Saturday 9: Rollin' Stone

Saturday 9: Rollin' Stone (1958)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) The title comes from the proverb, "a rolling stone gathers no moss." What do you suppose that proverb is trying to teach us?  Maybe that we should make the most of each moment in life so we don't end up with a lot of regrets or "should haves" in our lives? I really don't know.

 

2) The lyrics warn us not to be lazy stay-at-homes but to go out and learn about the world around us. Tell us about a place you haven't visited yet but would like to.  I don't know where to start. I haven't been that many places and would love to travel to just about anywhere.

 

3) Karen and Cubby were Mouseketeers on the original Mickey Mouse Club, a TV show which ran from 1955 to 1959. Then, from 1962 to 1967, local TV stations reran it in syndication. In 1989, there was a Mickey Mouse Club reboot, which launched the careers of Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilara. So The Mickey Mouse Club has entertained generations of kids. What shows did you enjoy as a child?  Captain Kangaroo, The Brady Bunch, Sesame Street, Scooby-Doo, and Looney Tunes.

 

4) Karen was Karen Pendleton, among the youngest of the original Mousketeers. Producers discovered her at a local dancing school. Have you ever taken dance lessons?  Not officially. We had to learn how to polka, square dance, and disco dance in my junior high gym class.

5) When The Mickey Mouse Club ended, Karen left show business. She went to public school, graduated, got married, and had a daughter. When she was in her 30s, she was involved in a car accident that left her paralyzed from the waist down. Still, she went back to college, earning first her Bachelor's and then Master's degrees in psychology. Have you considered continuing your education? What subject would you pursue?  I used to think about it, but don't really these days. I don't know what I'd want to study now.

 

6) Cubby is Cubby O'Brien, a drum prodigy who began playing professionally when he was just 8 years old. After the Mickey Mouse Club he went on to The Lawerence Welk Show. As he entered his teens, he prioritized school over TV. He later returned to television as musician on The Carol Burnett Show. He also performed in concert behind The Carpenters. Do you have a favorite Carpenters song?  No, not really. They weren't a group I really listened to.

 

7) In 1958, when kids were watching the original Mickey Mouse Club during the day, adults were watching Westerns. The most popular TV shows of that year included Gunsmoke, Wagon Train and The Rifleman. Have you ever fantasized about life as a cowboy/cowgirl?  When I was a kid I sure did! I was a real horse fanatic growing up and dreamed of riding the range.

 

8) Also in 1958, Dwight Eisenhower became the first President to appear on color TV. Not many Americans saw him in color, though. It wasn't until 1972 that color TVs outsold black-and-white sets. Did you ever own a black-and-white TV?  I think my parents got our first color TV just around that 1972 mark. It was one of those big consoles of the 70's...a major piece of furniture.

 

9) Random question -- Did you pass your driver's license test on the first try?  I did.

Thank you, Sam, for the music and questions!

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