Leslie Karst

A Musical Journey Through Life

One of the first songs I remember listening to as a child is “Put Another Nickel In…Music, Music, Music” (aka “The Nickelodeon Song”), released by Teresa Brewer in 1950. From there, I moved on to “Teddy Bear’s Picnic” and “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” (whose lyrics now seem embarrassingly creepy, I must say).

Then, once the Beatles arrived in America and performed on the Ed Sullivan Show, I become completely smitten and spent the next six years until their break-up obsessed with all things Fab Four. (Though I did listen to other British Invasion groups, as well as Bob Dylan and the Mamas and Papas.)

My high school years were eclectic, musically, as it was during this time—inspired by performing their works in my school’s orchestra—that I started listening to “classical” music such as Beethoven, Dvořák, and Rimsky-Korsakov. But at the same time, I was becoming increasingly interested in “progressive rock”—bands such as Genesis, Yes, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer.

College expanded my listening taste, as I was introduced to new (to me, at least) music, including Joni Mitchell, Fairport Convention, and King Crimson.

And then came the years right after college. It was when I was living in a household with a bunch of friends who’d lived in the dorms with me, that I heard a brand new album by this scrawny guy with big geeky glasses who had a funny name: Elvis Costello.

For the first time since 1964 I was once again absolutely smitten. Here was a completely new sound which swept away the excesses of the over-produced Disco era, and relished in a simple, aggressive beat, with clever and snarky lyrics. Perfect.

I immersed myself in this frenetic new music, buying records, going to concerts, and even starting my own New Wave band. Those were exciting times—some of the best years of my life.

my brother and me performing with our band, Enigma

But then law school happened, and after that my years as an attorney. I didn’t listen to music as much as I used to, and when I did, I found myself drawn to things like jazz and opera. And if I did pull out an old Kinks or Ramones disc, I’d often grow quickly bored. The old songs—which at one time had made my hair stand on end and my feet ache to get up and dance—just didn’t have the same effect on me that they once did.

cocktail hour music with Ziggy

Yes, I do still occasionally listen to the Beatles and Elvis Costello—and even the Kinks and Ramones—but when cocktail hour rolls around, I’m far more likely to cue up some Stan Getz or Ella Fitzgerald, or perhaps Debussy or Puccini, than the old rock ’n roll that used to soothe my soul.

Does this mean I’m getting old?

Readers: Have your musical tastes changed over the years, or do you still listen to the same artists you loved back in your teens and twenties?

30 thoughts on “A Musical Journey Through Life”

  2. My musical taste have definitely changed. I use to listen to old-school rap or as I call it, clean rap, don’t listen to rap now. I still do enjoy listening to Madonna (her old stuff) and Michael Jackson,

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  3. You certainly have a wide scope of musical taste. I do also. I grew up listening to all the same music you did, and loved it all. Now you never know what kind of music you will hear at my house or in my car. I love it all from Bluegrass to Bach, Bagpipes to Native American Flutes. It all soothes my soul. Once a month I sing with the Old Sturbridge Village Singers. We sing music that was heard in the 1830’s in New England. OSV is a local living history museum depicting life in the 19th century New England. It is fun to dress up in costume and go back in time for a few hours, and has broadened my musical taste even more.

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    1. Hey, variety is the spice of life! And getting to sing the music makes it even that more special. One of the most amazing things I ever did was sing the Bach B minor Mass with my local community chorus–amazing!

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  4. My musical tastes, oh how they’ve changed. Through high school, I was all about classic rock; The Who, The Doors, Neil Young. During my college days, I gravitated to alternative; REM, 10,000 Maniacs, Talking Heads. To this day, I’m still finding new artists and artists who are new to me. Jason Mraz, Michael Franti & Spearhead, and Samantha Fish are a few who are in heavy rotation these days.

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  5. My elementary school jams were Donny Osmond, and the Jackson Five. Then came Top Forty radio. I was into the deejays, as well as, the music. Rick Dees (Disco Duck) was in Memphis before he gained national attention and RKO moved him to Los Angeles. I would call in to local deejays to request songs and win prizes!
    And there was always Motown, which is still in heavy rotation on my playlists.

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    2. I won tickets to an Eagles concert when I was probably a sophomore in high school. I thought it COMPLETELY unfair my mother wouldn’t let newly licensed me drive from Co Spgs to Denver—at night—to attend. Instead she sold my tickets to a guy she worked with. The $20 I got (I know, right??) was small consolation. Mothers. Pfft.

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      1. Sorry your mom was a buzzkill, Becky! My parents never would have let me drive that far as a teen either. My biggest radio win was a day at the mall that included a haircut at the mall salon, movie theater tickets, restaurant gift certificate, and gift certificates for merchandise at two or three stores ( I think I bought make-up.) Queen for a day!

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  7. There’s not much music I don’t listen to. Hubs and I gave my kids a wide and deep playlist for their lives. I remember when my son was in high school he pulled out my vinyl and started playing all my old albums. So weird to be working at my desk on the 2nd floor and hear the dulcet tones of my old Boston album wafting up from the basement! My kids continue to repay me by introducing me to new artists I never would have found on my own—Dia Frampton, Owl City, the Mountain Goats, Mika, and Me First and the Gimme Gimmes spring to mind.

    Every time I see the picture of your band I wish I could have seen you play live, Leslie! So much fun!

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    1. A boy I had a crush on in junior high asked me to a Grateful Dead concert at the Santa Monica Civic, but my mom wouldn’t let me go since I’d be back after midnight. That tour ended up being the Live Dead album. Sigh…

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  8. I listened to the current day music until I grew up (physically, not mentally).
    When I because of age, I started listening to only
    real R&R,
    swing,
    jazz,
    music from the 40s to early 60s
    (early motown is the newest music I listen to)

    and I haven’t changed in almost 40 years.
    How’s that for an answer?

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  9. My musical tastes have expanded over the years. I started off with 50s/60s music and then have branched into jazz, country, and more. Oftentimes, it’s the people around who influence me the most (my parents, teachers, friends, and now my kids!).

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  10. Yes. Kidding! Honestly, my musical tastes haven’t changed much because I have the taste of a tween. I LOVE pop music. Mostly, because I love to dance. But I also adore big band music and can still sing show tunes from Broadway shows I saw as a kid. Want someone to sing the entire soundtrack of Pippin to you? Follies? A Little Night Music? I’m your gal. And I do love the Kinks. I saw them in concert once. Fantastic.

    BTW, I think the fact that your whole family is musical is amazing. I envy you all that talent. I can sing – sometimes well, sometimes not – but that’s it.

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  11. Sorry I’m a little late chiming in here–spent the day on the road. With lovely storms. What was on my Sirius channel? Well, I like all kinds of music, but to either pep me up or calm me down–or show up on my writing soundtrack– it’s New Wave all the way. Blondie, The Smiths, The Cure, New Order, Echo & the Bunnymen, etc. Hasn’t changed. Never will.

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  12. This is great, Leslie! (And your mention of prog rock reminds me of the first time I’d heard the term, and I thought the person was saying Prague rock–to which I answered, “Oh, I’d love to hear rock from the Czech Republic!” OY.)

    My musical taste has remained the same over the years. I’m still a Zep Head and also love all manner of classic rock!

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  13. I grew up in a household full of music. My parents danced to the Big Bands, so I was listening to those records (78s) during my early informative years. Then the 50s (somewhat) and 60s (my teen years) music was what it was all about. My cousins and I got to go see the Beatles in Houston on their first American tour. Wow was it great. Growing up where my father was the manager of theatres in our hometown, I always listened to soundtracks and knew all of the words to “West Side Story” (and still do as I saw it 17 times at one of his theatres every afternoon in 7th grade). Daddy bought albums all of the time, so music of all kinds was always there–Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians, and so on up through Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. TO this day, I love it all but in the last thirty years, I fell in love with Country Western. Once in a while a new song comes along that I love like “Unwell” by Matchbox 20, “I Say No, No, No” by Amy Winehouse or “Old Town Road” by Lil Naz X. They use great songs in movies and TV commercials. Never got into Rap.

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