I’ll Be Seeing You 🎺

By Gail Moore Woltkamp

My dad was a proud barber by trade but his affection for music, particularly jazz, was one of his most cherished pastimes. Sharing his music interest with me gave us a connection that I still feel to this day.

Dad was a jazz/blues/big band enthusiast to say the least. Among his various collections were records by Harry James, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller and His Orchestra, Charlie Bird Parker, Louie Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa…I could go on and on, and yes…I grew up listening to them.

I remember bopping around in our newly remodeled 1960s back porch den to “Rag Mop” by the Ames Brothers, and “Swing, Swing, Swing” by Benny Goodman. Dad would sing out loud to Lionel Hampton’s “Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop” and I would repeat the lyrics back to him. Does anyone remember “Open the Door Richard”? I’m not sure any of my childhood friends were familiar with that one, but I certainly was. 😂

No more than six, seven, eight and nine years of age, I remember Mom and Dad dancing in the kitchen to “Moonlight Serenade” and me dancing with Dad to Billie Holiday’s version of “I’ll Be Seeing You.” Being introduced to various genres of music at such a young age has been one of my life’s favorite gifts.

Although I always felt special, I more than understand that I’m not. Many people have a love for jazz, blues, soul, big band and swing music. Hollywood has made sure there’s an abundance of films and biopics around those genres…”The Glenn Miller Story,” with Jimmy Stewart, “A Song Is Born” with Danny Kaye, “The Fabulous Dorsey’s,” featuring Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey themselves.

Recent cinematic history also does not disappoint. Dare I mention La La, but what actually comes to mind is “The Terminal” with Tom Hanks, which, if you can make it through to the end, is ultimately about Hank’s character’s father’s love for jazz music. I saw it right after my dad passed away, being completely surprised by this random yet touching ending.

I have often wondered if musicians of that era understood how they impacted their young fans, future artists and especially the music itself.

At our wedding reception both our parents joined Bill and I on the dance floor to “Moonlight Serenade.” Our older son, who is a saxophonist, was quoted in his college newspaper that his jazz interest came from his grandpa. My dad would have loved that.

With the passing of time, I went through a phase where I grew away from Dad’s music. Playing classic jazz and big band standards on his 1959 Zenith Hi-Fi Console was eventually replaced with early favorites from my own generation…The Carpenters, Donny & Marie, Grease Soundtrack, Olivia Newton John…then later…Journey, Boston, Styx, The GoGo’s.

As the gap in our musical preferences widened, Mom and Dad bought me a stereo of my own, giving me a whole separate set of memories from my own generation’s music. For whatever “life gets in the way” reasons, the classic High-Fi console officially went from collecting albums to collecting dust and sat quietly in the corner of our den for the next few years.

Now, as I listen to Dad’s favorites on my phone, I am transported back to all those familiar places while being grateful for my history and what his music has given me.

Dad…

“I’ll find you in the morning sun and when the night is new, I’ll be looking at the moon, but I’ll be seeing you.” 🌕

#bigbandmusic 🧡 #jazzmusic 🧡 #soul 🧡 blues #💙