First radio thread meets tight playlist thread

[mwaters@wesleyan.edu (Martin J. Waters)]

>Kevin Hilley wrote:
>I thought it might be interesting to see what was the very first record
>the readers of this forum bought, if they remember. I remember it
>clearly. 10 year old Kevin went to the store and picked up his 45 of
>"Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" by the 5th Dimension. Loved that song and
>still get great memories whenever I hear it. How 'bout you guys?
>
        OK, so I'm going to admit that the first record I bought, I
believe, was "Abilene" by George Hamilton IV. I think the second was "I'm
So Lonesome I Could Cry," by B.J. Thomas (1963, before he had had any
previous crossover hits, to the extent this was a hit). And, no I did not
go on to become a country music fan. And, no, not every 45 I ever bought
was as obscure as those (although I still like the B.J. Thomas. It was a
remake of someone, maybe Hank Williams?). I think my next record was
"String Along" by Rick Nelson, not one of his biggest, either. But good.
And, in case any of these are collector's items, I still have them and I'm
taking bids <g>.
        And speaking of songs you don't hear on the radio because of tight
play lists, and Kevin and the 5th Dimension, this weekend I heard one of
their songs that's great but you never hear it: Do What You Wanna Do. A
true piece of the '60s ethos ("do what you wanna, wanna do; with whoever
you wanna, wanna do it with . . .). And just like a regular civilian radio
listener, I cannot now remember which Boston / Providence market FM station
to pat on the back for having played it.

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