Lose Your Shoes in ’77

When I was an annoying underclassman at Ithaca Schools, my whole goal was to try to impress the young ladies I went to school with. This was hard work for a farm boy poster child for Clearasil high water pants nerd like me. One of my many schemes transpired during a dance in 1977. The young women would often take their shoes off and dance in their bare feet on the old high school gym floor. While they were dancing, I would take one of their shoes and hide it nearby. At the end of the dance, they would be looking for their missing foot ware. That is when good Samaritan Phil Nee would swoop in and offer assistance. “Is this yours”? I would innocently ask. “Oh Phil, that is so nice of you” would be the response of the striking young damsel in distress. That move worked once or twice but then I had to find other ways to get them to take notice. I could go out and dance using the moves I learned on American Bandstand in the spring of 1977. I am sure the young ladies thought I was having a medical emergency as I boogied to favorites such as, Calling Dr. Love-Kiss, Long Time-Boston, Do Ya-Electric Light Orchestra, Lido Shuffle-Boz Scaggs, I Wish-Stevie Wonder, Carry on Wayward Son-Kansas, and Dancing Queen-ABBA.

I hope you will join me for my favorite radio program, Those Were the Days, on Saturday night between six and midnight on WRCO FM 100.9, WRCO.com, and the Civic Media app. I will be playing trivia, taking requests, and weaving all of our favorites from the fifties through the early nineties together. Thanks to our friends that checked in last week including a few snowbirds hanging out in Florida until the winter passes here in Wisconsin. We appreciate the kind words from new listeners and those that have been loyal since the show started in 1986. Kick your shoes off on Saturday night. I promise that I won’t hide one of them.

Phil