All Y'ALL NEED TO STEP OFF!
In 1983-4, I went to a hippie school in a neighboring town that Drogie's mom taught 'music' at. We mostly sang "Where have all the flowers gone" and "Kum Ba Yah" with her playing acoustic guitar as backup.
This was during my mom's ultra-religious period, where she made weavings of the stations of the cross and went a little bit nuts reading "The Way." bible. (Frederick up in this piece?) I don't know if she was into Opus Dei, but she certainly went to a lot of bible study meetings.
I had three instances where I came into contact with popular music, as we weren't really supposed to listen to it, and didn't have any money to buy any (I bought my first tape in 1986-- Madonna's True Blue) They are:
1. Visiting my cousin's house in Texas and listening to Karma Chameleon every morning as my uncle made coffee. My uncle, who used to be a priest told me about the Culture Club
2. Watching Drogie make a painting of three colored stripes. When I asked him what it was, he said really sarcastically "Don't you know what The Police are?!?!" And I made some kind of dumb comment about how my painting would include blue flashing lights, and he looked back at me like I was gum on his shoe.
3. Going over to visit Travis' family, who lived even further into East BF at the time, and asking some neighbor kid why he was only wearing one leather glove. I believe that instance in Blackstone, MA, on their 50 acre farm was the first time I ever saw breakdancing. I seriously didn't know what it was.
You all with your BMG and Neil Diamonds-- and with all of your "who was the least cool arguments" have no idea what it was like to grow up with THAT much kale, wheat germ, carob chips, and chickens.
On a final note, here are the albums (vinyl) we listened to in 1984, because we didn't have a tape player:
Free to Be You and Me-- Milo Thomas and friends
Annie, the soundtrack-- Various
Some album my grandmother bought for us at a yard sale because she felt bad for us-- Donnie and Marie
A Chorus line soundtrack-- Various, but we had to fast forward the "Tits and Ass" song
Whale sounds-- National Geographic recording