When Vermont media fell in love

They say the squeaky wheel gets the grease. So, prior to my When Love Was Nifty concert on Sunday, 22 May 2016, at Chandler Center in Randolph VT, I made a big effort to publicize the event.

When Love Was Nifty Concert at the Chandler Center
in Randolph VT was displayed on cover of the May 18
2016 publication of  The World  —  Central Vermont's
Favorite Weekly Newspaper.

Driving me was the realization that not many people in Vermont know about me. I've performed only few Vintage Music Concerts in the Green Mountain State and previous media pick-up was scant.

So, about a month before the event I conducted a publicity campaign with these elements:

•   45  press releases mailed to Vermont print media contacts;

•   120  publicity emails posted to Vermont online media contacts;

•   162  invitations and flyers mailed to libraries, municipal senior centers and retirement communities;

•   205  publicity emails posted to libraries, municipal senior centers and retirement communities;

•   311  announcement postcards were mailed to print and broadcast media, municipal senior centers, retirement communities, libraries, musicians and performance venues across VT and western NH.

Emphasized program, vintage guitars and audience

All of these promotions emphasized the program of the upcoming concert, the role of vintage guitars in the concert, and character of the expected audience. In short, the promotions covered the following aspects:

•   concert theme — favorite love songs that were favorites between 1945 and
     1960 — the 15-year era before rock 'n' roll smothered American pop music;

•   vintage acoustic guitars — from the 1920s and 1930s through 1940s for an
     authentic, back-in-the-day sound;

•   intended audience — adults, 45 to 90 years of age, who enjoy mid-20th
     Century American music.

In these promotions I emphasized the concert location, Chandler Center, an established venue, rather than my background. Though I've sung vintage songs and played vintage guitars in concerts for nearly two decades, I suspected few people in Vermont's general public would recognize my name.

In addition to my publicity efforts, staff at Chandler emailed 115 press releases to its in-house publicity list two weeks before the concert. They also contacted senior centers in and near Randolph in order to raise interest in the concert and generate group attendance at the event.

Publicity effort's one-two punch
The publicity work delivered a one-two punch. First, it generated several media placements — photo-captions offering concert info, calendar listings and short articles about the concert — in advance of the event.

Second, to my delight media attention helped us fill slightly more than half of the Upper Gallery at Chandler Center on a sunny spring Sunday. Indeed, we hosted an audience that was eager to hear vintage love songs and vintage American guitars.

Media placements touting the When Love Was Nifty event at Chandler included:

The World — Based in Barre, this free weekly offers a huge Calendar of Events section in each 48-page publication. It bills itself as “Central Vermont’s Favorite Weekly Newspaper.”

This paper touted the Chandler concert across its cover with a two-tone photograph and concert info. It also ran an item in its Calendar of Events section: "Accompanied by his collection of vintage acoustic guitars, Ken Lelen takes the stage to bring you some of the great songs from American ragtime, swing, and jazz traditions."

Seven Days — Based in Burlington, this feisty, free and large (96 pages) weekly newspaper serves the entire state with many well-written articles. It offers its readers two slogans: “Vermont’s Independent Voice” and “Running With Bunnies.” [sic]

This paper ran a circular photo (at right) in its Calendar section as well as a brief news item about the May 22 concert: "Ken Lelen strums vintage guitars in a program that recalls moonlit nights and romantic trysts."

The Herald — Based in Randolph, this 142-year-old weekly newspaper serves the White River Valley of the Green Mountain State. Its slogan: “One Dollar And Worth Every Penny.”

This paper ran a brief news item on the concert in its Calendar section: "1940s and 1950s love songs performed by singer and acoustic guitarist Ken Lelen."

                                        References

                    Chandler Center for the Arts                       chandler-arts.org

                    Randolph Herald                                         ourherald.com

                    Seven Days                                                sevendaysvt.com

                    The World                                                   vt-world.com

          _______________________________________________

                                   © 2016 — Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved

Posted Apr. 23, 2015 at 9:26 PM

Big Band Idols Concert at
Whipple Senior Center April 24
WEYMOUTH, MA — Weymouth Elder Services will host a free concert by vocalist and vintage guitarist Ken Lelen at 1 p.m., on Friday, April 24, at Whipple Senior Center, 182 Green St., Weymouth. For information, call 781-682-6140. 

     For an authentic back-in-the-day sound the musician will perform swing tunes from the Big Band era and pair each song with an acoustic guitar made in the same period.
     The program’s songs were originally hits in the 1930s and 1940s for such vocalists as Frank Sinatra, Mildred Bailey, Helen Forest, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Shore, Jo Stafford, Peggy Lee and others. Back in the day these singers fronted Big Bands, jazz combos and society orchestras organized by such band leaders as Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Les Brown, Glenn Miller, Teddy Wilson, Duke Ellington, Paul Whiteman, Count Basie, Ted Weems and others. 
     Co-sponsored by Weymouth Elder Services and Weymouth Cultural Council, division of Mass Cultural Council, Lelen’s concert may include such hit songs as:
  
     •    “I’ll Never Smile Again,” Frank Sinatra, vocal, with Tommy Dorsey Orchestra;

     •    “Sentimental Journey,” Dinah Shore, vocal, with Les Brown's Band of Renown;

     •    “There I’ve Said It Again,” Vaughn Monroe, vocal, and his band;

     •    “Route 66,” Nat King Cole, vocal, and King Cole Trio;

     •    “Heartaches,” Ted Weems Orchestra with Elmo Tanner, whistler;

     •    “They Can’t Take That Away From Me,” Billie Holiday, vocal, with Count Basie Band;

     •    “Why Don’t You Do Right?,” Peggy Lee, vocal, with Benny Goodman Orchestra;

     •    “It’s Been A Long, Long Time,” Bing Crosby, vocal, with guitarist Les Paul;

     •    “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” vocals by Ink Spots;

     •    “Moonglow,” Artie Shaw, clarinetist with his band;

     •    “Paper Doll,” vocals by Mills Brothers.

     Lelen’s program will trace the history and romance of the Big Band era. To introduce the songs, he’ll offer amusing anecdotes, musings and comments about the singers, songs, composers and band leaders of the era.
     The musician will display and play vintage acoustic guitars by Gibson, Martin, Regal, Schmidt and other U.S. firms. Each makes sound that is striking for its tone, character and sustain without use of pick-ups or electronic gimmicks.
     "People of all ages love the songs,” Lelen said. “They’re often surprised by the robust sound and classy look of vintage guitars.”

______________________________________________________________

http://weymouth.wickedlocal.com/article/20150423/NEWS/150427738/0/SEARCH

© Copyright 2006-2015 Gatehouse Media 

Daily  News  Chronicle — homenewshere.com

Posted: Tuesday, March 31, 2015, 11:38 am

          Concert at Burlington Public Library
                                    March 26, 2015

                        Great American ragtime, jazz and swing from 1920s, 1930s and 1940s

                                             Vintage acoustic guitars from the same decades

 

                                                                                       Photo: Joe Brown

CONCERT AT THE LIBRARY — As part of Burlington Reads 2015, the Burlington (MA) Public Library presented Ken Lelen in a concert of ragtime, jazz and swing music from the 1920s through 1940s.

     His program included a special song, “Rider on an Orphan Train.” Here, Lelen performs with his vintage acoustic guitars from the same decades as the music.

http://homenewshere.com/daily_times_chronicle/news/burlington/article_fedf60ba-d7bb-11e4-bc72-2f69d15b71f9.html?mode=image&photo=0 

__________________________________________________

©  2015 — Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved

NORTHJERSEY.COM : ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
Musical program held at library in Vernon
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2014
BY JANET REDYKE
CORRESPONDENT — AIM VERNON

                                                                                                                      PHOTO/JANET REDYKE
Guitarist Ken Lelen performed the music of World War I at a program at the library.

Guitarist Ken Lelen of Titusville, N.J. returned to Dorothy Henry Library to acknowledge the 100th anniversary of World War I by performing his Ragtime Rascals concert. Hosted by the Friends of the Library, the program took place Sunday afternoon, Oct. 26.
     Lelen displayed and played four vintage guitars, in chronological order dating from 1925, 1926, 1932 and 1933. The guitars all had mahogany wood backs and sides and spruce fronts, which produced beautiful tones. "These guitars are vintage, I never use the word 'old,' " he chuckled.
     According to Lelen, the music of World War I was the popular among flappers, doughboys, crooners, bootleggers and other nostalgic persons of the period. "Those young people used a gramophone like today’s youth use an i-Phone," Lelen said.
     The first song Lelen played and sang was "The Sheik of Araby" which represented the people’s attraction to Rudolf Valentino. Lelen mentioned the influence of brother composer team George and Ira Gershwin in 1924.
     The audience of 50 broke into a sing-along when Lelen played and sang "It had to be You," "Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue," and "Ain’t She Sweet."
     "Ragtime music had two trends," he stated. The two trends were, in song, one word could mean another, like a metaphor when good actually meant bad. The second trend, according to Lelen, was the beginning of dance crazes, which back then were morally unacceptable. Lelen continued with "Bye Bye Blackbird" and "Sweet Sue — Just You" to illustrate both trends.
     He also spoke about song writer Dorothy Fields, who lived in New York City. Once, as she walked down Fifth Avenue, she noticed the sun shining on the buildings on one side of the street. So she wrote "On the Sunny Side of the Street" that night.
     Lelen concluded the 90-minute concert by playing and performing "Tiptoe through the Tulips." He said, "This song was a hit back in the 20s, long before Tiny Tim made it famous."

_______________________________________________

© 2014 — northjersey.com/Vernon
northjersey.com/arts-and-entertainment/music/musical-program-held-at-library-1.1128602

NORTHJERSEY.COM : NEWS
Vintage guitars, vintage songs
at Vernon library performance

SEPTEMBER 27, 2013

BY JANET REDYKE
CORRESPONDENT — AIM VERNON

                                                                                                       PHOTO/JANET REDYKE
Ken Lelen strums and sings the folk song, "If I Had a Hammer."

The Friends of the Library of Dorothy Henry Library in Vernon sponsored a vintage guitar and music concert called Folk Song Boomers at the library on Sunday, September 22, featuring singer and guitarist Ken Lelen.

     The performer was introduced by Friends’ president Eleanore O’Mara,who told the audience of 40 people to be prepared to "go back in time."

     "Folk songs have always been a part of America’s history," she said. "These songs have announced social change, paid tribute to the civil rights movement and denounced war."

     Guitarist Ken Lelen began playing the guitar in 1963 as a teen to "get girls to notice him." Lelen later realized it’s drummers who really attract girls.

     Fifty years later Lelen has perfected his talent, collecting amazing mahogany-and-spruce constructed guitars dating from 1908 to 1952 and made by companies like Gibson, Martin and Washburn. He actually has collected several dozen vintage guitars, which age well and have beautiful tones. His wife insists Lelen has GAS, or Guitar Acquisition Syndrome. 

     "You cannot get this sound out of a box with plastic knobs," Lelen joked.

     Playing his folk boomer music, Lelen sang "Blowin’ in the Wind," "If I Had a Hammer" and other favorites that brought smiles to the faces of the audience as they recognized the tunes. Lelen also offered impressive tidbits on folk artists like Bob Dylan, Richard Farina, Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie.

     After an afternoon of reflective music, Lelen concluded the concert by playing and singing "Good Night, Irene," with the appreciative audience joining in the sing-along.

___________________________

© 2013 — northjersey.com/Vernon

northjersey.com/news/vintage-guitars-vintage-songs-at-vernon-library-performance-1.577412

Resonant memories strike chord in

      Ken Lelen's Vintage Music Concert
Posted Monday, Nov 22, 2010 @ 2:42 pm

By Daniel Castro

Wednesday, November 17, 2010 - HOLDEN, Mass. — As Ken Lelen strummed the strings on his rare vintage guitars at the Holden Senior Center and his deep voice crooned the lyrics to songs from the  1920s, 1930s and 1940s, the music evoked memories of bobby-soxers, youths on roller skates, trysting lovers and drugstore cowboys—images behind the music that tell the stories Lelen has been collecting for years to weave into his Vintage Music Concerts.

                                                      Photos: Daniel Castro
Ken Lelen and his 1938 B&D Groton No. 1

Lelen, a New Jersey native and former Washington Post reporter, performs with an extensive collection of guitars that were made between 1892 and 1952 by companies such as Martin, Kay, Washburn,  Gibson, Kay and Vega. The unique tone of each instrument is the starting point for a performance from the era when each instrument was made, whether the style is ragtime, jazz, or swing classics.

     The first guitar he played, a B&D Groton made by Regal of Chicago, had cost $15 in 1938; it is now worth $2,500. "This guitar has been through 70 winters, 70 summers, 70 falls and 70 springs," he said, plucking its strings. "Somebody played it, sang to his girlfriend and put all the music inside."

     The music inside Lelen was put there as a youth, listening to his mother's 78 RPM records. "My mother was 17 years old in 1945, a bobby-soxer, the third of three girls and called Baby all her life," he said. "So she ran away from home and joined the roller skating show. She told me once, 'We were rebels in our day.' "

     As the troupe of skaters traveled around the country doing dance routines to the songs of the day, his mother collected records Lelen would later play and absorb into his musical repertoire. "I've listened to "Rhapsody in Blue" 5,655 times," he said. "That was one of the records she had and George Gershwin affects you in a very significant way when you're two years old, so my [musical] goose was cooked at an early age."

     Lelen not only performs songs that are familiar to older generations, but is interested in less familiar tunes in the American Songbook. For example, at Wednesday's concert he played an upbeat "You Are My Sunshine" in the way Tex Ritter would have played it and a slowed-down version of "After You've Gone."

     "Some guitarists like Django Reinhardt played this song at 110 miles an hour - but when you do "After You've Gone" real fast it's a revenge song," he said. "What you're saying is 'Someday, you dirty dog, you'll get yours.' Well, I found the sheet music for this song, which Sophie Tucker sung in the 1920s, and it was written in 1918. Across the top of the sheet music it says: 'Ballad-not too fast.' When you sing "After You've Gone" as a ballad, you're saying 'Someday, you will feel what I felt - you dirty dog.' "

Some of Ken Lelen's collection
of vintage acoustic guitars.

     After the concert Lelen explained he is careful when he performs a song for seniors not to completely let his audiences lose themselves in the nostalgia of the moment. Such audiences might have grown up with a song, but he makes sure he adds something of his own to each version to pull them back into his performance. Either way, his songs struck a chord in the hearts of his audience members at the Senior Center, who kept slipping into singing along with him.

     Lelen's concert at the Senior Center was made possible by the Friends of the Holden Council on Aging. To learn more about Vintage Music Concerts, visit www. kenlelen.blogspot. com.

_____________________________________________________

© 2010 — TheDailyHolden.com  and  Linear Publishing

Media  Quotes

_________________________________________________________

"Mr. Lelen is a genial performer, with a pleasant tenor. The songs he plays will never go out of date."   —   New York Times — May 7, 2005

"From ragtime and swing to blues and jazz tunes, each melody is accompanied by an acoustic guitar specific to its era, adding a feel of authenticity that is uncommon today."   —   Cranbury Press — July 28, 2006

"Lelen's real passion is in delivering the honesty of the emotions found in these old songs. Connecting with people is the primary reason Lelen is a musician."   —   Princeton Packet — June 6, 2003

"In Philadelphia, as Ken Lelen launched into Love Is Just Around The Corner, feet began to tap, heads began to nod, lips mouthed the words to the song, and sighs of contentment sounded all over the room."   —   Trenton Times — August 13, 2002

"Lelen's idea of harmonic convergence is the right guitar, the right song, and the right audience."   —   Bergen Record — October 20, 2002

"Singer-guitarist Ken Lelen is not just a performer, he's a revivalist. For seven years his shows have featured songs from the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s and vintage guitars from the same decades."   —   Morris County Daily Record — July 4, 2006

"For Ken Lelen, vintage music never gets old. When he plays, it sounds the way it would if audiences were on a front porch or back parlor, where most songs of the early 20th century were heard."   —   Augusta Chronicle — September 18, 2003

"Ken Lelen: unplugged and loving it."   —   MyCentralJersey.com — July 12, 2009                          

                          ____________________________________

                                              © 2010 Kenneth Lelen - All Rights Reserved

Friday, July 28, 2006

Cranbury Press

Concert brings the past to life

Vintage instruments and music get the spotlight

By Jessica Beym – Staff Writer

The Board of Recreation wants Cranbury residents to turn off their radios, mp3 players and televisions and experience music from a different era tonight, Friday, at the United Methodist Church on North Main Street.

    With an arsenal of classic guitars, Ken Lelen of Titusville will treat Cranbury residents to a show of vintage music from the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. The concert, held at 7 p.m. in Fellowship Hall, is part of the Board of Recreation's free summer concert series.

    Mr. Lelen has played guitar for more than 40 years and has about 30 vintage guitars, each with an individual sound. From ragtime and swing to blues and folk, each tune is played on a guitar specific to its era, adding an authenticity that Mr. Lelen said is uncommon today.

    "They're American-made acoustic, steel-string guitars," Mr. Lelen said, referring to his collection. "When people hear these tunes and the sound of a guitar, they realize the purpose of the evening is to enjoy the music. You can't get this sound out of a box or by electronically modifying something."

    Mr. Lelen, who performs more than 120 concerts a year up and down the East Coast and at age-restricted communities, said many listeners are familiar with the American tunes that were popular in those eras. However, they hardly ever hear the songs coupled with a guitar from the same time frame.

    For tonight's performance, Mr. Lelen will pick from a selection of seven guitars. He will also sing along to each tune, but would not say which songs he would be playing. "I'll introduce the song, the composer and the guitar that I'm using," he said, adding that he doesn't want to "give away the program."

    The manufacturers of his vintage, handcrafted guitars include Martin, Gibson, Regal and Washburn. Many of the guitars are still in their original condition, he said, adding that his oldest guitar was built in 1912 and the youngest is from 1955.

    "They're all well-crafted and have lasted because they were well-made," Mr. Lelen said. "They've been played for 70 or 80 years and withstood many weather changes. They all have a particular sound, or personality, because they've been played and been taken care of."

    Along with Mr. Lelen's singing, the sound and appearance of the guitars is something an audience enjoys, he said. "They have kind of a woody, warm sound to them that you don't hear often," he said. "It's something people are pleasantly surprised by. It's not something they hear too often."

__________________________________

© 2006 — Packet Publications

June 6, 2003

Princeton Packet

Deeper Well

Ken Lelen's vintage music harkens back to an era when the pace
was slower and when music could be heard without distraction.

                                                                                          PHOTO: Mark Czajkowski
Ken Lelen and his vintage guitars

By Susan Van Dongen — Arts Reporter

The instruments are old, the songs even older, but the singer is anything but old-fashioned.

     Ken Lelen is no misty-eyed, free-spirited troubadour when it comes to his Vintage Music Concerts. Besides being a skilled musician with fine taste in choosing the songs he performs, he's a savvy businessman who planned his career's trajectory. Mr. Lelen has built up his audience slowly but steadily and calculated the best way to get in front of as many people as possible.

     Friends joke he took Vintage Music Concerts to vintage audiences, playing often for senior citizens, who may remember the songs along with their first smooch in a rumble seat. However, Mr. Lelen says the subtlety of the lyrics and the charm of the melodies appeals to a growing number of younger people as well.

     "I started playing for senior citizens, but found the venues and events that hire me are expanding. I'm delighted, since the songs whet the interests of a variety of audiences," Mr. Lelen says.

     His concerts are for people whose tastes are maturing, growing away from the heavy-beat rock and rhythmic dance music that Mr. Lelen says detract from the aesthetics and complexities of songwriting. "With these songs, the feelings and thoughts are expressed in a way people don't hear on the radio, or with Muzak or with music you hear on television or in film," Mr. Lelen says. "For people not familiar with the music, it touches something evocative - something they didn't know they were missing.

     On June 14, Mr. Lelen will revive another old-time form of entertainment — playing a live radio broadcast. Mr. Lelen will appear live on WDVR-FM's Heartlands Hayride program, broadcast from Brethren Church in Sergeantsville from 6-8 p.m. The show can be heard in Hunterdon County on 89.7 FM and in the Princeton-Trenton area on 91.9 FM. In addition, the public is invited to attend the broadcast and take part in something you don't see everyday. "I've done this now quite a few times," says the Titusville resident. "It's a great experience."

     Mr. Lelen will perform a trunkful of classic tunes — ragtime, blues and swing — on his collection of 20 guitars built from 1900 to 1948 by such noteworthy manufacturers as Epiphone, Gibson, Gretsch, Martin and Haynes. All produce music that is striking for its authentic sound without the assistance of electronic gadgetry. "They're all acoustic instruments," Mr. Lelen says, "and they're matched with music of the same period." His antique axes include a 1900 Bay State parlor guitar, 1932 mahogany-bodied Gibson L-00 and 1943 Martin 000-18 which, due to wartime shortages, was built with an ebony neck shaft instead of conventional steel bar.

     A successful journalist for 30 years, Mr. Lelen arrived in Central Jersey 15 years ago after helping launch several magazines, including Fine Homebuilding and Home Again. He also developed newsletters for various Manhattan publishers, freelanced business articles for newspapers and magazines in the tri-state region, and was a business news columnist for the Trenton Times. In 1997 he started the Apartment Section of the Washington Post and left full-time journalism a few years ago to pursue his dream.

     Mr. Lelen says he's always had an affinity for this kind of music, perhaps thanks in part to his bobby-soxer mother who owned a collection of jazz, swing and blues records. Raised on Long Island, Mr. Lelen's first instrument was flute. But, like many young musicians of his generation, the folk bug bit him and he picked up the guitar after hearing the Kingston Trio, Peter Paul and Mary and other folkies mix classic melodies with thoughtful lyrics.

     Mr. Lelen started playing vintage guitars ten years ago because he found "the guitars didn't 'want' to play rock'n'roll — they wanted to play ragtime and jazz standards," he says. In addition to material from the 1920s and 1930s, he writes and performs original songs with the same kind of wry wit, good humor and double entendres as songs by Dorothy Fields and Irving Berlin.

     His real passion is in delivering the honesty of the emotions expressed in these old songs, much of which is lost to the cacophony of over-produced recordings. Mr. Lelen says vintage songs also evoke a period in time when things could be savored more, when the pace of life in general was slower.

     "Entertainment today is taken on the run," he says. "When people listen to music, it's often turned on and off according to busy schedules. Those are just some of the factors that contribute to the public's tendency to listen to musical fragments, not complete thoughts."

     He also notes people read less and don't listen or talk in full sentences. Consequently, contemporary song lyrics also don't express complete thoughts. "With old songs — of which there's a bottomless well — there's a more complicated emotional content," Mr. Lelen says.

     "Sure, they appeal to older folks who remember them from their day. But I think younger people reach a point when they have to consider the emotional content of their lives and more deeply examine their culture. There's a whole other element of this vintage music. It speaks to us all, generation after generation."

__________________________________

© 2003 — Princeton Packet

Bad Moon Rising

Musicians mourn the demise of the moon in romantic songs

On July 29, 1969 Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, the first men to
land on the moon, planted a U.S. flag on the lunar surface. The 40th anniversary of the
moon landing is Monday, July 20. (AP Photo)

This article was originally published on July 12, 2009 in the following U.S. newspapers:
     •  Home News Tribune - East Brunswick NJ
     •  Desert News - Salt Lake City UT
     •  Northwestern - Oshkosh WI
     •  Phoenix - Muskogee OK
_______________________________

By Chris Jordan — Staff Writer
CENTRAL JERSEY — Twenty years ago it was one small step for a man, but one giant leap for the demise of the moon in pop songs. When Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969, he all but squashed the classic pop song device of the moon as a romantic metaphor.

"The moon lost its romantic aspect," said Titusville historian and guitarist Ken Lelen, who plays ragtime, jazz and swing tunes as originally performed or recorded in the first half of the 20th Century. "Since the lunar landing, the moon has been devoid of that power. It's no longer a place for expressing romantic love."

Before Apollo 11 the moon rose often enough in song titles and verses. Blue Moon (1934) by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart; It's Only a Paper Moon (1933) by Harold Arlen, E. Y. Harburg and Billy Rose; Moon River (1961) by Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini, and Fly Me to the Moon (1954) are a few moon-themed hits by writers of the Great American Songbook and Tin Pan Alley. The moon was a tangible but untouchable entity representing a physical and spiritual love that would never ebb. It was magical and imponderable, yet very real.

"The moon as metaphor for romantic love has run its course," Lelen said. "I'm not saying it's good or bad, but pop culture is done with it."

While there have been a trickle of pop hits since 1969 that used the moon as a romantic metaphor — most recently R&B's Walking On The Moon by The Dream — the majority of moon songs since the lunar landing conveyed something very different. For example, Bad Moon Rising (1969) by Creedence Clearwater Rising suggests impending Armageddon; Whitey on the Moon (1970) by Gil Scott-Heron deals with racial inequality and social unrest; and Man on the Moon (1992) by R.E.M. suggests the moon landing was faked.

Where did the love go? "We became a little more cynical," said Glen Burtnik of North Brunswick, former member of Styx and hit songwriter. "I remember when Frank Zappa announced he'd never write a love song and thinking that was a revolutionary point of view. Also, what happened, subconsciously, was the moon lost its mystique. It was no longer a celestial body that shined from the heavens; it became some place we could go visit."

Around the time of the moon landing, space references in pop songs also changed from romantic escapism to tales of interstellar exile (David Bowie's Space Oddity) and other-worldly party places. Those were especially prevalent in the Parliament-Funkadelic mythos.

"We threw rockets at it and finally hit, then we walked on it," said Philadelphia singer-songwriter Vance Gilbert, whose Unfamiliar Moon is one of his best-known songs. "There's a certain amount of mystique that we lost . . . it had never been touched — it was the ultimate manifestation of both God and love and you never touched it, but you knew it was there. I think after it got defiled, you got to know it."

In other words, been there, done that. At least we have It's Only a Paper Moon, Fly Me to the Moon, Blue Moon, Moon River, etc.

"Maybe it has run its course, but for singers like me, it's not going away," said musician and vintage guitarist Lelen. "There is no shortage of romantic songs with the moon as a focus of romantic devotion."

_______________________________

Ken Lelen: unplugged and loving it.

Opening for jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, Ken Lelen will sing ragtime, jazz and swing and play vintage acoustic guitars with bassist Matt Koch on July 17, 2009, 8 pm, at the Minstrel Folk Project in Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Hgts Rd, Morristown NJ, $7. Info at 973-335-9489 and folkproject.org.

_____________________________________________________

© 2009 — MyCentralJersey.com  and  Gannett News