Every job here in Florida is some kind of a Senior Show.... We have the Entry Level Seniors (the Baby Boomers) who are in their 50's to early 60s and are considering retirement or have just retired. Their tastes in music run from the very late 40s to the 80s including some Disco.

The 65-80 crowd here requests Big Band, Rhumba, Cha Cha into some of the Classic Rock & Roll (Elvis, Fats, Ray Charles...etc)
And since some of the ladies have lost their spouses, line dancing is important... everything from Alley Cat and Chicken Dance to Electric Slide, Boot Scootin Boogie and YMCA.

The Retirement Homes fall into several categories, I find.
A. Upscale Assisted living
B. General Assisted living
C. Nursing Homes

In the A and B categories, all the residents are ambulatory...some dance. They are hip to some good, clean humor and seem to appreciate anything they can hum... including some early R&R. R&B however does not seem to go well here.

In the C category, the folks are not ambulatory and may be sedated, restrained or suffering from Alzeimers or some other debilitating condition. While the reactions are much more muted...some even sleep thru the entire performance... the appreciation of the music is shown on smiling faces and attempts to sing along. Most of the vocal appreciation comes from the staff that works so hard to help the residents. Forget doing "My Way".... keep it bright and cheerful.

While retirement home jobs are vastly different from the Country Club and Antler Circuit jobs, I do enjoy them and feel it is a very worthwhile endeavor.

Eddie