The Fourth of July.
For some reason, this day has always seemed to be the epitome of the musical holiday. Yeah, you have the Christmas Carols and a few Thanksgiving songs. New Years Eve was always a time for Guy Lombardo and Auld Lang Syne or Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.
But the Fourth of July for me conjures up the sight of the small town band gazebo with the band of locals playing the marches of John Philip Souza or the Boston Pops on the Esplanade or the musical (and movie) 1776.
And then there’s Willie Nelson’s many Fourth of July Picnic/Concerts over the years. In fact, it was because of Willie’s first couple of picnics that some friends and I decided to have our own picnic/concert one year. (Note: I was just along to enjoy the ride). We gathered together on the Fourth for a full day of beer and burgers and music w-a-y out in the country. The musicians jammed on the front porch, all the folks who had dogs let them run free, the kegs in the yard, the grills going all day, and the night was ended by some ’special’ chocolate chip cookies made from scratch.
Good times, good memories.
And just because I can:
5 Comments
Spotlight
Support this site!
Subscribe to the newsletter
Advertise on Firedoglake
Send
us your tips
Make us your homepage
About The Seminal
Advanced search
Thanks for the holiday music!
And Millineryman posted this old timey classic in Pull Up a Chair
Nice post – I agree – well, second after Christmas for music. Never was in a small town (at least while old enough to remember), but fireworks displays always seem to be accompanied by music.
And yes, my very favorite memories of the Fourth come from several years of spending the day and evening at the Esplanade Park, waiting for the Pops concert and the finale with howitzers over the Charles.
Even if I lived there, I fear, I would not be going anymore – too old and stiff to hang out all day waiting. But while I could – and I lived close enough to walk home or take the streetcar, not have to find a place to park a car and brave the traffic going home – it was absolutely fabulous.
Today i will be on the patio, except while the Pops is on (if I can find it on tv).
We did our concert this morning at 10:00 AM.
The program:
National Anthem (arr. Robert Russell Bennett)
America, the Beautiful (arr. Carmen Dragon)
George Washington Bicentennial March (John Philip Sousa)
American Civil War Fantasy (Jerry Bilik)
George M Cohan Medley (Cohan, Two by Fours Tuba Quartet)
Root Beer Barrel Polka (Two by Fours)
Black Horse Troop March (Sousa)
Yankee Doodle (arr Morton Gould)
On the Quarterdeck March (Alford)
Stars and Bars Concert March (Robert Jager)
We had good crowd out at the band shell.
oo nice, must have been a fun concert.