Johnny Costa

I have been a raving fan of Mr. Rogers since I was a baby. At first I just loved the way he talked, and all of the cool stuff he was always getting into. I enjoyed his show as a kid’s show, afterall, I was a kid. What did I know?

Nowadays, I still like watching an episode of Mr. Rogers, on the rare occasion I have time to catch one, and I can honestly say I appreciate this show more now, than I ever could have as a child. There is one major reason for this, and his name is Johnny Costa.

Johnny Costa, of course, was the man responsible for the incredible soundtrack to this show. To this day I truly believe that my musical talent was inspired by the soundtrack to this show. Though I never realized it then, as I look back, this show was one of the first shows to expose children to jazz music in an accessible way.

I could go on about how today’s children’s programming falls well short of anything that was around when I was growing up, but that is for another time.

The thing is, I am always telling people that I wish Mr. Roger’s was available on DVD, only so I can go back and check out the music that accompanied that fine show. I always wondered who was behind it, what amazing pianist was just soaring in the background of this show. How it never dawned on me to look it up is beyond me. But today I finally did just that.

Johnny Costa was this pianist behind the curtain, and I was ecstatic to find that he has recorded his work on more than one album. Tonight I bought two them on iTunes, and upon hitting play I was immediately giddy, feeling like a kid all over again. It is truly a joyous sensation.

Being reminded of what it is you truly want to be your message in the arts is always an inspirational moment for an artist, even though it can happen again and again. It never gets old. It’s like seeing yet another cute kitten video on YouTube, and even though it is the 815th one you’ve seen, the associated reaction is still as genuine and surprising as it was the first time. That’s how I feel right now listenigng to this guy play.

I often wonder if, other people have these kinds of things in life, and what it is for someone else. Do other people have this “Cute Kitten Video on YouTube” phenomenon occur in their lives? I can honestly say I’ve never had that discussion with another person, but I’d like to someday.