Cultural Points of Light

[Wanda Ovahear]

Gratz to Richard for becoming Lola! Of course his choice reminded me of the Kinks song with which she shares a name.

(I’m listening to it now on Spotify)

I was 16 when the song came out. Having been told that Crossdressing was an illness when my mom caught me, I was surprised (and titillated) by a song in which, while unexpected, being crossdressed was normal and resulted in love blooming not horror or shaming.

Pretty heady stuff for 1970. What’s more, it was popular and still number 3 among their most popular songs according to Ultimate Classic Rock.

So, what about you, ladies? What kind of encouragement did/do you find out there in music, movies, and other media?

[Marlene Roberts]

Please, what’s the link/song? Best Marlene.

[Wanda Ovahear]

Marlene, you should be able to click on Spotify in my posts to reach the song Lola by the Kinks but just in case:

Link
https://open.spotify.com/track/0c2ta2eSTOMDpGHsitgb5c?si=v14H2mEMSa2H1DGsyQVsTQ

[Angela Booth]

Lola was quite a song about sexual awakening with the attraction to Lola, quite hard hitting for the time yet such a popular song with the masses and still played today. The Kinks were very popular and it was such a clever song in the way it was written and constructed that many males would have it in their collection and perhaps it got them thinking and as Lola was pushed away it was okay. It also came at a time of the sexual revolution with gay rights so hit the spot in many ways.

I remember Tom Robinsons ‘Glad to be gay’, another cleverly written song that highlighted gay rights. It gave a message but was so catchy. Could you imagine a bar full of drunk alpha males booming out the chorus of ‘Sing if you’re glad to be gay’? Genius.

[Wanda Ovahear]

I’m picturing that now, Angela, thanks for your post.

[Astrid Lenore]

Oddly enough, though Lola has been and will continue to be a classic, most of my musical inspiration to pursue femininity came from songs not traditionally associated with CD/trans/LGBTetc.

Some examples I can think of off the top of my head:

Ben Folds: Learn to Live with What You Are.  Absolutely brilliant message, whatever your particular passion in life, and one of the best videos I’ve ever seen.  Classic Ben, what can I say?  “Sometimes everything you’ve ever wanted floats above, sticking out its tongue and laughing while everything anyone could ever need is down below, waiting for you to notice.”

Muse: Muscle Museum.  A weird one that honestly just started hitting me today.  Dark, bittersweet, melancholy, and yet… oddly uplifting?  “I have played in every toilet, but you still want to spoil it, to prove I’ve made a big mistake.”

Tori Amos: Winter.  As a Christian with a strained relationship with his/her father, at once haunting and comforting.  “When you gonna make up your mind?  When you gonna love you as much as I do?”

[Wanda Ovahear]

Thanks for sharing Astrid. I know Ben Folds a bit but he and Muse aren’t in my musical orbit so I appreciate learning more about their songs.

Your remark about Winter reminded me of similar themes in “One” by U2

[Wanda Ovahear]

Meeting new member Flora Smith reminded me of the old musical “Floradora” and it’s chorus of Flora Dora Girls and that reminded me of The Little Rascals as the “Flory Dory Girls”

Right down to corsets and pantalettes! I don’t have specific memories of this scene stimulating dress up play, but I do remember seeing it on Saturday mornings.

Moral: never go onstage with a monkey in your bustle.

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