saturday 9

For You

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In this song, Rick Nelson tells us he'd give his girl the stars from sky or a string of pearls. Have you more recently given or received a gift? What was it? I gifted a "blind date with a book" gift to my work bestie for her birthday.

2) By the time this record was released, Rick was already a show business veteran. He had been a regular on his family's sitcom, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, since it began airing on radio when he was just 8. Most of us weren't child performers but many of us had chores around the house. When you were young, did your parents give you an allowance? $3 per week

3) The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet moved to TV, where fans saw Rick grow into a teen who drove a 1932 Roadster. The car really belonged to Tony La Masa, who collected classic cars and rented them out to TV and movie producers. Have you ever earned or raised money with your hobby? no

4) Paul McCartney has called Rick Nelson an "underrated singer who could really carry a song" and said Rick was one of his influences. Who do you believe you have influenced, professionally or personally? as a high school teacher, I'll say I've influenced over a thousand kids

5)  This week's song was already an oldie by the time Rick performed it. "For You" was recorded the first time by Casa Loma Orchestra in 1933. In those days, most records were 78 rpm discs, thick and usually only able to hold 3 to 5 minutes of sound per side. Most record companies stopped producing them in the 1950s. Have you ever seen a "78?" yes, we had quite a record collection as a family

 

6) The lyrics to "For You" were written by Al Dubin. After Al left college he supported himself as a singing waiter. That's really two jobs in one. Which would you do better at: singer or server? server

 

7) The music was written by Joe Burke, whose last hit song was "Rambling Rose," recorded in 1948 by Perry Como. Have you ever heard of Perry Como? oh--yes!  "Catch a Falling Star" was very, very popular in my elementary music classes

8) In 1963, when Ricky's recording was on the charts, the Zip Code was introduced. How many different Zips have you lived in? 3

 

9) Random question: When you were in high school, were you taller or shorter than your classmates? Or were you the average height? I have been the same height since I was in middle school, so I've gone from being one of the tallest to being one of the average (I'm 5'5")