(NEWSFLASH!!! Check out ‘The Rear View’ column <on left, blue bar> Marilee Williams is hysterical.)

I have just gotten wind about a great nostalgic musical on Broadway, The Marvelous Wonderettes (yeah, I know it’s a long way away for some of you, but you can buy the CD). I love this music. Mr. Sandman, Lipstick on Your Collar, Lollypop. One thing you can say about the music of the 50s is that it was upbeat. Even the songs about the blues had harmony and refrains I can still remember.

In fact, I sang Lipstick on Your Collar with my friend Tina in our fourth grade “Show and Tell”. We had practiced every single day for hours the summer before until her mother banished us to the backyard. I don’t know why parents had trouble with repetition and budding genius back then, hmmm? I was in one more “rock and roll” group before giving up my musical career–the final group being the “Trangressors” with Dave and Steve. Then I was onto folk music…rowing that boat ashore, hanging my head down and waiting for Stuball to come in first.

Anyway, Mrs. Mozoleski, our fourth grade teacher was not amused. How can you resist? We had all the dance moves down in unison. Geez, we even choreographed the sucker ourselves. I think I had a note go home to my mother that elaborated on the inappropriate nature of the song. Hey, I had older sisters who were dating and making-out in front of the house. I’d been around (ok, around the bushes spying).  But I wanted to be all grown up and wailing on some guy about the wrong shade lipstick…”then I noticed yours was red, mine was baby pink”.

So if you are in the mood for ‘Holidays in the Big Apple’, go to the website: www.marvelouswonderettes.com and buy enough tickets for the whole family. I have seen the trailers and the Youtube video and I am psyched about the idea of seeing this musical.

The reason I love this musical is it is fun. It is upbeat. It is innocent. It includes the audience and it makes you feel good. In the ‘daze’ of war and recession I don’t think it would kill ya to lighten up for a few hours and let your heart sing. Studies show that music is held in the right brain. The right brain is your creative side. More time in your right brain means more time for your brain to problem solve your  sit-chi-a-shun (as in, “what a revolting development this is”). Maybe we should send all of Congress to see this. And as a pre-Holiday bonus… go to our FREE STUFF catalog where we will post coupons for discount tickets for The Marvelous Wonderettes.

These are sing-out-loud in your car songs and you deserve to be happy at least in traffic. If you can’t find your 45s, or a record player, or those stupid little yellow plastic whirly-gigs that go in the middle of the 45s…does anyone even know the name of those gizmos? I say, get this re-make of the 50s music on your i-pod, phone, CD and let your heart sing for all its worth. Honestly, the Marvelous Wonderettes do more than justice to these old tunes, they offer intricate harmonies, fresh comical interpretations and all with the energy I hope I had when I was in High School and can only reminisce about now.

And yes, I know this is like listening to your parents with their Benny Goodman records scratching along on Sunday afternoons on the Victrola. In fact, Benny Goodman is sounding pretty good to me these days too.

Bookmark this: