Music is the Beat of Life
Over the last couple of days (through the Valentine's Day frenzy), I was reflecting on my 14-year relationship with The Bohunk, and realized how many songs remind me of him and take me back to specific incidents we have shared. Like how "If" by Bread reminds me of the time we had a HUGE argument (we were in college and had only been going out for a couple of months or so), and I hid in my walk-in closet - then he came in and apologized, and I apologized, and that song just happened to be on the radio at the time. It then ended up being "our song" and was the song we chose to be our first dance when we got married. Then there's Sir Mix A Lot's "Baby Got Back" - The Bohunk used to work for a landscape company in Fort Collins, and one of his jobs was to mow the weeds on the side of Highway 287. He would be pushing the mower down the side of the highway, Walkman blaring, "singing" this song - because it reminded him of me....
Then I started thinking how much music reminds me of a lot of things that have happened in my life, and just hearing the song that I have associated with the event will whisk me back - like a low-priced time machine....sometimes the emotions associated with it come back as strong as ever, like it just happened. The short list:
"Ordinary World" - Duran Duran: my friend Mark Smith ('nough said)
anything by Metallica: my friend Chuck Brickman (he was the one to "turn me on" to them - I had to borrow his car once and that was all that was in the car to listen to. He died from a heart attack playing soccer at 27, so now "Nothing Else Matters" belongs to him. He also gets "Eruption" by Van Halen, because he was the only person I knew who could play it note-for-note just like Eddie.)
"Love Song" - Tesla: this one belongs to Steph (she had just broken up with a mutual acquaintance, and we had gone dancing to try and cheer her up...I requested the song, and put on a performance for her right in the middle of the dance floor - a lip-synched serenade, if you will. A little while after that, I introduced her to Tim, who she ended up dating, then marrying - they've been married almost as long as me!)
"Daughters" - John Mayer (I think): this one is recent, of course - for The Girl. She hadn't even been born yet, but I would hear the song on the radio, and the lyrics struck a chord (no pun intended).
There are so many more, and I can't remember more just now - usually they don't come to mind until I hear them, and then I am reminded and taken back - sometimes to a happy place, sometimes to a painful place. But good or bad, I cherish each one for what it is - a moment that has shaped the person I am today. My question: what are your favorite song-linked memories?
posted by Nichelle @ 8:38 AM
5 comments
5 Comments:
There are actually very few songs from my life that evoke a specific memory, more often than not a song just hits some sort of nerve with no real explanation.
But I do have a couple that have hilarious stories behind 'em!
"You spin me 'round..." Dead or Alive. Darhla was sleeping over, it was 1985 (don't forget this was also in Belen!), and we'd stayed up late to watch "Friday Night Videos." We were both starting to get sleepy when all of a sudden on the TV came this crazy long black haired man or was it a woman? with an eye patch and shimmnying and dancing like crazy. Needless to say we woke-up pretty quickly!
The other song that always makes me laugh is "TNT" by AC/DC. I was in the 5th grade and we were having a party (V-day?, Christmas?) and the teacher had allowed students to play music. Someone brought AC/DC and I'm bopping my head and mouthing along to the song when a classmate walks-up to me with his mouth wide-open and says, "YOU LIKE AC/DC??? I thought you only listened to classical cause that's what your brothers listen to!"
This is just slightly off the subject, but I'm watching a lot of daytime TV these days and I noticed something. There is a mortgage company (Abascus?) that advertises a lot during the day on TV (and radio too). Anyway, their song sounds a lot like a Carribean version of "Psycho Killer" by the Talking Heads - especially the "run, run, run away" part.
It bugs me!
I'm reading your blog for the first time today, since I just found out you have one. It is so fun to read through and hear your thoughts on varied things! Thanks for sharing your blog site with me.
As far as songs go, I agree that they can bring you back to a memory like nothing else.
For example, certain country songs by a certain country group or two bring me back to walking through the Greeley streets at night dancing and singing like crazy girls with friend, Donut.
Many early ninties songs bring me back to one bar dance floor or another, like Love Shack-B52's takes me to DeadBeat.
Prince songs take me to life long friend Paige B's high school bedroom and us dancing on the bed and singing to her Prince posters.
Music Rocks.
: ) Kayc
Are you from Omaha? How did you know Chuck?
I'm not sure who you are "Anonymous", but Chuck was one of my best buddies at Colorado State U. He lived on my brother floor in Newsom Hall my sophmore year (he was a freshman). I still miss him and think of him a lot, even though I hadn't spoken to him directly in a couple of years before he died.
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