subject: Chuck Hoskins Memories [print this page] I sometimes find myself smiling when I listen to certain music. Not just because of the song itself, but because of the vivid memories that it pushes to the front of my consciousness. Simple things that I didn't even know were still there. Thoughts of youth, people, places, situations. They stream into my mind as vividly as if they had just happened. Small details. Things that seem completely irrelevant. Some happy, some sad. Some bringing a smile to my face, some a tear to my eye.
When I hear the theme to Saturday Night Fever, my mind does a little time traveling. Not that I'm a big fan of the song, but it evokes a memory. And it was 1977. If the radio was on, so was the theme to Saturday Night Fever. Yes, even on 95.5 KLOS. I remember my metallic blue 1966 Mustang coup. Sitting in my car at a stop light at the corner of Paramount Blvd and Imperial Hwy. I can see in the movie of my mind the street signs. I was late for school. The almost oppressive pine air freshener that I used to keep in my car. One of those stupid scented paper tree things that hangs from the mirror. The feel of the chrome shifter in my hand, the cool air coming in the open drivers side window that my arm was kind of hanging out of. It was overcast, but not cold. It was a good day.
The silliest songs remind me of things. REO Speedwagon's "Keep On Loving You". Yeah, I know, cut me some slack. Anyway, "Keep on Loving You" reminds me of Cherry Heart. No, that's not her real name, but it's close. And since this is on the internet, I'll cut her a little slack. And I won't go into detail about her other than to say, she made the summer of 1981 memorable.
I was working at ABC premiums on Beverly Blvd in L.A., 4 blocks west of La Brea, very near "The Hills". Wow, that's indoctrination. When I think about it I still think "4 blocks west of La Brea". It was summer. I don't remember the month, but it was evening and still warm. I had this hat that I used to wear. It was a straw kind of cowboy hat that I had rolled up the sides on. It had a long feathered roach clip that hung from the side to the back. Tucked under the band was what was left of, well, what you use a roach clip for.
I remember the sound the engine of my '68 Camero R/S made when it fired up. The low rumble through glass packs and the lope of a modified cam. The sucking sound that big Holley 650 DP carb made when I stepped on the gas. So there I was. I was in L.A., it was Friday, summer, warm, I was 20, had a fast car and an extremely "affectionate" girlfriend.
