Stumblin' Along 12/29 '24
Grow
Grow
- Times Square New Year’s Eve History
- YouTube Rabbithole
Alright @YouTheReader,
Today’s tune is Grow by Kidnap featuring Leo Stannard. Kidnap, formerly Kidnap Kid, is an English EDM Producer from Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
This song was released on his 2019 album. A few years ago it showed up as a recommendation on my Spotify and I thought it sounded nice.
Maybe I’m missing something but this feels like a song that should be a hit one day.
This is one of those songs that I can’t tell if I just enjoy because in my head I “found it” (via a Spotify algorithm) or if it’s a hidden gem. I’d like to think the latter, but who knows?
Upon releasing the 2019 album, Kidnap told Magnetic Mag…
“Some songs come together in a day, some in a week. “Grow” took three years from start to finish. I loved the central melody but couldn’t find the right way to expand it into a full-length song. Eventually, through collaboration with my friend Leo, the final version was achieved. This song now stands as a reminder of the rewards of patience.”
If this doesn’t come up on another Note before NYE, I hope 2025 brings you growth, prosperity, and whatever your heart desires. Have a happy and safe new year ahead!
On to some history…
Times Square, New York
Approximately 330,000 people Stumble Along Times Square, New York every day. On average, over 1 million people visit Times Square on New Year’s Eve. It is simply one of the most visited places on Earth and there is quite a bit of backstory along with it…
When the Dutch first settled on Manhattan Island, the area was nicknamed Grote Kil (Great Kill) because it was where 3 streams converged into one. Much of Times Square today was a marshy area in the 1600s and there were plentiful amounts of mussels or fish, hence the name Great Kill. During and after the American Revolution, a fella by the name of John Morin Scott owned the property. Scott was pretty intelligent, graduating from Yale by the age of 16 in 1746. The Ivy Leaguer was the general for the New York militia under George Washington. JMS fought out east on the Battle of Long Island and would be wounded in White Plains. After the Revolutionary War, John Morin Scott became the first New York Secretary of State. He also lost to George Clinton in the first governorship race in New York history. JMS would use the area around Times Square for farming and breeding horses.
(Source: History NYC Courts)
The area’s name would go from Grote Kil to Long Acre Square. Known for horse breeding, it’s no surprise it became the center for New York’s horse carriage industry. William H. Vanderbilt owned the American Horse Exchange, the same Vanderbilt founded the University in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt was not only a horse guy but a railroad builder. The man just had a real passion for travel but it is a shame he wasn’t around to see the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) being built. Once New Yorkers could venture up to Long Acre Square more easily, the area started to build up and we started getting theater advertisements and streetlights.
(Times Square NYC)
With improved travel access came more foot traffic in the area and businessmen figured it would be a good spot for more advertising. Adolph S. Ochs, who was the owner and publisher of The New York Times from 1896 to 1935, decided the area would be a great spot to build a Times Tower. I concur, great location, and in hindsight a good call by Adolph S. Ochs. When the Times Tower was originally built in 1903, it was the 2nd largest building in The City so it stuck out like a sore thumb. It was exactly what Ochs envisioned as he wanted his publication to be highly visible.
In 1904, after seeing how magnificent the Times Tower building was, Mayor George B. McClellan decided to rename the Long Acre Square to Times Square. That same year, the first-ever New Year’s Eve celebration took place at Times Square. New Yorkers back then were just built differently, as they celebrated using dynamite which nearly caught the tower on fire. The first Ball Drop took place in 1907. It was made of iron and wood, weighed 700 pounds, and was covered with 100 light bulbs.
In 1909, a temporary eight-ton statue called “Purity (Defeat of Slander)” occupied quite a bit of Times Square’s space. The 50-foot plaster statue was the work of a young Italian-born sculptor by the name of Leo Lentelli. The civic group Association for New York commissioned Purity. According to Assoscaiotn of New York’s President, William Harmon Black, the reasoning was to “challenge indiscriminate abuse and criticism of New York City.” Even the biggest haters of New York gotta admit it’s pretty funny that over a century ago they literally installed a massive talk-to-the-hand-because-the-face-don’t-want-to-hear-it statue set in the middle of Times Square. According to Black, “aspersions constantly cast upon the integrity and honesty of the municipal authorities.” There you have it, casting aspersions and whatnot. Anyway, Miss Purity only lasted 2 months in 1909 before she was taken down. Today, there is a Father Duffy Statue in its exact location and a George M. Cohen Statue as well, but I’ll save that bit for another time….Back to NYE….
(Source: Ephemeral New York)
A New Year’s Eve Ball has been dropped in Times Square every year since 1907. The only exceptions were during World War II in 1942 and 1943 when the ceremony was suspended due to the wartime "dimout" of lights. Nonetheless, even in those years, crowds still gathered for a moment of silence before a ringing in the new year. In 1920, they replaced the wooden ball of 1907 with a 400-pound iron ball. By 1955, they said dropping a 400-pound ball is a bit nuts so let’s use a 150-pound ball of aluminum instead. During the 1980s “I Love New York” campaign, red light bulbs, and green stems were added to the aluminum ball to give it a makeover. Then at the turn of the 21st Century, New Yorkers figured we needed a major upgrade with crystals and technology, calling it Crossroads of the World. In 2007, as a way to commemorate the 1907 Ball an even newer LED crystal was added which dramatically increased the brightness and color capabilities. The New Year’s Eve ball today weighs 6 tons and is made up of 2,700 crystals. 2025 will be the last year of the current Crossroads of the World Ball as they plan to retire it for yet another new one.
(Source: Times Square NYC)
