Disclaimer: Cousin Stephanie called and said, “I have free tickets to…” “Yes! Of course! Thank you!” said I. I needn’t have heard the rest.

From My Hometown: A Rags to Riches Celebration of the American Dream in Classic Rhythm & Blues, conceived by Lee Summers, written by Lee Summers, Ty Stephens & Herbert Rawlings, Jr.

Okay. The story was thin; anorexic; perhaps a little cheesy. (A “Celebration of the American Dream “? Oy.) But I can’t say I didn’t have fun.

The story—what there was of it—was told by 3 young men called, respectively, Philly, Detroit, and Memphis; each championed his own hometown’s particular flavor of classic soul music: Philadelphia Soul, Motown, and the more blues-based Memphis soul (subtle, huh?) who auditioned for a chance to perform at the world famous Apollo Theatre and become a star. Hope, disillusionment, love, lust, revelation, despair, joy; along with a primer of the three aforementioned branches of soul music; Sam Cooke, Arthur Connelly, Otis Redding, the Chi-Lites. Ah, it was timeless. So it reallyreally bugged me that it was set in 1980 (except for the very end, which was set in 1990), perhaps the least soulful year in American popular music. Who the hell in 1980 would have signed a Chi-Lites cover band to a recording contract? I’m all for the willing suspension of disbelief—tell me a giant ape is climbing a skyscraper and I’m with you—but I have my limits.

HOWSOMEVER, as my father used to say [wait! I thought he made up that word, but spellchecker has not flagged it! Daddie! You erudite little elf, you!], imagine: all of your favorite soul music of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s?!!! Ya gotta love it. Candy and I whipped out our Dean Anthony Off-Key Singing Club Cards and had a rockin’ good time. Actually, I think it would be a great Las Vegas- or Atlantic City-type nightclub show: Light, breezy, easy-to-digest, sing-along-able… make ‘em forget how much money disappeared in the casino.