THE SCENE: 47 degrees F.,
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
SSH, Baby Arm Circles, Cherry Pickers, Imperial Squat Walkers
THA-THANG:
Set 1 Exercises (Under Pavilion)
Step Ups x12/leg
Dry Docks x12
Squat Jumps x12
Merkins x12
SSH (4 count) x12
WWII Sit ups x12
Mountain Climbers x12
Run Across Grinder
Set 2 Exercises (All with CMU)
Russian Swings x12
On the Shelf x6/side
Bent Rows x12
Curls x12
Goblet Squats x12
Lawnmowers x12/arm
Overhead Press x12
Run down to the road.
Road Work
Merkins x12
BBS x9
Drydocks x6
Burpees x3
Run back to Pavilion and repeat until “Recover” is called
MARY:
21 Boxcutters, 20 Flutter kicks, 60 LBCs
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
11 HIMs
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Merry Clayton and Gimme Shelter
We started the workout to the song Gimme Shelter, the opening track from the Rolling Stones 1969 album, Let It Bleed. When asked who sang the song most will generically say the Rolling Stones or specifically, Mick Jagger. When I listen to the song, I hear Merry Clayton. She is the background vocalist and the one who puts her heart and soul in the song. Merry was born on Christmas Day, 1948, and was the daughter of a Baptist minister in the New Orleans area. She began singing gospel music in church before she was tagged as a background singer for Ray Charles and others at the ripe age of 14.
In 1969 she was pregnant and living with her husband in Los Angeles. The phone rang around midnight and an agent said this British rock group needed a background vocalist for a track to complete a soon to be released album. They needed her to come to the recording studio right away. At first she said no, she was tired and she wasn’t feeling too well. Her husband said she needed to go; that it might be good for her singing career. Merry shows up at the studio and talks to Keith Richards about the song, the significance of the words written by Jagger, and the way they wanted it sung.
She sang one take, got some feedback from Richards and Jagger, and then said she would give it one more try. After the second take she offered a third and then said goodnight. The rest is history for the Stones.
Merry is always the singer I hear in the song. She was the one that gave it everything she had and she blows it away – as a backup singer. The Rolling Stones almost always gets the credit for this hit from almost 50 years ago.
There are many times that our roll in life is like Merry’s that night. We are not the one to make the decisions, we are not THE face in the crowd, we are not the leader, we may not get the recognition we deserve. We are the backup, the support member of the team, the one given a specific task in the big picture, the one that will be an integral part of future success. Regardless, our job is to push ourselves, attain the objective, and move on to the next. Always remember that there is no limit to what can be attained if no one cares who gets the credit.
So where is Merry? She went home after the Stones session and had a miscarriage late that morning. She believes the stress she put herself in earlier was a factor and she could barely bring herself to sing the song for a few years afterwards. She continued mostly in a backup singer roll and was highlighted in a 2012 documentary about others in similar rolls that made many of the legendary songs of the past. Finally some well deserved recognition has come to her. In 2014 a car accident left her without legs. Her faith in God and the inner strength and determination derived from that faith is keeping her on her feet and her music alive.
MOLESKIN:
Insert any personal comments, notes, devotion content, etc.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
OTBs start January 4th at Sandy Springs Park and will be held each Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 5:30 am. These will continue until launch of the new AO in Maryville. Meet at the basketball court.
