Growing Up in the 1960's

If you read virtually any history of the sixties, you will think that every young person was a hippy and went to Woodstock, everyone protested the Vietnam war, and everyone was listening to psychedelic rock. That's not how I remember it.

I was born in 1960, so this period accounts for the first ten years of my life. I was doing what kids that age typically do. I occasionally saw long-haired teenagers called hippies, but most of what the sixties are known for was not a part of my life. Superman, Batman, comics, Bewitched, Adam-12 and the NASA rocket launches and recoveries were. I had a cool 5-speed Stingray bike that I rode constantly all over the neighborhood. I loved climbing trees; we had a couple of awesome trees in our yard for climbing. Eventually we put a rope swing on one. My parents listened to country music of the day and so did I.

I remember President Johnson. I didn't really understand who he was or what he did, just that "President Johnson" had a nice ring to it and couldn't imagine saying "President-anybody-else". I was too young to remember Kennedy. I once asked my mom what I was doing when the word of his assassination came on TV. She told me I was playing in the living room. She remembered Walter Cronkite breaking down on TV, so I guess I must've seen that. On November 22, 1963 I was a few weeks away from my third birthday. I do remember watching the episode of Bewitched in 1968 that was interrupted by a news bulletin about Martin Luther King being shot. Before then, I didn't know who he was. I also remember watching the long train ride of Robert Kennedy's funeral and my mom crying.

Just to see how the music of 1968 compares to today's version of history, here's the top 20 hits of 1968 according to Billboard Magazine:

1. Hey Jude - The Beatles

2. I Heard It Through The Grapevine - Marvin Gaye

3. Love Is Blue - Paul Mauriat

4. Honey - Bobby Goldsboro

5. People Got To Be Free - The Rascals

6. (Sittin' On) The Dock Of the Bay - Otis Redding

7. This Guy's In love With you - Herb Alpert

8. Mrs. Robinson - Simon & Garfunkel

9. Love Child - Diana Ross & The Supremes

10. Tighten Up - Archie Bell & The Drells

11. Hello, I Love You - The Doors

12. Judy In Disguise (With Glasses) - John Fred & His Palyboy Band

13. Grazing In the Grass - Hugh Masekela

14. Harper Valley P.T.A. - Jeannie C. Riley

15. Green Tambourine - The Lemon pipers

16. (Theme From) The valley of The Dolls - Dionne Warwick

17. Young Girl - Union Gap featuring Gary Puckett

18. Those Were The Days - Mary Hopkin

19. The Horse - Cliff Nobles & Company

20. Born To Be Wild - Steppenwolf