One thing most people know about me and that anyone who doesn't know me but has read any of my posts may be learning is that I absolutely love music. I need music in my life the way other people need cigarettes or coffee. Like many people, music helped me get through the bad times, helps me savor the good times.
I thought that after the absolute darkness of the last post, I should do something a little lighter, more fun for this one. In that spirit, here are some songs that have special meaning to me for positive reasons.
"Pictures Of You" by The Cure
This is, unquestionably, my favorite song ever. The first time I heard the Disintegration album, way back in 1989, I was still trying to find my true music taste. While I did lean heavily toward some of the "alternative-mainstream" (altstream?) music, such as OMD, Erasure, Depeche Mode, and even other Cure albums, I also liked punk rock, especially Dead Milkmen and Ramones, plus random stuff like Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Alabama, and, the biggest staple on my dad's record player back then, The Beatles. But when my friends Tara and Shelby brought over the Disintegration cassette, I knew I had found the true magnetic north on my musical compass.
The first time we listened to that cassette, we were driving to Cleveland to go to the zoo. We ended up driving for almost four hours, criss-crossing all over Northeast Ohio, listening to the album straight through three times. We finally went to the zoo, then listened to the whole album again on the way home, taking back roads instead of the highway, so it would take longer. 26 years later this is still, in my opinion, the single greatest album ever recorded. Sure it has flaws, but overall, it is majestic, beautiful, haunting, chilling, depressing, and joyful all at the same time.
As for this particular song, when I first got my own copy of Disintegration, I played this song over and over so many times that whenever I would listen to the entire album, I would notice how much the sound quality on "Pictures Of You" had diminished. But I didn't care. Cassettes were, what, 7 or 8 dollars? I would just get a new copy and do the same thing. The very first CD I ever bought was the single of "Pictures Of You" and it finally enabled me to keep a copy of the cassette that wasn't going to shit. (I still have that copy of the cassette and throw it on once in a while for old time's sake.)
I can't really express what this song has meant to me over the past 26 years. I'm not sure if I can truly describe what it was that made 14 year old me fall in love with it so completely from the very first time I heard it. In all honesty, had it not been for this song, as well as this album, I may very well have ended up with very different tastes in music overall.
"Stuart" by Dead Milkmen
This song reminds me of my sister, Penny. She and I still quote this song to each other every once in a while. It has some of the funniest lyrics I've ever heard, and it's still just as funny now as it was back then.
Basically it's a song about stupidity and gullibility. There's the opening (and closing) line ("You know what, Stuart, I like you. You're not like the other people here in the trailer park "), the part about the narrator's son dying at a carnival, ("POW! He was decapitated! They found his head over by the sno-cone concession"), and even some conspiracy theories ("I know it's the queers! They're in it with the aliens! They're building landing strips for gay Martians! I swear to God!") thrown in for good measure.
The best part however is the second verse, talking about the paper boy, Johnny Wurzner, and how he begged his father for a burrowing owl for his birthday... " 10:30 the other night, I go out in to my yard, and there's the Wurzner kid looking up into the tree. I said, 'What're you looking for?' He said, 'I'm looking for my burrow owl.' I said, 'Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick! Everybody knows that a burrow owl lives in a hole in the ground! Why the hell do you think they call or a burrow owl anyway?!?!' Now Stuart, do you think a kid like that is gonna know what the queers are doing to our soil?"
It is impossible to listen to this song without it cheering you even if it's just for a moment. Two and a half minutes of joy.
"Don't Give Up" by Peter Gabriel
This is an extremely slow, almost depressing song from his album So. It is also extremely inspirational and warm, and it instantly makes me feel a little stronger and more positive when I listen to it. Kate Bush does the female vocals, and she is simply amazing. The light airiness of her voice plays perfectly with the deeper tones of Peter Gabriel's voice, probably the best duet pairing he's ever done.
"Sit Down" by James
This song is just an anthem for anyone who feels out of place. "Those who feel a breath of sadness, sit down next to me. Those who find they're touched by madness, sit down next to me. Those who find themselves ridiculous sit down next to me. In love, in fear, in pain, in tears..." It's another one of those songs that I had a strong connection to from the very first time I heard it. Just absolutely love it.
So there you go. A couple songs that are beautiful, or wonderful, or hilarious, that have each made their mark in my life. If you haven't heard any of them, I strongly suggest hitting YouTube. They're all there.
As always, thanks for taking the time to read. Comment if you'd like. That always makes my day.
Title of today's post is from "Sit Down" by James.
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