Saturday, May 15: dreamweavers

“Love in a spiritual sense may mean seduction to a higher level”

The joy of these pieces is that I just go with what the Birthday Book’s day’s theme tells me—I try not to think too hard or edit too much. I write them exactly how I teach my students not to: one draft and submit.

Not to brag, but I get to do that. I am a better writer than most of them.

Of course, with this title, only one thing comes to mind: Gary Wright’s 1975 classic (which I am currently listening to on my 2020 Air Pods), “Dreamweaver.” It features that fabulous 70s stereophonic effect of flowing sonically between the right and left channels, flossing my brain with the astral travel, synthetic piano, and funky bass lines that orchestrated countless Boomer bell-bottomed romances and formed every GenX-er’s idea of a cool just beyond reach.

I’ve written about my love of 70s funky smooth AM gold pop rock before—of how my memories of it live in the primal region of my brain generally reserved for smell. David Gates, Andrew Gold, Stephen Bishop, and Al Stewart are woven so deeply into my unconscious mind that a couple of years ago I heard Boy George cover “Everything I Own” by Bread, and I think I fell in love with him.

It’s Saturday, and I still have grading to do and taxes to finish (ok, start). But I really want to get out my guitar, look up the (simplified) chords to “Year of the Cat” and sing along until someone is charmed into joining in or throws a shoe at me.