It was the first time you heard a particular note, drum beat or electronically created sound that made your ears tingle, your heart skip a beat and resonated with your soul. This is “My Song” – a series where the music that makes the person is spotlighted. James Bullock writes about a song that’s a big part of his childhood and the loss of innocence.
Similar to many kids who hear songs way beyond their age and comprehension, Clarence Carter’s “Strokin’” was one of the first kinks in my innocence armor (it also didn’t help that the song had a resurgence in mainstream media around the early 1990s, making it a radio favorite and allowing me to hear it on a frequent basis). Week after week I’d hear the rather hilarious song; learning all of the words. One day, my dad was allowed to bring me to his job. When my dad and his co-workers/friends gathered for lunch and turned on the radio, “Strokin’” started blaring. It was my time to shine – show them what I learned. I danced and sung the entire song to the delight of everyone (of course it was clean as the song could be). Yes, “Strokin’” is a terrible song for a kid; but it’s undeniably fun for everyone else.
