Johnny Horton & The Sound Of Music

This past weekend I drove seven hours to Northern Virginia and, a few days later, I drove home again. On both legs of the trip I listened to my music library, which contains a lot of 1970s hits from when I was in high school and 1980s hits when I was a single journalist and newlywed. Like you, I can hear a song and two things happen - I go back to a specific time in my life and I remember something about that time.

Music defines us in a lot of ways.

Several readers have commented about enjoying the times when I listed a song's lyrics within the book. These readers have said the lyrics remind them of the time the book was written, but that the lyrics also call up memories from their childhood or young adulthood.

We were not a musical family, but music was important to us. We listened to AM pop radio - as it was - during the 1960s as we made the 20-mile round trip to our hometown of Cumming. I was not yet a teenager when I received that tape recorder for Christmas and also received some pop cassette tapes to play with it. Paul McCartney was one of my early favorites. Then, I was introduced to Grand Funk Railroad and never looked back. But, it's funny: I also had a Carpenters cassette and - forgive me - but I still enjoy listening to the late Karen Carpenter sing.

My Granny would walk through her house singing hymns of faith, and certainly music was a part of our faith life through our local church. I was in choir until I graduated high school.

Because I was born during the great television explosion of the 1960s, we were exposed to a lot of variety shows and sitcoms with big theme songs. In the book, I give a nod to those by listing more than a few of the lyrics from Petticoat Junction. I actually know the lyrics to Bonanza even though the show's musical intro never included them.

When we went camping with other families, we children went to sleep listening to our dads sing around the campfire. (That's all I'll say about that).

Music was everywhere.

That's why it was no strange thing when my daddy used a song to help me remember two state capitals: Johnny Horton's The Battle of New Orleans. (Chapter 21 - The Capitals Test) And, what a great song. I've heard from so many people who have said, "I sing that song all the time" or "I've taught my children that song." It's a great, fun song.

And, driving up I-77 last weekend to Northern Virginia, Horton's song came through my radio during my music shuffle. And, I could just hear my Daddy sing it. I would lie if I told you I didn't cry riding up the road.