“Love Will Keep Us Together”
There was a race in my head for what song to post tonight, between this cheesy 70s classic and another really good 70s song. Obviously, cheese won, but I’ll be saving the really good song for another post when my brain is more in the writing mood. (I’ve been washing down the walls in my friend’s new house because he doesn’t want to; he’s done a lot of really nice things for me in the past, so I owe him a couple. Needless to say, I’m really tired. And I’ve still got one room left to do.)
I heard this song on the radio tonight, and it brought back memories from my childhood. My mom always liked The Captain and Tennille; she even bought one of Toni Tennille’s albums of standards in the late 80s. I remember the songs, and have vague memories of them being kind of funny on their short-lived variety show. What made them really interesting and unique is that they were both keyboard players. ”Love Will Keep Us Together” is a Neil Sedaka-penned pop song that hit Number One on the charts in 1975. It wasn’t as cheesy as the cheese-tastic song “Muskrat Love,” but it wasn’t that far off.
Thing is, it’s a true story. Love really did keep Daryl Dragon (aka The Captain) and Toni Tennille together. They met in the early 7os when he got a job playing keyboards in a musical she wrote (he returned the favor by getting her a job touring with The Beach Boys, whom he also played for), and married in 1975. Now retired, they are still together, making them one of my favorite show business couples. Their love is pretty obvious in the little glances they exchange while playing. Even though they don’t perform much together anymore, I’ll bet they still exchange those little glances all the time.
Posted on January 17, 2013, in Music, Pop and tagged artists, songs, the captain and tennille, video. Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.
When I hear this song it takes me back to when I was 12 in the hospital — it totally transports me back to that time in general. I can taste and smell things of that era and feel what I felt. I love this song though. It’s not like some songs from the eighties that I hate because generally I hated the eighties — haha!
Isn’t it amazing how something can trigger so many memories? I can hear my mother happily singing along with this song in my head every time I hear it.
I remember those pageboy haircuts. I always wanted that, but my mom hated them and wouldn’t let me. And those backup singers — were those dresses really in style? They look like pajamas! I loved the Captain and Tenille! She was always very animated and he was so stoic.
I wouldn’t wear anything that was “stylish” in the 70s, but it’s darn funny to look at some of those clothes. Toni is a cute performer. She just seems so happy.