Songs for Aging People

For the first time in possibly a couple of years I tuned in a radio station in my car today as I was running errands.  The songs were full of love or some had angst, mostly songs of young love and young angst.  I enjoyed listening to the lyrics.  Along the way I began to try and thing of songs for folks of my age.  It Was A Very Good Year came to mind.  I am sure that there must be many more as my generation is not the first to get old.

I am trying to think of what would be a subject matter worthy of song.  Old love is not like the songs of young love all full of emotion and passion.  The songs of butterfly kisses from daughters do not apply to my age, either.  So I will need to think on this for a while.  I know that spending time with my son and grandsons is wonderful.  Jeeping with my honey is pretty fantastic, too.

There has to be a happy song for old people.  A song about the joy of living and not always worrying about what folks think.  A song about cutting up with grandsons.   Songs celebrating the joys of a full life and watching the little child become a man and father.  Then seeing the man return to childhood joys sharing a carnival ride with his dad as well as his sons.

Yes, there are still plenty of things to sing about in old age.  Things that are not just about looking back.  I noticed on vacation that as I would look at the countryside or ocean the rear view mirror would obstruct my view.  Nope old folks songs need the past to simply be a framework on which is built the joys of now or the anticipation of the future.