think “Zoom”) technologies?
By now you may have seen one or two of these fascinating and highly entertaining musical performances on YouTube or featured in a television news segment. But did you know that there is a virtual world of magical and often nostalgic music videos to be enjoyed on your computer or tablet? And many of them are our old favorites by the original artists.
We’ve put together a sampling of music videos we think you’ll enjoy. Admittedly our favorites are the ones by artists we first fell in love with many years ago!
If you’re reading this column on the Davis Enterprise website you can click directly from the links we’ve provided to the videos on YouTube. If you’re reading this in the print edition of the Enterprise and would like to enjoy these videos but don’t want to type all these links into your computer, we’re posting the videos on our website so that you can just click and start grooving: http://techoversixty.com/videos
We also invite you – Davis Enterprise subscribers – to add to our list with suggestions of your own. No doubt we’ve missed a lot of great ones because there are so many. We have a contact form on our website and we’ll post your suggestions as we receive them.
Here’s our “starter” list:
Rolling Stones, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” (from the “Together at Home” program)
Crowded House, “Don’t Dream It’s Over” and “Something So Strong”
The Doobie Brothers – “Listen to the Music” and “Black Water”
Sheryl Crow, “All I Wanna Do (Quarantine Edition)”
Journey –” Don’t Stop Believin'”
In addition to these high-tech productions, a number of legendary music stars have been releasing at-home video performances for us to enjoy during quarantine. Search on YouTube for recent uploads from Paul Simon, Cat Stevens (Yusuf), Elton John, Joan Baez, Neil Young and James Taylor.
If you’re not so much into rock nostalgia you can still enjoy beautiful music on YouTube. Here are a few amazing video-conferenced productions:
Colorado Symphony’s Digital Ode to Joy
“You’ll Never Walk Alone” Virtual Choir/Orchestra 15 Countries: 300 People
Aussie Pops Orchestra Phones It In – “What a Wonderful World”
We may be “stuck in the middle” for now, but as long as we are, we might as well enjoy a musical trip down memory lane, thanks to the wonders of modern technology.
Oh, and we couldn’t find a ‘quarantine’ video from Stealers Wheel. So instead, enjoy Jimmy Fallon and The Roots’ zoom-rendition of “Stuck in the Middle With You:”
Have fun — and don’t forget to go full-screen and listen with your headphones!
