Thursday, January 05, 2012

CALLING MIKE LEDGEWOOD

The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and evil doers, and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.  Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.  He who has ears, let him hear (Matthew 13:41-43).

Anyone who knows who Mike Ledgewood is either actually knows a person named Mike Ledgewood or has been listening to too much of the Carpenter's music.  I am the latter.  My Ford F-150 farm truck has a dynamite sound system.  My wife left a Carpenter's CD in the counsel.  Last week it finally made it into the CD player and I have been listening to the silky-smooth voice of Karen Carpenter for about a week now--Okay, okay, I promise I will give it a rest.  It is unbelievable that it has be nearly 30 years since her passing.*

Anyway, there is a fun song on the CD that is the anthem of  world contact day called, Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft

If you took the time to listen you now know who Mike Ledgewood is--the guy on the phone to the DJ announcer.  I've always wondered if the name Mike Ledgewood is symbolic of something, or if it was a name plucked out of thin air.  One of the things that has always interested me about the song is the assumption that space aliens are friendly and that they are "interstellar policemen."  Is there an innate desire in human beings to have order imposed on them by extra-terrestials with super natural power?

The Bible speaks of a day when, at the Lord's command, the archangel, Michael (Mike Ledgewood?), will lead the angels in the harvest of the earth, first taking wickedness, and those who cause it, out of the earth.  These are the true "interstellar policemen."  Are you ready for contact day?

Our Father's Blessings,
Tom

*I have always been a Carpenter's fan.  See the Feb. 26, 2010 posting about another Carpenter's song, Goodbye to Love.

3 comments:

charlie said...

i am guessing it was an inside joke -- a friend or a record exec or someone. 20 yrs later, google is still no help in solving this mystery.

song was just a cover, btw. orig by canadian group (and part-time beatles imposters) "klaatu". check it out.

cheers

Tom said...

Thanks for the comment, Charlie. The song was a favorite of mine and I have often wondered about the identity of Mike Ledgewood--your explanation is as good as any. But could he symbolize a greater reality . . . ?

Anonymous said...

Hi Tom,

I had exactly the same question. And checking out the "klaatu" I found a hint. Both you and me have heard the name of good old Mike wrong. With the correct writing you can find:

"In case you're wondering why the name Mike Ledgerwood was used for the alien phone caller at the beginning of the Carpenters' version, he was the British press officer for A&M Records."