Saxophonist Clinton Shares His Love For Rock ‘N’ Roll
Among his several distinctions, Bill Clinton is the first American president who really likes rock ‘n’ roll music. The significance of that difference between him and his 41 predecessors should not be underestimated.
It is impossible to imagine Richard Nixon or Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter or George Bush, to mention only some of the chief executives of the past quarter-century, willingly putting a Joe Cocker record on their turntable.
When rock was solidifying its status as the most popular form of American music, our presidents customarily ignored it. Presidents are supposed to be in tune with us; we count on that. But if our presidents won’t even listen to the music we like, are they really in harmony with us?
Clinton, 50, has been listening to rock since he was a teenager. His assurance and affection as he talks about it are manifest in “Bill Clinton: Rock & Roll President,” an interview airing at 5 and 7 p.m. Tuesday on VH1. Carly Simon is the host.
Unlike the case for many young people of his generation, Clinton’s interest in rock was encouraged by his mother, Virginia Clinton Kelly.
“A lot of parents in the ‘50’s didn’t like it (rock) very much,” Clinton recalls. “They thought there was something vaguely bad about it.
“My mother thought it was wonderful. She loved Elvis Presley from the first day she saw him.
“She thought rock ‘n’ roll was great for kids.
“I felt a real special relationship with Elvis Presley because he was from Mississippi, he was a poor white kid, he did great, he sang with a lot of soul. He was sort of my roots: ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ and ‘Hound Dog’ and ‘Don’t Be Cruel’ and ‘Love Me Tender’ - that was sort of the beginning, the awakening of America to rock ‘n’ roll.”
Clinton’s general interest in music preceded the King, however.
“I started on the clarinet at age 9 with George Grey, who was my grade school band director,” Clinton says. “I wasn’t very good at it, so they switched me to saxophone when I was 9 years old.
“It (the saxophone) suits me emotionally, intellectually. I always liked it.”