A Rock Star's Memory Lapse, More Common Than You Think

There was a recent article by Gary Small, a well known UCLA memory expert

, titled "Paul McCartney's memory lapses." Apparently, Paul McCartney (who is now 68 and too old to be a baby boomer) admitted that he has times such as during a recent concert at Fenway Park in Boston when he cannot recall the lyrics to his old songs the ones he has been performing for years. Dr. Small used the article to discuss "normal memory loss associated with aging." The article intrigued me, so I pursued other examples of singers experiencing memory lapses for lyrics. Interestingly, it is not only the aged rockers who forget lyrics.

The examples are legion. I will only present a few. Mick Jagger, 65 at the time, repeated a verse from Ruby Tuesday in a 2006 concert in Glasgow. There is a nearly three minute YouTube video of Elvis (who was 42 when he died) being unable to recall the lyrics for a song he was performing. Finally, Jenny McCarthy, aged 37, forgot the lyrics of the national anthem she was performing for a NASCAR race. Apparently, you don't have to be "old" to forget well rehearsed lyrics. It is clear that age is not the common thread for this type of forgetting. So don't feel so badly if you temporarily forget your phone number or social security number it happens to all of us. These lapses are not "age-associated memory loss" and not signs of impending mental decline. Indeed, there is no such thing as normal memory loss. Like with all things, aging reduces our efficiency not our competency.

As I pursued this further, I was pleased that most performers solve this problem by liberally using external memory supports or as I have called them the "one minute rule." Simply stated the one minute rule states that anything given less than one minute of thought will fade from your memory. One good way to reduce forgetting is to make a plan for remembering (e.g., a notation in a calendar). Performers have clear and specific plans to help them remember during performances. Paul McCartney compensates by using a teleprompter. Mick Jagger uses an onstage monitor to prompt his lyrics if needed. He also wisely adds the name of the city where he is performing and cues for his ad libs between songs. Come to find out this is very common among performers as was pioneered by Frank Sinatra. He used an onstage teleprompter to perform until he was 80 despite a failing memory.

These lapses are not the beginnings of Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease starts with failure of new learning and is not the same as temporary memory lapses. A good memory evaluation can tell the difference. I don't have to feel guilt any longer for using Power Point slides to pace and manage my talks. I am in good company.

A Rock Star's Memory Lapse, More Common Than You Think

By: Bill E. Beckwith, PhD

POST COMMENT

As We Always Mentioned Lcd Screen Reasons That Make Usb Encryptions A Necessity A Look At The Capabilities Of The Dell 1815dn Laser Printer Answer To Is My Computer Icon Required Review Dell Latitude D620 Laptop Battery And Free Shipping How To Get Your Online Printing Quote Printing Paste In The Process Outlined In The Role Zumba DVD Reviews: Dance Your Way To A Toned Body Techsoft Computer Training Centers - Houston, Tx Live scan fingerprinting Fire Remote Monitoring System, Analysis Of The Problems Prospects For Uv Inkjet Printers And Flat Direction How To Recover Photos From Mac Computer After Memory Card Corruption