I like a variety of music playing in the background on the days when I work from home. Part of my morning routine before almost everything else involves loading the five trays of my new-ish compact disc player (yes, they can still be purchased) with music that will span the entire morning up through my lunch break. The morning of this writing, among my selections was a compilation of electronic anthems of the ’80s. Some may call it regression, but to me, hearing music from around my elementary school years (which I’ve written about before) often helps to put me in a calmer state of mind, especially during month’s end when many clients and agents are trying to close deals and book business. It’s a reminder that if I could master my multiplication tables, I can handle my inbox.
Among the artists featured on that ’80s compilation was New Romantic act Spandau Ballet, fronted by lead vocalist Tony Hadley. It was only just over a decade ago that I saw him perform in concert during the annual Market Days event that takes place in the Boystown neighborhood of Chicago, not far from Wrigley Field. Market Days is billed as the largest street festival in the Midwest, with attendees numbering in the hundreds of thousands over two days. I remember hearing Hadley’s voice before I recognized that it was him performing on the medium-sized bandstand toward the northern end of Halsted Street toward Addison. My older brother had owned a cassette of their third album, True, and I was familiar with the two Billboard Hot 100 top-40 singles from that album, the No. 4-charting title track and “Gold“, as well as also many of the other album tracks.
“Gold”, despite its modest, No. 29 chart peak, was probably my favorite song on that album, with the accompanying music video having been one of the first I had ever seen. It’s an uptempo track that also has an upbeat, optimistic lyric:
Gold (gold)
Always believe in your soul
You’ve got the power to know
You’re indestructible
Always believin’…
Any song about finding inner strength, like this one or Joe Esposito’s “You’re The Best” from the Karate Kid soundtrack, was going to speak to me at that elementary school age. I’d wager that the ideas of indestructability and longevity appealed to many other kids in my classroom as we continued to inch ever further toward the increased independence of adolescence, growing up, and realizing ourselves.
Here is a ’69 Lincoln Continental, on the opposite end of the decade that started with the clean-sheet ’61 about which CC had featured a vintage Car Life review at the end of last month. In that original article, the ’61 was extolled as the “best-looking American car built today”. That ’61 remains such a beautiful design even now, with its clean sides, curved glass, and chrome-topped beltline. Annual changes were the norm for many models up through the ’80s, so it was inevitable that the purest essence of the original aesthetic vision for the early models was going to be compromised with each new version. Still, lasting in this same basic form through the ’69 model year demonstrated this design’s true staying power and a certain, apparent indestructibility.
The color of this example appears to be Light Copper Iridescent. The fact that Abraham Lincoln’s head is on a copper penny makes the naming of this color seem like an intentional tie-in between the make and its namesake president. Maybe it was the tint of the street lamps above, or perhaps the substandard (sorry) photos I managed with my phone on that misty night, but this hue appeared to be more of a rich gold than what I normally would consider to be copper, which I think of as having more of a reddish tint. The colors in Lincoln’s palette that year also included Medium Gold Iridescent (which actually looks gold) and Light Gold (which looks more like champagne), but this copper color looks gold enough for me to work with my metaphor.
For ’64, there was a two-inch lengthening of the Continental’s wheelbase to 126 inches, but that’s something I wouldn’t have been able to tell by comparing pictures of the different, sequential model years of the Continental. Their looks were evolutionary from one year to the next. Just like that children’s game “telephone”, where a message is secretly passed down the line from one person to the next and ends up being reported as something completely different by the last kid, that’s what I feel had happened with the styling of the very last Continental of this generation before the redesigned ’70 models were introduced. The introduction of that proto-formal, upright grille for ’69 after years of featuring a more horizontal frontal look seemed to be the cap on a decade of subtle changes that all seemed to add up to a more impactful net effect at the end.
Non-Mark Continental sales were down only slightly from ’68, with about 38,300 ’69s sold between coupes and sedans against a combined total of 39,100 the year before. Peak sales of this generation of Continental came in ’66, with almost 54,800 sold. The 1970 redesign would register another slight drop in sales, down less than 2% to about 37,700. Our featured car has a 365-horsepower, 460 cubic inch V8 under the hood and weighs no less than fully two and a half tons to start. Sedans outsold the coupes by a ratio of almost 3:1 for ’69, which is interesting especially given that coupes were generally still very popular at that time.
Spandau Ballet were active as a band between 1979 and 1990 before splitting up. They reformed in 2009, but appear to have disbanded again as of 2019. Similarly, after a near-continuous run between 1940 and 2002, the Continental was discontinued, brought back again for 2017, and then dismissed following weak sales after 2020 with no apparent plans for its return. Evidently, neither the band nor the car’s place in the United States marketplace was indestructible. Still, parked at the curb, this fine Lincoln’s chiseled profile commanded my attention against the early evening bustle of a normal weeknight in the neighborhood. This example may not be golden and a little imperfect, but it’s still a broad-shouldered Lincoln from the end of nearly a decade’s run of a design that exuded an indomitable confidence.
Edgewater, Chicago, Illinois.
Wednesday, November 16, 2022.
Once heard that Jerry Clower, a humorist from Mississippi, bought his wife a gold Lincoln Continental.
My uncle James “Bo” Shealy drove Lincoln Continental’s with “suicide doors” for many years.
Great cars as I recall.
I had to look up Jerry Clower, as I was previously unfamiliar. I like learning about new-to-me cultural references like this / him, so thank you.
I certainly miss humorists like Jerry Clower, Rod Brasfield, Minnie Pearl, and the other rural monologists and comedians that now are from a bygone era. And we can’t forget Homer and Jethro, Lonzo and Oscar, and the other musical humorist, as well. There isn’t anything comparable these days, where humor and frivolity are conspicuous by their absence. Too bad that they all passed off the scene at about the same time “real” cars were supplanted by rolling identity-less computers with seats. I guess I’m just too old…….
One of the most beautiful, and unique cars ever built by the Ford Motor Company, it has several notable milestones to its credit. It was the last four-door convertible available for sale in the good old US of A, until the convertible was dropped from the model lineup in 1968 (1967 was the last model year for the ragtop). It was Ford’s first uni-body car, which is one of the reasons that it weighed almost three tons! I guess that the engineers were being conservative in this first design, especially since it had to support both the sedan and the convertible versions. The MEL 430/462 engine was used from 1961 through 1967, the Ford 460 V8 became the engine of choice in 1968, unfortunately, since the 460 was never available from the factory in the convertible.
Finally, I would argue that the Lincoln Continental was the most famous convertible of the 20th century. A heavily modified Lincoln Continental, a 1961 edition fitted with a 1962 front clip by Ford, along with a pair of jump seats, designated SS-100-X, was built by Hess & Eisenstadt for the US Secret Service as the Presidential Limousine. JFK was riding in that car on 22 November, 1963, as his car passed the Texas School Book Depository Building, when three (3) shots were fired at that car, allegedly by Lee Harvey Oswald, killing Kennedy instantly.
Yer very close… Hess & Eisenhardt is the name of the coachbuilder.
Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa! You can take the boy out of Catholic School, but you can’t take the Catholic School out of the boy, LOL!
This was not Ford’s first unit body. The 1960 Falcon/Comet and the 1958 Lincoln and Thunderbird were Ford’s first modern unit bodies, and there was also the 1936 Lincoln Zephyr.
Actually, H&E were not the limo builders at that time. They did limos for ’59 & ’60, but not for this generation. Lehmann-Peterson was the coach company that made all the limos for the clap-door Lincolns, to include the Presidential ones.
Another correction: The author noted a two-inch stretch of the ’64 cars. Not quite true. The stretch was 3″, at the wheelbase, then another 5″ at the tail in ’66, and finally another 3-1/2″ at the center of the nose in ’69.
Yes, the ‘verts are infamous for being JFK’s instant hearse…but there is a lot more of a Kennedy connection than just that, which so many do not realize. When the original concept design was presented to Ford execs for approval, as a T-Bird proposal, one of those execs liked it so much he insisted it be refitted to be made the new Lincoln…AFTER Ford had already approved a design for ’61 (one that was nothing more than a carryover of the ’58 design). That first approval was rescinded and the T-Bird proposal made the new ’61 Lincoln, on that one exec’s order. Who was that exec? Robert S. McNamara, who would become president of Ford and shortly afterward was appointed as Secretary of Defense by JFK. Now you know the rest of the story.
I love this! I remember Spandau Ballet well and at my kitchen job in the 80’s I used to always imitate Tony Hadley’s dramatic delivery of “Gold”, which got many laughs from the other kitchen staff. Very cool teenage memories. I almost bought a 69 Lincoln in dark green, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be. I still think this generation of Lincolns are the sharpest land yachts ever. Great article…
Thanks, CD. “Dramatic delivery” fits well, and my favorite intonation is when Hadley sings in the third chorus, “sooulll-ah, you’ve got the power to know… ♪♫” They were a great New Romantic band, though, and the sense of drama was one of that genre’s calling cards. I’m glad this post could bring up a good memory.
What I find remarkable is that as long as I have been photographing old cars in the wild, the only Lincoln of this 1961-69 era that I ever captured was another 69 sedan.
This became my favorite of the whole bunch for a brief while when I was a kid, mainly out of a burst of contrarianism because nobody else gave them much love. I even built a model kit of one, that I painted solid black. Now, I still like it but can see that the grille may not have been the most attractive of the bunch.
As a 10 year old when these were new, I associate these with the top 40 tunes that were playing on the radio at the time – a topic that got discussed yesterday.
The ’69 grille, to me, is almost like the ’74 taillights – a sort of one-year experiment with a much different aesthetic than people were used to on these cars. I like the ’74 also for the same reason as the ’69, by being sort of an outlier amid what came before and after.
I share your contrarianism, but from a different perspective. Being a handful of years younger, the “sixties” Lincoln was to me something of a classic car that sold in low numbers. I was living in the Lincoln sales boom of the ’70s, where a “modern” looking Lincoln seemed almost as prevalent as the Cadillac, which was also setting sales records.
So, I look at the sixties Lincoln holistically, without the baggage of thoughts of how they compared with the ’58-’60 Lincolns, and concurrent Cadillacs and Imperials
I see three fairly distinct groups in the sixties Lincolns. 1961-’63 was mostly the same car – not ugly, but suffering some ill proportions thanks to the overly short wheelbase, strangely small rear side window glass, and awkward oversize C pillar. Knowledge that this quite big heavy car was known for a cramped rear seat doesn’t help my opinion of it.
The ’64-’65 cars represented an important change. Lincoln knew the market was losing its humor with the cramped rear seat; stretched the wheelbase – lengthening the rear side glass with it, and creating a better C pillar.
The ’66-’69 cars were the real refresh of the 1961 Lincoln. Opening up the rear wheel opening resolved what I thought was a dowdy rear quarter panel, and the generally crisper and simpler lines work much better with with the slab sided three box styling that was at the core of the ’61 car.
The ’66 may be my first pick of the sixties Lincolns, but I do actually rather like the ’69 front end.
Many good points about the ’69 Lincolns .
My first Lincoln was a ’65 when it was 6 years old and even in Los Angeles it was a $350 car .
Ran like a raped ape and smooth & quiet . ’65 was the first year for front disc brakes, it desperately needed them .
After that I briefly has ’64 then a ’63 , also good cars if not as good looking to me .
The ’66 was a real game changer ~ suddenly used Lincolns were no longer just old luxury cars .
I had a ’67, that was a rocket /
-Nate
Just a couple years older than the author, Spandau Ballet was part of my High School soundtrack. True was one of those albums whose videos featured heavily in the first years of MTV, and I have a certain fondness for the era, for obvious reasons. I recently have started listening to music in the office, which I only did very infrequently before. In my case the stresses of “Snowbird Season” in Florida, coupled with our insane insurance climate has me seeking anything that’ll help my sanity through the day. A Pandora account and a good quality Bose speaker are my best friends at work lately. It doesn’t hurt that when people stop in to ask questions or whatever, the background music often sparks a brief conversation about anything other than the task at hand, which can’t be bad for general morale, I suppose. I’ve gravitated toward the music of my youth as well. Familiar music that you can let run through your mind while working seems to make the day less taxing, and every once in a while a certain song will send me on a brief mental vacation back in time. Today it’s 80’s Pop, which was a mood inspired by hearing Madonna’s ‘Crazy For You’ on the way in. This post dovetails perfectly with my Tuesday!
You completely get what I was trying to say about the music in this piece. The familiarity of the good music we remember and like can serve as just enough distraction from whatever mood or seemingly troubling task, almost like a reset button. Very effective. I’m convinced that music is better than any chemical substance I’ve ever tried in that regard, and doesn’t add any calories or leave any bad after-effects. It’s perhaps why I still have such a voracious appetite for new-to-me music, despite owning an already-vast music collection.
Music, like the eyes, are windows into your soul .
-Nate
well, not a car comment but about 25 years ago the daughter of a very good friend married Matt who was the manager of Tony Hadley’s then current band , which included John teh drummer from Spandau and Tony was an usher at the wedding here in the UK. His band then performed quite a few numbers at the reception including of course Gold. Amazing to be watching all this from about 6 foot away. Matt still manages several of the old bands like Go West, ABC etc, they do lots of work for charity. Here’s a couple of photos (had to retake from old prints) I took at the reception, hope a bit of interest
This is outstanding. Thank you for the recollections and also posting the picture. When I saw Tony Hadley perform at the Market Days street festival in (I think) 2011, it was just him and not the rest of the band. Maybe it was earlier on in the afternoon, after the early crowd had gone and before the party people had shown up, but I thought there would have been more people at his stage. His voice was in fine form – he sounded great. Maybe he was saving “True” or “Gold” for last, whereas if he maybe had started with it, more people would have recognized him as billed solo under his own name.
WOW what a great memory!!
The driver of this Lincoln seems to have a handicapped parking permit, that ought to at least insure that they are able to find a place to park this behemoth on city streets.
Your mention of your morning CD ritual reminds me of something else that seems pretty much indestructible – or at least evergreen – that is, older audio equipment. Not only are many devices (CD players and tape decks come to mind) easily repairable, but there seems to be a never-ending supply of free or nearly free equipment ready to supply parts or entire replacement when necessary. My town transfer station is a veritable Circuit City circa 2005 when it comes to keeping my CDs spinning and tapes playing. So, it’s good to hear Joseph that there’s at least one other person around who appreciates his CD collection and keeps the CD player playing. 🙂
All my Spandau Ballet though is on vinyl. Still playable as well.
Our clan’s old sound equipment winds up being given to my autistic grandson to disassemble. He’s facinated by the innards, undoing screws and unplugging wires while keeping up a running commentary on what he’s doing. He can name many of the parts, or asks grandpa, and knows to be careful around capacitors. Often grandpa will be called on to help with a tight screw, or asked whether there’s a tool to reach this or that piece. Often we find it seems to be the CD player that conks out first. If the optics checks out okay and won’t respond to alignment, then it’s off to Alex’s bench.
And yet, the stereo I had back in the eighties is ‘holy ground’ for my son. He was so disappointed to find the turntable wouldn’t work when he went to show young Alex. He has so many fond memories of playing records on it, and he’s chasing up leads on who can get it working again.
Spandau Ballet on vinyl – yep, I think Ben wants to hear it again.
Peter, it sounds like your 80s stereo may be one of those “all in one” devices (I had one too…a panasonic. In fact, I still do have it in the basement). Those are almost always belt-driven. Likely changing the belt (those are available online…just search by the device’s model number) and cleaning up the gummed up old lubricant on the changing mechanism will have you back in shape.
Yes, just so ~
Turn tables need the spindle cleaned and greased occasionally, get it really clean, often the old grease is rock hard .
I suggest short fiber grease and very little of it carefully applied .
There’s a big vintage acoustics place that sells the drive belts I believ, they send me adverts for all manner of cool vintage parts .
-Nate
Yes, it is one of those 3 in 1s. If only the fix was that easy. When you lift the arm off its rest it just about jumps out of your hand and shoots to the centre of the turntable. Unusable. I figure something in the tone arm tracking control mechanism is broken. Ben’s bound and determined to get it fixed, for the memories.
Jeff, that is a great point about the older audio equipment (and sound technology). I had a shelf-set of a CD player and speakers that lasted over a decade. If one of the speakers had gone out, I could have walked to the local thrift store and picked up a pair of replacement speakers for around $10. Easily. I hope never to part with my CD collection. I like the tactile feel of the actual discs, and also love the photography and liner notes that accompany each release. Digital files are reserved for rarities I can’t find elsewhere.
Yes ;
Quality never goes out of style .
I’ve not played any of my vintage records in years but I play the hell out of my CD’s and occasionally have to polish them with Meguiar’s Plastic Ploish to eliminate skips .
I have never figured out how to transfer my wax to CD’s but I still manage to find good obscure CD’s at my local thrift store .
Advent speakers are pretty good too ~ mine are about 40 years old and still sound good as new .
-Nate
Meguiar’s plastic polish – I may need to try this for that pesky, random, secondhand CD that skips. Thank you, Nate.
You’re most welcome Sir ~
I learn SO MUCH here and have so little to give back .
FWIW, the _medium_ used o apply the polish is very important ~ use lens paper (If you’re rich or a photographer) or cheapo toilet paper like Scotts Tissue basic ~ the fancy quilted extra soft tissues or Kleenex will retain microscopic grit and cause scratches .
Try it on a taillight lens first, you’ll know right away if you’re doing it properly .
I use this on my Motocycle face shields too, after gently cleaning the dead bugs off with cool water .
-Nate
For a long time I didn’t realize the extent of the changes made to the 1970 model from this 1969; I thought they just moved to regular rear doors and touched up the sheetmetal. They are of course very different, but I haven’t done enough time in either to know which is better overall.
This makes me wonder if I would think the same as you about the changes from ’69 to ’70 if the ’60s Continental had moved to conventional door hinges at some point in the mid-’60s (perhaps when the wheelbase was stretched by two inches).
The ’70 models do look beefier than the ’69s, but looking at both designs from the rear, they both have horizontal taillamps set into the bumper, which is one continuous styling element.
These ’60s Lincoln’s were still unibody, I believe. Then for ’70, Ford made them body-on-frame. Guess Ford figured the cars would be quieter with body-on-frame. But the classic ’60s Lincoln’s will never go out of style.
It wasn’t so much about being quieter than it was about sharing the same basic frame and body as the big Mercury and Ford. The days of a unique Lincoln “platform” were well over. It was inefficient and costly to build.
From the 1961 to 1969 Ford gave and set the Model for the 1964 to 1966 Imperial Made by Chrysler because everyone thought it was the same ride looking 👀 at from the side at a distance and the only way to tell the Imperial was not a Lincoln the Front End and the Rear End and the Suicide Doors. Oh yeah for the people that thought the Black Beauty was a Lincoln Continental it wasn’t it was a 1966 Black Imperial Royal Crown LeBaron made by Chrysler. It was Customized by another Customizer by the name of Dean Jeffries. Whom Created, Built and made it for the 1960’s Crime Fighter TV series The Green Hornet 🐝. Not only was the Ride Special But so was the Driver but he was also the confidant and valet during the day but at night he became the Sidekick, Chauffeur and Driver and would put on and wear a Black Chauffeur Uniform with a Black Mask and his Boss would Dress Like a Well Dressed Under World Crime Figure and he sat in the back as usual being Chauffeured and Driven around like a Hoodlum everyone thought they were but were not. Oh yeah he was Dressed from Head to Toe with a Green Brimmed Hat and Green Mask only two people knew who they were and worked with them very closely his Secretary 👩💼 and the D. A. The District Attorney. To me both Rides were Unique and Gave very Smooth Rides. Sincerely Yours Truly
I agree that there are definitely those Elwood Engel similarities between the early Continentals and Imperial LeBarons of the ’60s. I’ve also always been curious about The Green Hornet TV program, and don’t recall ever having seen one all the way through. Maybe the Decades cable channel will rerun a marathon of them at some point this year.
It’s a Damn Shame they don’t create, build, make and manufacture Rides like 👍🏾 that anymore.
Plenty of Spandau Ballet memories here too! Some music just never goes out of style, and has later generations gobsmacked if they haven’t encountered it before – there’s just something different about it, a distinctness about the sound, a standout among its genre. It doesn’t sound old.
Like the Lincoln, you’d never mistake it for anything else.
It’s interesting to read comments on YouTube beneath the videos or songs from this band, and from many others. To your point, good music never goes out of style, and I’m always secretly really happy that some commenters who remark that they’re young adults like some of the same things as I do. Including Spandau Ballet.
I don’t know that much about pre ’50s Lincolns, but I know that they squandered their mystique trying to compete with, and “Out Cadillac,” Cadillac with their ’58-’60 models. They gained it all back with the 1961-69 Continentals. In my eyes, Lincoln always had more class than the contemporary Cadillacs, and my own experience with both marques of this vintage, gave the nod for quality design to Continental.
These Lincolns were the last of the era where affluent buyers would buy a quality car and maintain it, and drive it for years. The restrained design would age well, and would still be something to be proud of.
My Dad bought a used ’69 Lincoln coupe as his last hobby car, he had owned a pristine ’63 before, and I had owned a ’66 sedan.
The more popular Coupe de Ville always had a distinct image, it was almost considered it’s own “brand.” Just say Coupe de Ville, and it conveys images of early middle aged, Rat Pack wannabes, streaking off to Vegas, Palm Springs, or Tahoe, for some steaks, drinks, and a few laughs. Hitting the clubs and golf course, or lounging by the pool. The good life as it was presented to us by the media.
The Continental had a more serious image of refinement, and good taste, driven to the opening of the opera or ballet schedule. Parked at a spacious home in a secluded, well heeled suburb. The owners did not wish to be flashy people, but the “coach doors” were the special touch that made their car unique.
This may have been true or not, I sure didn’t live through times like that as an adult. But I sure did dream of that as I watched the Dean Martin Show on TV, wishing that I could grow up to be an adult and have fun like that!
So many great points, and I agree with most if not all of them. Coupe DeVille was very much its own brand up to a certain point, which is probably why the two-door, non-Mark Continental simply didn’t have the same cachet.
I remember seeing some old programs in B&W where Lincoln was the sponsor, and it reinforced the thing you describe about Lincoln having a “refined” image.
I miss the idea of being able to buy a quality car (or goods) and expect them to last with good care and maintenance, versus be replaced after a handful of years.
A good looking car many years on .
I kinda like the photos, they’re mood enhancing to me .
-Nate
Thanks, Nate. I did the best I could with the cell phone shots in post-processing, but to your point, I was ultimately okay with how they turned out.
Immediately behind the SS 100 X in Dallas was the so-called Queen Mary. It was one of two custom- built ’56 Cadillac convertible follow-up cars. These were replaced by two ’67 Lincoln convertibles custom-made by Lehman-Peterson. The Lincolns were eventually replaced by a fleet of black Chevy Suburbans. The presidential ride nowadays is often a Suburban, distinguishable from the follow-up Chevys only by the presidential seal on the rear door.
Imagine a Suburban of the ’70s being used as a presidential ride. I like those Suburbans, but that’s a stretch in my mind – even painted all-black and with limo tint.
Outstanding work as always Joseph. And a terrific find. Love your Spandau Ballet tie-in, as fans would immediately appreciate your headline. Hard to follow up a timeless classic like ‘True’, but ‘Gold’ was a great effort by the band. Both songs got me exploring their music library at the time. Was very impressed by the Talking Heads/King Crimson-influenced funk and new wave, ‘Chant No. 1 (I Don’t Need This Pressure On)’. Excellent collaboration with ‘Beggar & Co’. ‘To Cut A Long Story Short’, was perhaps my fav, Spandau tune.
Thank you, Daniel. I like both of those other two Spandau Ballet songs that you referenced. They were happy surprises discovered on other compilation discs I had purchased over the years.
So much great musical output from the UK in the early ’80s. Maybe six or seven years ago, I had purchased a double-disc compilation called “Backstreet Brit Funk” that featured many songs that sounded like alt-world stuff I might have heard on the radio when I was a kid. Thanks for posting those links!
Beggar & Co.’s ‘Somebody Help Me Out’ was a splendid example of Brit Jazz-Funk. Very funky.
Love those LINCOLNS. 78 Town Coupe, 89 Signature, and current 2007 Signature Limited are among the best automobiles I have owned! So sad Lincoln as well as Cadillac and Chrysler no longer make traditional OTT LUXURY SEDANS! Sure do NOT want to spend big bucks for a glorified truck!🤮 😎
Rick, I, too, am a car person. Sounds like you’re loyal to the Lincoln brand and that you have had a nice assortment over the years.
I too am a Lincoln Lover, and have owned a sorted hand picked collection. From the 60s, my first choice would be the 1965s. A beautiful, refined evolution of the 1961, orginal Exner design. From the 70s, the 73 through 78s are my favorites. They seem to embody the look of what I think a full-size Lincoln should look like. Then not until the 95 Town Car was introduced did it finally reach a regal look. The only way to describe the grill and headlights is “elegant power”. By then it had also become a great road and driver’s car. It had features most cars from then and now didn’t have, and I believe many of it’s owners didn’t even realize were there. My 1995 black, with black leather Signature Town Car is the best car I ever owned. Taking in mind how my adult tastes and appreciation had changed. But, that’s just me.
Loved the post and the comments, but I feel so old, I was well beyond my teenage years when Spandau Ballet came along.
Also reminded me of one of my favourite Corgi toys – a stretch Lincoln Continental in gold. It had a ‘real’ colour tv. Actually a bulb and a battery. No matter that I never had a battery to make it work.
We didn’t have a colour tv in real life either and I’ve never seen a real Lincoln Continental in the metal. In glamorous America you had both!
I love that you mentioned Corgi toys. One of my absolute favorites was a silver Ford Sierra model I had gotten in London as a kid. Right now, I’m looking at a green, early ’80s Ford Capri Injection model on my desk that reminds me of the excitement of getting a toy of one of the cool cars I was seeing on the streets of Europe.
The Classic Corgi toy car is the James Bond Aston Martin DB5 with the ejector seat.
The James Bond Aston Martin was brilliant. Although the plastic bad guy on the ejector seat soon went missing. Under the furniture or in the dog.
My parents went to Bermuda on a trip paid for by my Dad’s company at the time. The company called them “Wives Weekends”, and my folks brought back two (2) Corgi models of a Bermuda Taxi, with a removable parasol roof, one each for me and my baby brother. Complete with a driver in the front seat on the “wrong” side of the car, LOL!
Joe, I think it’s great the way you read and respond to the comments on your posts.
I think I prefer my toy cars to the real thing, they don’t cost anything to run and don’t break down.
My favourite models were of cars that I wouldn’t see on the street. So a few German cars from infancy there, European cars, bought on summer holidays and especially Corgi and Dinky of American cars.
All time favourite is an early fastback Mustang, metallic lavender, wire wheels, ‘diamond’ headlights, opening doors and a Corgi dog on the back shelf. I saved up for weeks and I still have it.
I was a fan of the 61-69 Continental. In fact I built a town car version of the 69 AMT Continental model kit.
But what I really liked was the stretch limo built by Lehmann-Petersen. During a road trip with my buddy in the summer of 1975 we stopped by their plant and had a very brief guided tour inside. The Lincoln limousine was not a common sight in the city where I grew up even among funeral homes. Fleetwood 75 Cadillacs were far more common and a few were part of the fleet with a major taxi company.
That car truly took Journeys to Glory.