That’s Entertainment!
July 13, 2010 (Tuesday)
I have recorded Lawrence Welk programs in the past and recently have had an urge to create a file on these recordings so that I can know which songs have been recorded and how to locate them. This has made necessary my listening to the recordings. As I have listened, I have gained a new appreciation for the very high quality of performance and the quality of the music that he and his musicians presented to the public for so many years.
I noticed that each of the programs now being shown on PBS has about 19 songs. Now think about that for a moment. The band members and singers had to learn the new music program, complete with new arrangements, fresh costumes, exact choreography, and long hours of hard work in rehearsals to present a brand new, fresh program every week. It’s rather amazing, really.
Mister Welk had a great reputation as a family man, a person of excellent character and high ideals, along with a strong streak of faith in God and love of country. As such, he and others like him have been ridiculed by the rock and roll generations. But they played real music and sang real songs. Their values were morally sound and they were not ashamed of who they were. We need more of that today, and many of us really miss it.
I love all kinds of music, and some of the songs I like better than others. It would probably surprise some of my younger family members and friends to know how much I, at 78, like some of the music they consider their own. There are very few things I don’t enjoy to some extent. But I remember how everyone used to talk about what they had seen on the black and white screen when the Lawrence Welk Show had appeared, back in the 1950’s. I’m glad we can still see the shows today.
So, let me throw in a plug for “The Lawrence Welk Show,” still shown weekly on PBS. Try it, you’ll like it. If you’re my age, you’ll love it.