I’ve always said music should make you laugh, make you cry or make you think

“I’ve always said music should make you laugh, make you cry or make you think” - Kenny Rogers

I was on my way home from City Hall one day last week, giving thought to several city-related items when a song from the 1960s came on the radio, and I found myself singing along. For several brief moments, I let go of my concerns and went back mentally to an earlier time when my life perspectives were much different from today. I don’t believe I am unique when I say that music is a comforting influence in our lives; it not only gives us a chance to mentally revisit our past, it can influence our emotions and thought processes. While I have always believed in the power of words, words set to music can have a stronger impact on how we feel or how we respond to changes in our lives.

While I am a child of the 50s and 60s, I enjoy a broad range of music from classical music to Broadway musicals and music from the 1970s to the present day. If I want to relax, you might find me listening to Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” or when I am in a more active mood, you might find me singing along to “Sweet Caroline,” or some jazz piece by Louis Armstrong. I don’t believe that any of you will deny the impact of music on your thoughts; it reaches down and touches our souls, and as Rogers says, it “…should make you laugh, make you cry, or make you think.”

Find some special time in your special place, away from the problems of the world, and let your favorite music genre take you “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” where “trouble melts like lemon drops,” and you can “wake up where the clouds are far behind me.” Take some time out of your busy day to experience the impact that music has on each of us, and let it touch your soul.