Still Going Strong

As I get older, I really enjoy being around active people who are in their 70's and 80's.  It gives me hope for the future and encourages me to stay active.  Of course, a lot of getting to my 70's or 80's is very much out of my control.  However, I have had some great role models around me that have shown me how to keep on keeping on.

Mary Lea and I were in San Antonio last night and the weather was rather rainy.  This made being out on the Riverwalk not a good idea.  There was a theatre across the street from us, the Majestic Theatre, a grand old theatre from days gone by.  Singing at the Majestic that night was Tony Bennett.

Now, my kids and their generation probably don't know who Tony Bennett is and that is kind of a shame.  Think about it, he has almost outlived his audience.  And radio, the medium that used to convey his new songs to his fans, well,   there just aren't that many stations playing his and similar music.  He has been in the music business for sixty years.  His songs have gone from records to eight tracks to cassettes to CD's to digital downloads.  I would have to guess that a large portion of Tony's audience is not that familiar with downloading music.

But, Tony keeps on keeping on, and his audience is there for him.  In a cool manner, he struts onto the stage in a white suit jacket and navy blue slacks, shirt and tie.  He is looking good, smiling at the crowd as he crosses the stage, bending his arm upward to give a thumbs up to the crowd and his band which was comprised of a piano, guitar, drums and string bass.  The band is all dressed in coat and tie.  In some ways, it was a show from a different time but may be just exactly what we need more of.

Tony Bennett signing autographs after the show.

Bennett talks to the crowd and sings songs that you remember, some that you have not heard in a long time and others that are almost standards (I Left My Heart in San Francisco).  It was a great show and the little old lady that sat beside me, probably 75 plus years old or more, she had the happiest look on her face the entire time.  A great smile beaming in the darkness of the theatre.  And the great thing about the lady sitting beside me and the older people comprising the majority of the theatre... they were there!  They were living life as it should be lived and enjoying a sound and a song from the past.

By the way, I talked to Tony Bennett's guitar player after the show and I asked him how old Tony Bennett was.  He told me that he had just turned 86 years old.  He said, "He's incredible, man.  His voice is just as good as ever.  He hasn't lost a thing.  He is still going strong."  

May we all find our "inner Tony Bennett" and keep going strong!