Music, Music Classic, Nestor Aparicio, Sports, x-Archive

For Engelbert Humperdinck, I was not that easy to forget

Nestor Aparicio

Baltimore Positive is the vision and the creative extension of four decades of sharing the love of local sports for this Dundalk native and University of Baltimore grad, who began his career as a sportswriter and music critic at The News American and The Baltimore Sun in the mid-1980s. Launched radio career in December 1991 with Kenny Albert after covering the AHL Skipjacks. Bought WNST-AM 1570 in July 1998, created WNST.net in 2007 and began diversifying conversations on radio, podcast and social media as Baltimore Positive in 2016. nes@baltimorepositive.com

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Even though I am trying hard to present this #MusicalNes narrative in chronological order, this is a step a bit backward if not sideways and only because I want to honor the request of David Geller to make this legit. My Pop had, literally, zero musical taste. Like, none. No rhythm. No song. No opinion. I can’t remember a thing he ever said about music. However, my Mom, who was quite hard of hearing for most of the last 15 years of her life, never really listened to music for pleasure later in her 98-year tour. But, I do know that she had a groovy 1970s brown console turntable that was my first musical exploration zone. And other than spinning Len Barry’s “123” incessantly and two Partridge Family Albums that I think came from my next door neighbor – probably so I could preview what my 2020 pandemic hairstyle would look like on David Cassidy – I dropped the needle on this Engelbert Humperdinck vinyl gem many times. It was a favorite of hers that became a favorite of mine. There will be some twists in this “May” I share my #SongfulNes stories with you all month for conversation and comparison that have jogged my memory in such a #BaltimorePositive way. My Mom died three summers ago and we played this as the soundtrack at her viewing. These songs are so awesome! “Quando, Quando, Quando” is my personal favorite but I would rightfully understand your affection for any of these classics. I twice interviewed the former Arnold Dorsey, who wound up being a wonderfully humorous and soulful man, during my #AlmostFamous 1980s era at The Baltimore Evening Sun and set up a doubles tennis match with him at Greenspring before a show at Pier Six Pavilion in 1989. During this exhibition, I inadvertently blasted my pal “Enge” in the testicles with a shot at the net. He went down for 90 seconds and I frantically jumped across the net to check on him and he came up, gasping for air and said in his best falsetto: “I’ll be OK! I’ll be OK!” True story. I bet I am not that easy to forget…