Family Memory (XV): House of the Rising Sun

Somewhere around here in our basement is a 45rpm record, a single by a British group called The Animals called “House of the Rising Sun” released in 1964. A shock, given the post title, I know. The catch is, this is really about a different 45 that has disappeared, Sakamoto Kyu’s “Sukiyaki” which was released a year before The Animals’ song (1963 for the math-challenged).

The two 45s are important because they are the first two records of any sort my mom purchased for herself. It’s weird to think she had to wait until she was seventeen to purchase a single 45, certainly now in the 21st century when you can purchase songs in an instant for less than a pop bottle or you can just bring the song up online and listen to it for free almost instantly.

This all came to my mind because of what we have now–and the thought that it took until she was nearly out of high school before Mom felt she could have the *luxury* of purchasing two songs on records. It’s important for perspective to me as well because my mom and family weren’t unhappy. They just didn’t have tons of money–what they had went into savings or helped pay for two uncles’ college funds.

All that made me realize Mom didn’t really have much left from when she was a kid because there wasn’t much physically. What she brought forward was family vacations, time together, values like hard work and family integrity…things which were more important anyway (and hopefully I’ve done a decent job with as an adult and a parent).

Whatever she had is almost all gone now who knows where due to circumstances beyond my control after her death. Those circumstances though are best left unnoted, rather than in a forum of public consumption.