Last September, our name - Reprise 60s - showed up on Alexander Bumsted’s T-shirt in the syndicated comic strip, Blondie. Now we’re going to be featured in a forthcoming book in the bestselling Chicken Soup for the Soul series.
My essay, “Old Songs, New Life”, describes how starting a rock band saved me during a difficult time in my life. I had just lost my job of nearly two decades. I was old - very old - by hiring standards, yet a long way from a comfortable retirement. A documentary film and video producer, my job skills were specialized and not in very high demand with most employers. My wife was working, but my salary had made up the majority of our household income. We were facing hard times, and we still are. I had begun to lose all sense of self-worth and hope for the future.
The band changed all that. Making music with my friends, entertaining an audience, providing the energy source in a roomful of happy people as they dance, tap their feet, sing along - these accomplishments made me feel productive again, like I could still part of something meaningful. So I decided to write about my circumstances, and to maybe offer some encouragement to others who are experiencing similar difficulties during these particularly hard times. This is not my first Chicken Soup story - a few years ago my essay titled “After Dooley” was published in Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover’s Soul. I enjoy the books, I was familiar with what publishers are looking for in a story, and I had a positive history with the editorial staff. So I submitted “Old Songs, New Life” and it was accepted. The book - Chicken Soup for the Soul: Young at Heart - will be out in September, 2011.
Although we relish the national exposure for the Reprise 60s name, what we really need now is local publicity. A writer for the Binghamton Press and Sun-Bulletin, our local daily newspaper, did a feature story when “After Dooley” was published, including a nice photo of my wife, me, and our two dogs. I’m hoping the same writer will be willing to do a piece on the band and “Old Songs, New Life” as the publication date draws near.
