Sunday, July 9, 2017

Was I surprised, yeah, was I surprised, no not at all

After my son's six year old iPad finally broke I replaced it. The music that was on the old one did not transfer over for whatever reasons so I ended up doing the selection all over again.

I know some of what he listens to, but most of it was a guess and, I admit, projection on my end. So, yes, I loaded his iTunes with what I would have liked to listen to in 1978.

Who can say what a non-verbal, fourteen year old kid with autism will play? He likes acoustic numbers, or acoustic guitars with jangly electric. Nothing really loud, heavy or punk. He likes watching the early Beatles material on DVD. Yes, this type is very familiar to me.

He's been playing Walking in the Rain by The Ronettes on repeat. I caught him listening to it a few weeks back and he had a very sad look on his face. All I said was, "Yes, that's a beautiful song." This morning's playlist was the opening bars of Badfinger's Come and Get It, the opening riff of Tom Petty's American Girl and Maryanne With the Shaky Hands by The Who.

The huge surprise is his love of Pretty Ballerina, the other hit by the Left Banke. He will play this one over and over. I put a fan made video on for him and he watched it. I even found a copy of the album AND the 45 and played it for him in the backroom, where he sat and patiently listened as he rocked himself back to front while looking at the album cover.

I do not know what's happening in his head, but I am honored that he likes some of the music I do. We are thrilled that he is listening to music that is more grown up. He also does not come up to me when I am playing guitar anymore, the times he stopped me from playing by putting his hand on the strings with a look that said, "Stop Dad." Maybe he likes my rendition of Eight Days A Week on the Rickenbacker?

2 comments:

mike said...

I'm glad you have this music connection with him. Music is powerful stuff.

Someone Said said...

It really is powerful. He's always been interested. His singing at 4AM proves that. Hard to know his instrument though, vocals but he so lacks focus.