Monday, November 24, 2008

Lionel Richie


I seem to have been indulging myself a bit on this blog over the last few weeks. I have done quite a few posts on things that I absolutely adore. I suppose that`s what a blog is all about, hey? It`s my little view of the big world out there and sharing a bit of myself with my friends.

So, today is another one of those indulgent posts. I am a huge Lionel Richie fan. He is awesome and I love his music. My Ipod selection will prove this. I have about 8 of his albums on my Ipod and his songs grace all of my playlists. Even the ones named Jogging 1 and Jogging 2. Jogging 1 has a bit more upbeat tunes but I soon realised that I ran too fast and after nearly killing myself a few times I came up with Jogging 2, that has a lot more laidback music which makes for better running rhythm.

I digress. Hayley and I both grew up with Lionel`s music. Songs like Say you Say me, Three times a lady, hello were a big part of my younger years. I have held onto those songs and even today love listening to them. Stuck on you is one of my favourites. I remember when I commuted between Cape Town and Johannesburg last year, I spent many a flight listening to that song and either missing Hayley already or looking forward to seeing her in an hour or so. Just for you and My Destiny are also favourites.

A lot of Lionel`s songs form part of the soundtrack to our lives. I`m sure that`s not just true for me but for a lot of you out there.

Lionel is currently in South Africa and performed in Cape Town on Saturday night. Hayley and I unfortunately couldn`t go but by all accounts he was awesome. He gave an interview to one of our better investigative shows which was aired last night and that just made me an even bigger fan. He said something that really struck me. I actually had to rewind to listen to it again cos I really thought it was a very profound thing that was said. He spoke about his time as a student and his passion for tennis (which he was gonna make a career) and how the Commodores came about. Then he said the following:

"Failure is when your life does not go according to the path you had laid for yourself but then only does God`s plan come into play"

In other words, we see failure when our plans don`t become a reality but failure is only that, our plans did not come to fruition. For God and his ways, there are no failures.
I absolutely loved this. This brought to the fore Lionel`s religious beliefs, something which I had never thought of before.

Lionel gave such a heartfelt interview and it became obvious that he has no airs or graces about him. He is just a normal guy with an awesome gift for music.
I love it when people we look up to surprise us in a good way. I always knew he was a good man but I never knew just what an awesome human being he was. That was cool, now I`ll enjoy my Lionel music even more.

12 comments:

Heather Nicole said...

Wow, that quote gave me chills. I had never thought about failure that way. He makes it to be a positive thing! I suppose thats because GOD NEVER FAILS. Amazing. Thx for sharing!

David Richardson said...

Every time I hear Lionel Richie, I go back in time to the dances we had in high school during the 80s. Back then, he was THE MAN. Still has a good voice too!

Kevin said...

Yeah - so not sure if I'm too young for all this Lionel love, but I do like his music when I hear.

With you on the 'surprised in a good way.' I have idolized a few people in the past only to see an interview or actually get to meet them and they end up just being a tool. Love famous people who don't care that they're famous. His daughter on the other hand is not so 'admirable.'

Ordinarylife said...

I also watched the interview and was pretty impressed.

Freddae' said...

I'm a LR fan too. I prefer to dance on the ceiling. That's just me...but I'm a big 80s music fan.

Darryl said...

I can't remember how many times I "slow-skated" with a girl at the skating rink to songs from the Commodores or Lionel Richie . . .

Ah, to be a teen in the early eighties!

I'm glad to see Lionel giving God some credit for success.

The Running Golfer said...

Hey Heather, I know that really blew me away too. What a wonderful way of looking at it.

David, I know what you mean brother but I fear we`re giving our ages away here... :)

Kevin, "Lionel love", that was awesome :) but no, you`re NEVER too young for a bit of Lionel love! I must say, it looks like Joel Madden has been pretty good for Nicole. She seems to have turned the corner... I hope...

OL, how in love was Devi when he sang Three times a lady?? That was so cool!

Tiffany, the 80`s rocked! There I go giving my age away again... :)

The Running Golfer said...

Hey Darryl, slow skating! Now you`re taking me back to the good old days! Our town was very small but we had a skating rink! I remember the slow songs and being so nervous to ask a girl to "slow skate". Man that brought back some memories!
Ok, now I`ll have to explain to my sweet Hayley that I was very young and it meant nothing and that she`s the only one for me and the only reason I haven`t asked HER to slow skate is because there`s no rink around here... :)

Anonymous said...

francois, you better strap on rollerblades.
"no rink around here" won't work for long. seriously, take your girl skating. it's good for the soul as well as your marriage :)
but be prepared for chris brown or coldplay instead of lionel.

Keith said...

Lionel is not top of my list with regards to music. I do not mind his music, but I will not go and buy a cd just for his music. However that interview was impressive, considering he only arrived in South Africa that day.

Miller said...

Lionel Richie is so cool. Just like so many others have said, everytime you hear his songs you end up in an 80's time warp. He just keeps on producing the goods though and coming up with more and more impressive stuff. Hey , do you remember "ballerina girl"(excuse the spelling)

The Running Golfer said...

Hey Lisa! Rollerblading might be good for the marriage but at my age spending time in traction in the hospital will NOT be good for the marriage!

Keith, the interview was top class, for sure.

Mark, Ballerina Girl was written for Nicole if I`m not mistaken. Cool song.