Episode 24 : My Three Songs with Beth Shearn

Jake: 0:09

Coming to you almost live from Berkeley, California, it's Aaron's Radio Show ... with your host, Aaron Gobler.

Aaron Gobler: 0:41

Thanks, Jake. And welcome, everybody to Episode 24.

Aaron Gobler.: 0:53

Welcome to My Three Songs songs where I play three special songs chosen by my guest, and we talk about why they chose each song. Today, my guest is Beth Shearn, a business colleague of mine from the late 90s When I was still in the Philadelphia area. We both been on Facebook for years and years. But we have not actually spoken since 1999. When we work for the Vanguard Group. I'm really looking forward to catching up with Beth and talking about her selection of songs. How are you today, Beth?

Beth Shearn: 1:18

Hey, Aaron, I'm great. How are you?

Aaron Gobler: 1:20

I'm doing well.

Beth Shearn: 1:21

Great, this is so fun to reconnect with you.

Aaron Gobler: 1:23

I really have not kept in touch except through Facebook, in some cases with our colleagues from the Vanguard days. And you are certainly out of that group, the one who was the most communicative on Facebook. I've really enjoyed following your life over there on the East Coast, because I left the East Coast for California right as I finished working for Vanguard, and it's fun following your family on Facebook. And I know you've been following me too. For that time.

Beth Shearn: 1:49

Definitely. It's been really fun. It's fun seeing you with your kids and your wife. And and that all started after we work together. You left a few months before I had Kaylee my oldest who's 22 now so it was just a few months. And then our life started. And we've been watching each other on Facebook. Not ever since. Yeah, it's really neat to catch up and reconnect.

Aaron Gobler: 2:08

And as we were talking earlier, before we started recording, Facebook really does work has kind of an adhesive or a connection for all that for all those years in between you know that?

Beth Shearn: 2:21

And if we didn't have that, I would have wanted to talk to you for about two hours before we start. I can find out Yeah. Are you doing are the kids? How's work?

Aaron Gobler: 2:31

Yeah, it does make it that much easier to connect and actually say it's really cool to be talking to you and actually have the fluid conversation. Instead of something like stilted over Facebook.

Beth Shearn: 2:42

Yeah, I'm still gonna try to like your comments, though, when we're doing this. Okay. But this is really fun. I'm so glad that you're doing this. I'm so glad that this is your hobby now, and that you're doing something that you enjoy, and that involves other people that you can connect with. It's, it's fun. It's fun to be a part of it. So thank you for accommodating me.

Aaron Gobler: 3:02

Yes. And thank you so much for being a guest. It's completely optional for people to be guests. And I from a heart with much humility. I appreciate everybody who appears on the show, because I feel like we're working kind of as a team as a group to try to foster my success in this endeavor. So I certainly appreciate that.

Beth Shearn: 3:19

I'm happy to help.

Aaron Gobler: 3:20

Great, thank you. Before we get started, can you tell me something about how music fits into your life? Like is it a key part of your normal day? Or do you just find that it's in the background?

Beth Shearn: 3:30

So I was thinking about this before we got on and I realize that it's like a huge part of it is part of my life. It is my life. It's been part of my life since I grew up. I was thinking about when I was little my parents were in the church choir, and we would have the house filled with a whole choir coming over to sing and we had a piano and so the whole house was filled with music and our best friends were in the theater. So we always had music around. It was just part of our life. And it is now and my husband is He's crazy about music. We've raised our daughters to around that. And my one daughter just took a road trip out to Ohio right now she's on her first road trip to see a concert. Yeah, so it's definitely a huge part of our lives. And we listen to it all the time. And I was just telling my mom that when I leave, Dave turns the music up really loud. So he likes when I leave because then he can blast because it hurts my head now that I'm older. If it's really loud.

Aaron Gobler: 4:28

Do you share the same music tastes? We did? Or does he wait does he wait to you to leave so he can use the volume louder or does it because he wants to play like, you know, death metal or something or ...

Beth Shearn: 4:40

No, we that's probably one of the things that we that that drew us to each other is that we do definitely share the same music tastes. There are things that he likes to play. There's this like German band that is I can't listen to a lot of really hard guitar anymore. I for some reason I can listen to To the 80s guitar, like, AC DC, or RAD or Def Leppard, I can still listen to that. But the newer stuff, it hurts my head, and I don't know why that is, it must be like a 50 Something about being in your 50s. But, um, yeah, we definitely have the same music tastes, and we go to a lot of live shows together. And he's, he's introduced me to a lot of types of music that I probably wouldn't have listened to if it wasn't for him. Nice.

Aaron Gobler: 5:27

So do you think he'd be interested in being on the show?

Beth Shearn: 5:30

Oh, my gosh, so much. So I can't even tell you. Okay. Okay. I was thinking about that. Yeah. And I didn't even tell him he had I told him what we were doing. And he was like, oh, you know what, I was gonna tell the girls guess what you mean, you know, my friend Aaron, that I worked with at Vanguard asked me to be on a radio show. And he's like, wait, wait, I have to go into the room. But I want to hear more about this. You know, he was like, Okay. And then he asked me what songs I think we never got around to it. And I haven't told him because I just want it to be a surprise. Like, what songs and pick but he is such a music lover that he? Yeah, he would just love it. Awesome. Yeah, you can interview him for like three hours about music,

Aaron Gobler: 6:09

I find that every guest that I've had his passionate about music, and that may have driven them to want to do this exercise of finding the three songs. And anytime something's a passion. You don't have to work at conveying the passion people just hear it. And how you talk about it.

Beth Shearn: 6:27

Yeah, exactly. Well, I guess you chose your guests. Well, you know how to pick people who are passionate about music, right?

Aaron Gobler: 6:34

Yeah, I've got about four or five people already who are interested. I just got to figure out what you know what days to to interview them. So yeah, it's exciting. It's very exciting.

Beth Shearn: 6:42

Well, I'll definitely connect you with Dave because it okay, we'll be happy to do it. Awesome. Well, I don't want to speak for him.

Aaron Gobler: 6:50

Well, I'll add them to my list. I light some incense and, and put some vibration to the universe for him. To sign up without making him realize that I'm doing that. So about the songs you chose, were "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/Wonderful World" by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole, from 1990; "My Sisters and Brothers", by the Jerry Garcia Band, from 1990. Also, and You Can't Always Get What You Want", by The Rolling Stones from 1969. So I'm eager for us both to listen to these songs. And I'm interested in knowing why each of them is meaningful to you. So first, let's take a listen to"Somewhere Over the Rainbow/Wonderful World" by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole. That this is such a beautiful song. I loved it the first time I heard it. And I can sort of play it on my ukulele. But why did you choose to include this song on your list?

Beth Shearn: 7:55

So I while I was playing, I got up and got a tissue because I was like waiting for the tears to come. I listen to the I hear this song, it comes up on my Pandora all the time. And for some reason, just talking about it today, just well. So I think one of the reasons I was thinking about when you asked me to do this, I was thinking about, you know, why does why do we pick certain songs? And it's because and why do we love music so much. And for me, it's because it brings up certain feelings like different songs, it can change your mood, you know, music can completely change your mood. If you're in a horrible mood and you hear a great song, like lift your spirits, you know, if you hear a song from like, that's why we love listening to songs from the 80s You and I were just talking about because it brings us back to that time when we were just young and had a great time and all that. So it's such a mood changer. And this song for me. We my Nana was 96 when she on my my younger daughter Emily second birthday, she passed away. So that was 2005 I think there were so many things that happened when she passed that were just amazing, like, and I went to change the TV channel and it changed before I could change it. Okay, and I knew right then that she died. And the two weeks before or between when she passed and when we had her service, there were all these things that happened in the house that freaked me out to the point where I was like Nana, stop it, like the kids would go off when I would, you know like but there were so many things. And so I knew that she was around me all the time. And I think she was trying to tell me you know, I'm always with you. I'm still here. I'm always with you. She was just the funniest person on the planet. She was hysterical. And she had the gentlest touch and whenever you'd hang up with her, she would say and I love you. And so just this song, I wrote a poem that to to read at her funeral and and then we played this song at her funeral. And the weird thing that ever since then it always comes on whenever I'm having a bad day or whenever we talk about her just this weekend, my dad was telling us a story about when he was born. And it came right on. My mom's like, why is oh my gosh, it was like, Mom, it's Nana, she does it all the time. Like my girls know, whenever we talk about or something this song comes on. It's just like, her way of saying I'm still here. And when I listened to it, I, you know, like I was saying you have it brings up feelings, you know, and I just feel her love every time I listen to it. Like, it's just overwhelming. It's just, it makes me all warm and fuzzy inside and I can just hear laugh. And so that's why this had to be number one. There was no doubt in my mind. I was like, Oh my gosh, definitely. So yeah, it's it's such a beautiful song too. It's amazing.

Aaron Gobler: 10:57

Well, I've always connected music to certain events, or certain music can bring back something very poignant to my mind. And I would think that that really is the way everybody is. But I think it's much more powerful for some people. Yeah, and for some, it could be different smells. You know, if I smell a freshly waxed floor, I immediately think of a private school I went to for a few years and, and immediately takes me there, but for but for some people that might be really, really powerful for them. Like they're just very sensitive to smells wherever they are. But to others that it is just a song or part of a song or a style of the song that might bring them back very quickly to part of their life or some person in their life.

Beth Shearn: 11:40

Yeah, so yeah, I love it. Love it. Yeah.

Aaron Gobler: 11:42

And then hopefully it's a blessing at some point I don't I don't write any of that off. because it could be a curse for some people, I guess that that may also bring back something bad, but maybe. Yeah, our

Beth Shearn: 11:51

I totally believe in all that. natural defense mechanisms in our brain are often to soften some of the tougher things over time, like your remark about how your Nana's spirit is somehow driving the playing of the song

Aaron Gobler: 12:01

The next song in your list is "My Sisters and or, or when you hear it or those kinds of things. I don't underestimate that or poopoo that on a previous episode, I was talking with my guests, we were playing a song, her daughter, who was part of the story of that song called on her FaceTime while we were doing the interview, and that was kind of incidental, or she felt some kind of vibration from this song and decided to call ... Brothers", by the Jerry Garcia band. So let's take a listen to that and we'll talk about it on the other side.

Aaron Gobler.: 12:47

Beth, I have to admit I only know a handful of Grateful Dead songs and I don't know any Jerry Garcia Band songs but now I can say I guess I do know one is tune has a real Gospel feel to it. And I really liked it. What made you include this song in your list?

Beth Shearn: 13:00

It is a good song, isn't it? Well, Dave and I both really love Jerry Garcia and Grateful Dead songs. We have had so much fun with the Grateful Dead. The music the people. This song though Dave actually chose this to be played at our wedding for our wedding party. Okay, I'm the youngest of four and Dave, the youngest of five. So our wedding party was made up of mostly brothers and sisters and friends who were like brothers or sisters, and this song doesn't come up. I don't hear it a lot. But when you asked about the song, you know me to choose three songs, this one came up because just the meaning behind it and how special like our brothers and sisters are to us. Dave's family all lives within an hour, my family's scattered up and down the East Coast. But we're all close. And you know, everyone has their different personalities and everything isn't always perfect. But as you get older people come and go out of your life. But we always even if we don't see each other talk all the time. I've seen so many people that don't have big families. And I'm just really blessed to have such a big family not just brothers and sisters, but sisters in law and brothers in law who are always there for us and we're always there for them. And I'm very blessed and I'm very fortunate to have some really great friends who are like sisters and brothers and plus it's just a really great song.

Aaron Gobler: 14:22

You had correctly noted that this is not a song that one would dislike here say in Trader Joe's or some are just in general. Do you find yourself pulling it up on your music player?

Beth Shearn: 14:34

So I listen to Pandora mostly? And it doesn't come up for some reason? And I wish it would more and when you ask about it I'm like why does it not I need to find another I need to get on Spotify or something where I can choose song so I don't listen to it as much as I would like to we have stacks and stacks of CDs in the basement that we don't listen to anymore because we got rid of her displayer okay, but no, I should listen to it. or for sure.

Aaron Gobler: 15:01

When you decided to add this to your list it was because of its poignancy about all your brothers and your sisters and the meaning it had at your wedding.

Beth Shearn: 15:09

Yeah. And, and the meaning that it has just in life, you know? Yeah. And the fact that it was a Jerry Garcia song, right, that meaning to because it's just, it's just a fun song. Yeah.

Aaron Gobler: 15:19

And it's only about five minutes. So that's remarkable in itself.

Beth Shearn: 15:22

And that's really short.

Aaron Gobler: 15:26

Yeah, so actually, that's a good segue to the last song on your list, which is, you can't always get what you want by The Rolling Stones. And it has a certainly a gospel feel to it as well, I could not find the radio edit, which is only about four minutes, I'm going to grace this program with the full seven minute version of the song, which is the one that you would normally hear on, say, like album oriented rock stations. So let's sit back in a comfortable chair, and absorb the magic of you can always get what you want by The Rolling Stones. Hello, podcast listener. To experience this episode with music included, please visit our website, Aaron's Radio dot show where you can stream all episodes. Back when I was younger, I didn't appreciate the true artistry of the stones. And I'm really glad I got a chance to see them in concert and Philadelphia about 20 years ago, they have so many memorable hits. What inspired you to include this song in your list?

Beth Shearn: 16:27

You know, it's so funny that while I was listening the song I was thinking about the fact that all the songs that I've picked her about the people that they remind me of. And I mean, this song is just so much fun to begin with. But I couldn't not play this song because my husband and my brother in law and sister in law have very good friends who started a music festival. 30 years ago, we just had the 30 year anniversary. It's called Summer Solstice. They have it every year in June, right around the summer solstice. They started in their backyard, I think I started going to it maybe the fourth or fifth Solstice is when I met Dave, and it grew. They started having it at this Brandywine red clay Alliance, which is like a big preserve on this beautiful property out here in Chester County. It's like one of our favorite places to go. And it has a big amphitheater and a hill. And we've had it there almost every year, not every year, but it's our favorite day of the year. And I realized I should be talking more about the song maybe. But the song for me just brings back memories of Solstice every year and Solstice. For everyone who's gone. It's just grown and grown. It started with this group of friends who all went to Shippensburg University, and then they invited friends. And then they invited more. And over the 30 years, it's I think maybe it got up to 1000 people, I don't know, like eight hours or so two o'clock in the afternoon of Saturday afternoon until 10 o'clock at night, Jerry and Kim run this every year for 30 years, and they have maybe five bands and we just go show up and dance all day. It's Dave's absolute favorite day of the year. Like if someone was getting married or had a funeral, he'd be like, sorry, I have to go to Solstice. So the reason that this song is so important is that every year the Colemans get up and sing the song like all of them get up. So when I was listening to it, I'm just thinking, like, this is such a great song to get up and sing to and you know, with a mic and at a party or something, and the stones are just so amazing. And they have such great music and this song just every time I hear of it, I think of summer solstice and how many, how much fun we've had even my brother in law and sister in law name their dog Solstice, after the solstice festival, like, my girls grew up, like sleeping on the hill, you know, during the festival, and it's just part of our family. It's just a really, really cool thing to go to. And every year we see the same people maybe we didn't see them all year, and we see them at Solstice, year after year and just have so much fun into the night when it gets dark out. And everyone's down dancing to the music. And the great thing is that they've raised so much money for different causes, like cystic fibrosis. I mean, it just shows you like how music can bring people together so much and you can do so many things with it, you can have so much fun with it. And this song to me is just about fun and friends and great memories and traditions. You know, when you asked me to do this, I'm like, There's no way I can get on and talk about music without talking about Solstice because it's been such a great part of our lives are my friends sometimes will even just come to Solstice, just to watch Dave because he smiles all day and he dances all day. He just like flies around from one person to the other and dances and has a blast and you know, we just have so much fun. It's like our it's like it removes you from the world for a day. You know?

Aaron Gobler: 19:42

Yeah, I'm just thinking about communal experiences. It's one thing say if you're in an audience watching a theatre production or something, but when you're in an audience listening to music, it's one continual flow, and it could go one song to the next. It's a very spiritual Yeah, because everybody's Taking in this information and that the sound and the feeling and the emotion at the same time. And certainly, people respond to that differently. But you're, you're all having to respond at that time. And what you said about Dave and everybody, you know, people really noticing his whole demeanor, and how he responds. One person's response to music can then be infectious to others, too. How would you compare the size of this event to say, like Woodstock,

Beth Shearn: 20:28

that's so funny, because I was gonna say, it's like our mini Woodstock. It's very, it's a very mini version. Okay, feels like a Woodstock that we get to have with, you know, closest close friends every year, you know. So it's just like that. And if you talk to someone who went to Woodstock, you know, I can't imagine anyone had a bad time.

Aaron Gobler: 20:49

You must look forward to this, then every year, it's like something that makes the year complete.

Beth Shearn: 20:54

Yes. And COVID It stopped when we couldn't have it and COVID. So there was the one year that we didn't have it. And that was because of COVID. You know, so But no, it's been really great. Yeah, so really good memories. So and thank you for, for letting me I know that this is about music. And I know everyone's stories are different. Based on I feel like I could do a whole other show just on like, the actual songs and like what, you know, just just the actual song and how great the music is, because I don't always listen to the songs, although Somewhere over the rainbow comes up a lot. There's so many other songs that I listened to probably even more than these. But these threes. I mean, I had a list of five I could, I could have made a huge list. But these three songs have the most meaning, you know, to me, plus, you're such a great host, and you've made it really fun. And it's been really fun to catch up with you.

Aaron Gobler: 21:46

Thank you. And I want to put a disclaimer in here that I don't bribe or extort my guests to say nice things about me or the show. So it's all really ...

Beth Shearn: 22:06

It was so much fun, Aaron, I really appreciate it. Thanks for doing something different and keeping a lot of fun out there. I appreciate it.

Aaron Gobler: 22:14

Thank you. I appreciate those thoughts. And I want to say to my listeners. If you want to be part of the show, start by going to our website, Aaron's Radio dot show, and clicking on the My three songs button on the homepage. You can also sign up for our mailing list so you'll know immediately when a new episode is available. Until next time, keep your ears and mind open and let more music into your world.

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