Play That Funky Music

I am thankful for music. My life would be so boring without music. Could you imagine driving to work every morning without music? Would I be able to actually run in the morning without my ipod blaring Jamiroquai? What would we do in the middle of the 7th inning without music? How lame would films be without the score? How deprived would the world be if there wasn't music for me to dance to. I have only one musical talent: the ability to listen to it and usually enjoy it. The only college class I ever stopped going to was guitar. I was asked to take singing more seriously and stop messing around while trying to sing in a church choir (I was actually trying my best). So, I just stick to listening. I always have some song stuck in my head at any given time. Currently I have a spoof song in my head from when the Jonas Brothers hosted Saturday Night Live ("I was struck by lightning!" is doing non-stop loops in my head). I think the thing I like most about music is the memories that can be associated with certain songs. I know I am not the only person who hears a song and is immediately transported back in time. Everybody has certain songs that remind them of some thing or some one. Here are a few of mine:

Toto-Africa: This song reminds me of Disneyland. I remember being a youngster and waiting in line for Space Mountain. A cover band was performing and they played this song. From then on whenever I hear it I think of Disneyland.

Malcolm Mclaren-Buffalo Gals: This song reminds me of the days of break dancing and being care free. Those were the times when you would sit next to the radio with your tape recorder on pause. You waited for the right moment when your song was coming on the radio to unpause it. Hopefully the DJ didn't talk all the way up to the lyrics.

Men at Work-It's a Mistake: This song reminds me of my brother Jed. The video features the often forgotten Eagle Force toys. We had these and played with them in forts we built with Lincoln Logs. Men at Work was my favorite band of the 80's, so it also reminds me of my early childhood.

The Penguins-Earth Angel: The first time I can remember slow dancing with a girl was while this song was playing. It was at a friend's birthday party. I think this was probably in 5th or 6th grade. The song was playing from a juke box.

A Tribe Called Quest-Can I Kick It?: This song reminds me of my cousin, Tyson. My cousins probably don't know that they were responsible for introducing me to a few music groups. Yaz and They Might Be Giants come to mind, but A Tribe Called Quest was by far the best. I'm sure I probably would have discovered them later (After all, they are my favorite rap group.), but Tyson was the first person to play this for me.

Chris de Burgh-Lady in Red: This song reminds me of youth dances at church. There were a lot of frequently played slow songs, but for some reason I associate this one with pressure of walking up to girls and asking them to dance. I don't even think this was a very popular song outside of the church dance world. I hardly ever hear it these days.

Keith Sweat-Nobody: This song reminds me of a trip to Magic Mountain with a bunch of my friends during my high school years. Somehow this got stuck in somebody's head. As the day went by it had attacked every one's brain. By closing time we had serenaded many a lady with this song while waiting in line for rides. Who can love you like me? Nobody.

Shakira-Antologia: This is our song, so of course it reminds me of Sara. But it also reminds me of when we were still dating. When it was just she and I. When she was my whole world. Before all of the kids and responsibilities of growing up. It reminds me of our young love.

Wilfrido Vargas-El Venao: This song reminds me of my time spent in Ecuador. There are a lot of songs that remind me of that time, but this song always baffled me. It was tremendously popular (It seemed to be playing on just about every bus we got on.) I just remember listening to the chorus and thinking that it would never really translate in English. Could you imagine a song asking people not to call you a deer? Then again that was before people like Master P and T-Pain came around. Now I believe people will listen to just about anything.

The Smiths-Girlfriend in a Coma: Whenever I hear this song I am reminded of a time being in a van with a bunch of friends. We were all "manly", "jocks" and this song came on. Every one of us not only knew the lyrics, but we sang out loud. Then the song ended. There was a brief pause and we never discussed it again.

The Killers-Somebody Told Me: This song reminds me of Skyler. This was the first song I can remember her actually singing the lyrics to. It was at that point that I made sure to pay attention to the lyrics of whatever songs I was playing in the car.

Kid and Play-2 Hype: This whole album reminds me of my brother Knick. We had this on constant rotation. Knick was pretty young, but he started reciting some of the lyrics. I think our favorite to hear him sing was 2 Hype.

Pearl Jam-Black: This reminds me of my time spent working at the Post Office. It was my first job after high school. I had to be there super early, but that didn't keep me from staying up super late. So, when I got home I would be pretty tanked. I would put Ten in the CD player, put on the head phones and lay down for a good nap. As a side note, Ten is one of the albums that I listen to from beginning to end without skipping a song.

This list could go on and on, but I think I'll stop here. What songs take you back to another place? This is the song that I currently hope to hear on the radio: