Garden Party

On October 15, 1971, Rick Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band performed at Madison Square Garden. Rick had been a popular child star in the 1950's appearing with his family on the Ozzie and Harriet Show. As he grew up he segued into a singer, songwriter and recording artist. Teenagers loved his music and he was one of the first teen idols. As the 1960's approached, his career waned, as the English Invasion happened. The Beatles, Rolling Stones, and other artists like them, took the United States by storm. When Rick and his band arrived at Madison Square Garden he was now singing Country Music. As he matured, so did his musical tastes. It was a sold out house and Rick was ready for a comeback. He started to sing his country music and the crowd began to boo him. They wanted to hear the old songs. The ones they grew up with. The ones they could sing along to. He was booed off stage and truly devastated. How could his loyal fans turn on him. He had grown up, but they still saw him as a teenager. He watched the finale of the show from the sidelines. In 1972 he was inspired to write a song titled "Garden Party". It's lyrics told the story of being true to yourself and not having people influence what you want to do in life. This song reached number 6 on the Billboard charts. He made his comeback, but not in the way he had planned. Sometimes when I make an unpopular decision, I think of Rick Nelson. "It's alright now, I've learned my lesson well, you see you can't please everyone, so you've got to please yourself".