Me 'n' Boyz II Men

I haven’t entirely abandoned music, but I stopped keeping track of the newest superstars about the time Kansas and Peter Frampton hit the charts. Actually, BECAUSE Kansas and Peter Frampton hit the charts.
So it makes sense that by the early 1990s, I was officially out of the loop, though I did once recognize M.C. Hammer in the Jazz locker room during a trip to L.A. He had come by to tell them they were too legit to quit. Seemed like a good guy. He politely waited until I was finished talking with Karl Malone before they began shop-talking about trucks.
Anyway, I digress.
The story is that I was at a Jazz-Clippers game at the L.A. Sports Arena prior to tipoff, one year, when four young musicians were ushered to mid-court, where they sang a killer a cappella version of the national anthem. Just killer.
I had my son on the trip and as we drove back to the hotel I said, “Wow, did you hear that national anthem? Those guys were good. They should get a recording contract.”
“Dad,” he said, trying to be kind, “I think they’re already pretty popular. They’re called Boyz II Men.”
Seventeen years, 60 million albums and four Grammys later, I think I get it.
Since then, I’ve kind of peripherally kept track of them, seeing how we’re contemporaries. OK, I exaggerate. We once stood in the same building. Are you happy?
I mention this story because the anthem for Wednesday’s Las Vegas Bowl is set to be sung by none other than Boyz II Men. It will be all I can do not to lean over to the person next to me in the press box and knowingly say, “Oh, yeah, Boyz II Men, I know those guys. Great group.”
In fact, other than the Rolling Stones, it’s the oldest group I know.