Lately, when we have friends over for dinner or cocktails, our entertainment choices occasionally make our adult kids wince. Think YouTube videos.
Ironically, the kids see this primitive sharing as old school. They have a point—I know we sound ridiculous yelling over each other, “Oh! Have you seen the one with the howling dog quieting the crying baby?!” But after a stressful week, we need some mindless entertainment. You can, though, make it less mindless and more meaningful when starting in on the music videos.
A cool camaraderie begins with friends asking, “Do you know this band?” With one view you might discover a new band you love. In the olden days, you didn’t have the visual, you just had the audio (unless you were lucky enough to go to a concert).
As holiday time approaches, my suggestion for a fun family gig is to pull up YouTube on your big-screen TV and start sharing your favorite music with each other. There’s video of almost everything. Let your kids call out a band they love, and watch the video. Your turn. Call out a vintage band you grew up on, search for your favorite song, watch the video. A music discovery session is now in order. Happy Listening.
Some great (music) videos to share:
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals – “The Lion the Beast the Beat”
Mumford & Sons – “I Will Wait” at Red Rocks
Cat Stevens – “Where Do the Children Play” live
Led Zeppelin – “Going to California”
Alt-J – Live Concert
Tom Odell – “Can’t Explain”
Jake Bugg – “Lightening Bolt”
Andrew Belle – “Pieces”
Pat McKillen – “Break the Silence”
November shows not to miss:
- November 2: Lee Fields & the Expressions at Lincoln Hall (date night R&B)
- November 2: Cowboy Junkies at SPACE (take your rocker guy)
- November 3: Chuck Prophet at SPACE (cap the weekend)
- November 9: Valslist House Concert Heather Maloney (email val@valslist.com)
- November 12-14: Anoushka Shankar at City Winery (chill world music – sitar/raja)
- November 12: Brendan James & Tony Lucca at Lincoln Hall (grab friends and go)
- November 15: Lady Antebellum at Allstate Arena (take your teens)
- November 21: Willy Porter at SPACE (super fun show)
