Friday, November 5, 2010

The Original Cast Album Aquired


One of my favorite TV shows when I was 10 years old was Sesame Street. Last November I wrote 2 posts (on the 10th & 18th) about how much I enjoyed the show and Jim Henson's Muppets.

A year ago I finally managed to get an Ernie puppet just like the one I got for Christmas in 1970. It's the one of two pieces of Sesame Street memorabilia I've always wanted to own again.

Now after watching Ebay for a little over a year I finally found the 2nd. I now have a copy of the Sesame Street Original Cast record album. It really captures the essence of the early days on Sesame Street over 40 years ago. Although it's only audio it effectively conveys the relationships between the human cast and the puppets in addition to teaching some of the early curriculum.

The album (which I can now convert into a digital form thanks to the turntable I bought earlier this year) has songs on it that I haven't been able to find anywhere else. Really good songs by Joe Raposo and Jeff Moss such as: Somebody Come and Play, Nearly Missed, What Kids Are Called, and A Face, as far as I have found, are only available on this album.

Of course there are some of the show's early signature songs such as the show's theme song by the kids, "Rubber Duckie" by Ernie, "Bein Green" by Kermit the Frog, "One of These Things Is Not Like The Others" by Bob & Susan, and "People In Your Neighborhood" sung by Bob and with the help of the "Anything People".

Just like "Mary Martin and the Do-Re-Me Children Choir's "Songs From Mary Poppins", Lawrence Welk's "Merry Christmas From Our House to Your House", and the Chipmunks' Christmas Albums this Sesame Street Original Cast album is part of my personal time machine. All of these recordings take me back to those hours I spent in my bedroom listening to them on my Show N' Tell record player (see February 19, 2010 post).

I know I'm 50 years old and should have started acting like a grown up long ago. But remembering and enjoying things I did as a kid helps me keep tapped into the perspective I need to be able to make a connection with children enabling me to minister to children from a genuine perspective.

It also helps me to realize the all the blessings God has given me over the span of my entire live and not just the last few years.

Anyway I now have my copy of the Sesame Street Original Cast Album. It's music I have loved and now will be able to enjoy for years to come.

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