I really did start this post today, writing in Wishbone Diner in Chicago :-)
An ode to great music!
Do
you have songs that can lift your entire mood? I'm sitting in a Chicago
restaurant right this moment, listening to "You Dropped a Bomb on Me"
and don't understand why everyone isn't dancing! How can you sit there eating
your soup? Where is your Guess miniskirt? Your rubber Madonna bracelets? Your
permed hair? Your best college girlfriends, shaking their hips and pointing
during the refrain, then shimmying those hips down as the whistling
"dropping a bomb" sound repeats... again and again and again... thank
you, Charlie Wilson!
I
also heard “Thunder Road” by Bruce Springsteen on a recent road trip. From the
opening lines (“like vision she dances across the porch as the radio plays…”),
the poetry of racing out of town with a dangerous boy on a warm June night can
still make me feel like anything is possible, if only I am willing to take a
risk (where are those dangerous boys now?!).
And suddenly,
during a professional development (that I was leading -- so I'm not sure this
impressed the participants!), I felt compelled to start singing "Say a
Little Prayer for You." (For clarity, I'm imitating the Dionne Warwick
version (with props to Aretha, who sings a beautiful version, too); but most
people know this song from My Best Friend's Wedding. I'm lucky enough to have
learned this song from hearing it on vinyl... thank you, Mom.) It was amazing
how quickly the lyrics jumped right back to me, and a handful of teachers
joined right in, without skipping a beat, a big smile on their faces (I think
they were singing the Dionne Warwick version, too!).
Although
they are so very different, each of these songs buoys my heart immediately. The
trigger of a night of dancing, a night of anything being possible, a night of
loving – I’m so lucky my brain is absolutely wired to shift gears and allow the
combination of compelling lyrics and a strong hook to serve as a jolt of joy. What
songs are on your bring-the-joy
playlist?
It's easy to see that music brings jolts of joy your way. I especially liked the memories that came back when you heard "You Dropped a Bomb on Me."
ReplyDeleteWomen (and men) of a certain age will know exactly what I mean :-)
DeleteI have several songs I remember hearing on vinyl. (My dad still has a record player. I should have him share some of them with my kids the next time we visit. My daughter thinks music always comes out of a CD or an iPhone. I bet listening to a record would blow her mind!) One in particular is "We Are the World." I think I was eight or so when that came out. I remember listening to it again and again and again on vinyl -- trying to sing all of my favorite artist's parts.
ReplyDeleteI, too, am a big fan of the Gap Band! My kids know "Party Train" well, and one of my all time favorite songs is "Outstanding." Nice to know music courses through the veins of other people, too. Thanks for sharing this!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteThis is Lanny, by the way...not sure why my name didn't show up! :)
Delete"You... blow my mind" (you blow my mind...)
DeleteI LOVE that song, too! Hurray for connections!