THE SONGTRACK OF OUR HIGH SCHOOL YEARS (1969 – 1972) They were the glory days for radio: AM (e.g., Akron’s WIXY 1260 and Windsor’s CKLW, the Big 8) and later FM (e.g., Cleveland’s WMMS). It was before stations targeted specific genres and before apps (like Pandora) and industry marketing decisions further narrowed music playlists. It was also before MTV drained most of the imagination out of radio. We had it all in high school with one turn of the dial: pop, folk, bubblegum, rock, progressive rock, heavy metal, blues, funk, R&B/soul, gospel, and country were in the Top 40 countdown every week. Motown was featured on CKLW including ballads that gave voice to our bewilderment with the adult world (e.g., The Temptations’ Ball of confusion). Songs on WIXY could make us smile (e.g., Three Dog Night’s Joy to the world), which provided a crucial antidote to the drudgery of homework in our sequestered corner of northeastern Ohio. Other songs described ideal but distant locales, regaining past loves and, importantly, societal hypocrisy (i.e., the generation gap). Radio was imagination-provoking, educational and a diverse oasis of counsel for Copley High coming-of-age teens.
What came over our airwaves wasn’t available in our classrooms. Classrooms rarely inspired imagination or allowed alternative views. School is not about creating vision or purpose. It’s about teaching facts. Discovering your place in life has little to do with following a high school curriculum or “being true to your school.” It requires imagining your future with a view to answering the crucial question: Who are you? (The Who). Einstein said that “… [useful] education is what remains after one has forgotten what one learns in school.” Songs that shaped the soundtrack to our school years remain.
As Springsteen said in No surrender: “Well we busted out of class, had to get away from those fools. We learned more from a three-minute record than we ever did in school.” Some songs still immediately connect us to high school friends and social situations that were more meaningful than classes. Navigating the path from the wonder of childhood through the cruel realities of adolescence is hard, but radio tunes were full of reassurance and helped handle the disillusionment with the world that arrived with maturity. The educational system was stuck in the conformity and traditions of the 50’s but not our music. Cruising Skyway with car radios blasting out defiant anthems was our attempt to escape the trap — or at least imagine we could. Tunes transported us in space and time while memorable melodies created moments of hope.
I recall 3-minute lessons in imagining other realities from Lobo singing about Me and you and a dog named Boo taking a cross country trip (60’s Akron was car culture central) to “big LA.” Lobo romanticized the open road where you can “love being a free man.” Nature’s way by Spirit enlightened us about a coming climate crisis. We learned from “a child of God” how to free our souls by getting “back to the garden” (Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock). The Staple Singers announced a hopeful future where “ain’t nobody crying, ain’t nobody worried, ain’t no smiling faces lying to the races” with a gospel chorus hook promising I’ll take you there. In What’s going on, Marvin Gaye called out police brutality and empowered us to trust in our own choices by singing “Who are they to judge us, just because our hair is long?” Edwin Starr’s War sermonized that there was “absolutely nothing’” good about the Vietnam War which felt very true but something that no educators in our lecture rooms said aloud. We were schooled about class privilege by Creedence’s Fortunate son that criticized how ‘silver spoons’ had avoided the draft - a draft we feared and fervently hoped that Nixon’s government would decide, as Lennon repeated in his chorus, to Give peace a chance. Alarmingly, CSN&Y’s refrain taught us about the fragility of life for students, about our age, who were merely walking to class in “[four dead in] Ohio.” By the time of high school graduation, most of us were ecstatic for “no more pencils, no more books, no more teacher’s dirty looks” (Alice Cooper’s School’s out).
Einstein said: “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” The landscape of radio’s inspiration exploded in Oct ‘71 when WMMS embraced album-oriented radio: freeform formats created by young, hip DJs. It was well-timed for teens hungry for, as David Bowie said, Changes. The Buzzard (100.7) had Kid Leo, Matt the Cat, Billy Bass & David Spero broadcasting authentic takes on topics that mattered between playing songs that mattered. Suddenly, every song became a ‘message’ song. My imagination, like the Cuyahoga, caught fire. Fifty years later I can still Listen to the music and enjoy the feeling (like the Temptations tutored us with harmony and rhythm) — “of just my imagination running away with me.”
https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/schools-out/pl.u-pMylgxjHxK7oZL.....…………….Tonight’s Big 96 playlist on APPLE https://open.spotify.com/playlist/727klXGX4AWkF3z9YaYmv9 ......................... Tonight’s Big 96 playlist on SPOTIFY
The playlist has 32 songs from each grade. If your faves aren’t here or you’d like to time travel more, the Copley High Class of 1972 Facebook page (or copleyhs1972.com) has links to 3 more playlists (one/school year) with 258 more tunes.
American pie – DON McCLEAN — Feb72
American woman – THE GUESS WHO — May70
Mother and child reunion – PAUL SIMON — Apr72
25 or 6 to 4 — CHICAGO — Sep70
No time – THE GUESS WHO — Feb70
Indian reservation – PAUL REVERE — Jul71
Smiling faces – THE UNDISPUTED TRUTH — Sep71
Suspicious minds – ELVIS PRESLEY — Oct69
Temptation eyes – THE GRASS ROOTS — Apr71
Do you know what I mean? — LEE MICHAELS — Oct71
Venus – SHOCKING BLUE — Mar70
Sweet Caroline — NEIL DIAMOND — Sep69
Brandy – LOOKING GLASS — May72
Domino – VAN MORRISON — Jan71
Lola – THE KINKS — Oct70
Baba O’Riley — THE WHO – Nov71
Layla – DEREK & THE DOMINOS — Sep71
Won’t get fooled again — THE WHO – Sep71
Sunshine – JONATHAN EDWARDS — Jan72
Riders on the storm – THE DOORS — Sep71
Take me home, country roads – JOHN DENVER— Aug71
Signs – FIVE MAN ELECTRICAL BAND — Aug71
Don’t mess around with Jim – JIM CROCE — Jun72
Me and Bobby McGee – JANIS JOPLIN — Mar71
Me and you and a dog named Boo – LOBO — May71
Love theme from The Godfather - NINO ROTA—May72
Me and Julio down by the schoolyard –
PAUL SIMON — May72
Old man — NEIL YOUNG — Jun72
Take it easy – EAGLES — Jun72
It don’t come easy – RINGO STARR — Jun71
Another day – PAUL McCARTNEY – May71
Someday we’ll be together – THE SUPREMES — Dec69
Come together — THE BEATLES — Sep69
Everybody’s talking – NILSSON — Oct69
Imagine – JOHN LENNON — Nov71
My sweet Lord – GEORGE HARRISON — Jan71
Lay, lady, lay — BOB DYLAN — Sep69
Fire and rain — JAMES TAYLOR — Nov70
Anticipation – CARLY SIMON — Feb72
I second that emotion – THE SUPREMES — Oct69
It’s too late – CAROLE KING — Feb71
Your song – ELTON JOHN — Feb71
A horse with no name – AMERICA — Apr72
Truckin’ – THE GRATEFUL DEAD — Jun71
Big yellow taxi — JONI MITCHELL — Jul70
Woodstock – CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG - May70
Doctor my eyes – JACKSON BROWNE — May72
The tears of a clown — SMOKEY ROBINSON — Dec70
Moonshadow – CAT STEVENS — Aug71
Moondance– VAN MORRISON — Jan70
Celebrate – THREE DOG NIGHT — Mar70
Dance to the music - SLY & THE FAMILY STONE – Sep69
Joy to the world — THREE DOG NIGHT — Apr71
Dancing in the moonlight – KING HARVEST — May72
Mama told me not to come - THREE DOG NIGHT - Jul70
Tiny dancer – ELTON JOHN — Apr71
ABC – JACKSON 5 — May70
I want you back – JACKSON 5 — Jan70
Get back — THE BEATLES — Sep69
Lean on me – BILL WITHERS — Jun72
Proud Mary – IKE & TINA TURNER — Mar71
Cecilia – SIMON & GARFUNKEL — May70
Theme from Shaft – ISAAC HAYES — Nov71
If you really love me — STEVIE WONDER — Oct71
I’ll never fall in love again – DIONNE WARWICK— Jan70 I think I love you – THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY — Nov70
Whole lotta love – LED ZEPPELIN — Jan70
Signed, sealed, delivered — STEVIE WONDER — Aug70
Ball of confusion — THE TEMPTATIONS — Jun70
Rocket man – ELTON JOHN — Mar72
Spirit in the sky — NORMAN GREENBAUM — Apr70
I’ll take you there – THE STAPLE SINGERS — Jun72
Just my imagination – THE TEMPTATIONS — Apr71
Walk away – JAMES GANG - Jul71
Closer to home (I’m your captain) —
GRAND FUNK RAILROAD — Oct70
Gimme shelter – THE ROLLING STONES — Dec69
Fortunate son – CREEDENCE CLEARWATER (CCR)- Dec69
Have you ever seen the rain? – CCR — Mar71
Who’ll stop the rain? – CCR — Mar70
Smoke on the water – DEEP PURPLE – May72
Black magic woman — SANTANA — Jan71
Honky tonk women — THE ROLLING STONES – Sep69
Maggie May — ROD STEWART — Sep71
Polk salad Annie – TONY JOE WHITE — Oct69
Brown sugar — THE ROLLING STONES — May71
The story in your eyes – MOODY BLUES — Nov71
Hold your head up – ARGENT — Jun72
All right now – FREE — Sep70
Feeling alright – JOE COCKER — Sep69
Bang a gong – T REX — Feb72
No matter what – BADFINGER – Sep71
Stay with me – THE FACES — Feb72
Oye como va — SANTANA — Mar71
Band of gold – FREDA PAYNE — Jul70
Aqualung – JETHRO TULL — Jun71
Stairway to heaven – LED ZEPPELIN — Dec71