Aptly named for the theme of this blog, ‘70s group The Cars delivered smash hit after smash hit including “Let the Good Times Roll”, “Drive”, and “You’re Just What I Needed”.
Americans, especially in Detroit, love their cars. Proof? Why hasn’t there been a mass transit system in Southeastern Michigan? Cars, baby, C-A-R-S! Those three aforementioned song titles, although probably about human relationships, could easily be transposed to human and car relationships.
At least in the Detroit area and probably many other locations, the car is IT! More than a source of transportation, the car becomes a multi-faceted dimension.
If you own a good running automobile, you can survive. If you have a car, you can get to work no matter the destination. The car can become an escape whether you are traveling to a vacation place or just tooling around the neighborhood just listening to your favorite jams.
The car can become a pleasure dome whether necking in the front seat or “working on mysteries without any clues … in the backseat of my “60 Chevy.” (“Night Moves”, Bob Seger). In dire circumstances, the car can become a shelter or hopefully just a temporary home.
Regardless of its uses, the car is cool and becomes a part of you. Jenna, my daughter, would name her cars inviting them to be a friend or even a part of her family. When the car inevitably crashed or wore out, it was a sad day. No matter how old or beaten up your first car was, it didn’t matter. That first car was a ticket to the land of cool and the universe of freedom. Do you remember the first thing you did in your “new” car? Of course, you changed the radio stations to what you enjoyed, not what the parents listened to.
And what was the coolest car you ever had? Did it necessarily have to be the most expensive or was it the one chock full of good memories? Dream Cruises across the country but especially here on Woodward Avenue are proof that a car is a rolling source of memories.
So much can be discussed about cars. I hope that this short blog will stimulate your memory bank and when you “Drive” your car, “It’s(sic) Just What You(sic) Needed” to “Let the Good Times Roll.”
