Entry tags:
Music Advent? Er, no.
I have an appointment this afternoon that I need to drive to. I should probably have just worked from home this morning but I decided it was faster to drive in to the Land That Transit Forgot than to clear off enough space on either my dining room table or my desk to be able to get anything productive done. So I had to deal with the slog that 395 northbound is in the morning. On the plus side, I should finish in time to be able to stop at The Container Store on the way home.
I listen to the radio in the car and, sad to say, I listen to cheesy earworm-inducing pop-rock. For example, I am currently infected with Ed Sheeran’s “Don’t.” Which brings me to my all-in-one shot version of Music Advent. Namely, here is a list of the top songs on my birthday for every year of my life with my commentary:
1958 – Volare. Still addictive after all these years.
1959 – The Three Bells. I can’t say I’ve ever heard of this one, or The Browns, who sang it.
1960 – It’s Now or Never. Elvis and not at his best.
1961 – Michael. I’m not sure if I know this one, but at least I have heard of The Highwaymen.
1962 – Sheila. I vaguely recall this song by Tommy Roe, but I couldn’t sing it. (Not that I can sing, but you know what I mean.)
1963 – My Boyfriend’s Back. At last, something I know and even like.
1964 – The House of the Rising Sun. An actual classic.
1965 – Help! The Beatles, yes, and a pretty good song, though there are better, given that both Ticket to Ride and Yesterday were the same year.
1966 – Sunshine Superman. Ugh. I can listen to some pretty syrupy stuff, but Donovan? Ugh.
1967 – Ode to Billy Joe. Oddly, I just read about somebody making a commemorative documentary about this song. There is no accounting for tastes.
1968 – People Got to Be Free. I have probably not thought about this song since 1968 and there is a reason for that.
1969 – Honky Tonk Women. Ah, the Stones. Much better.
1970 – War. Edwin Starr’s one-grunt wonder.
1971 – Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey. Surprising earworm potential.
1972 – Alone Again (Naturally). A song that makes as little sense now as it did when I was a teenager.
1973 – Let’s Get It On. You can’t really go wrong with Marvin Gaye.
1974 – (You’re) Having My Baby. No. Just, no.
1975 – Rhinestone Cowboy. And that was before Glen Campbell had Alzheimer’s.
1976 – You Should Be Dancing. Yes, I should be dancing, but I have no memory of this Bee Gees song and I think I prefer it that way.
1977 – Best of My Love. Nor do I remember this, or The Emotions, who sang it. I prefer not to recall the emotions of my college years.
1978 – Grease. Actually, why don’t we just cut out all the disco era?
1979 – My Sharona. Is it any wonder that the records I have from that time period run to Ian Dury, Elvis Costello, and Devo? I was not a disco queen.
1980 – Upside Down. This actually worked fine in Jazzercise class.
1981 – Endless Love. It was a chart topper for several weeks, but I am blank.
1982 – Abracadabra. The Steve Miller Band means things are improving.
1983 – Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). Someone should write a dissertation on the songs of Jazzercise. I seem to recall a particularly painful abs routine.
1984 – What’s Love Got to Do With It. I was totally focused on grad school at the time, so love had little to do with anything.
1985 – St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion). No clue. Apparently John Parr performed it, which also doesn’t help.
1986 – Venus. Bananarama. I was working and had a car at this point. I listened to the news.
1987 – La Bamba. Even in the Los Lobos version, this is still the single best dance song of all time.
1988 – Monkey. George Michael and back to the news.
1990 – Blaze of Glory. Jon Bon Jovi supposedly owns Django Reinhardt’s guitar. I find this vaguely disturbing.
In fact, let’s just forget the 1990’s on. That goes for the news, too.
I listen to the radio in the car and, sad to say, I listen to cheesy earworm-inducing pop-rock. For example, I am currently infected with Ed Sheeran’s “Don’t.” Which brings me to my all-in-one shot version of Music Advent. Namely, here is a list of the top songs on my birthday for every year of my life with my commentary:
1958 – Volare. Still addictive after all these years.
1959 – The Three Bells. I can’t say I’ve ever heard of this one, or The Browns, who sang it.
1960 – It’s Now or Never. Elvis and not at his best.
1961 – Michael. I’m not sure if I know this one, but at least I have heard of The Highwaymen.
1962 – Sheila. I vaguely recall this song by Tommy Roe, but I couldn’t sing it. (Not that I can sing, but you know what I mean.)
1963 – My Boyfriend’s Back. At last, something I know and even like.
1964 – The House of the Rising Sun. An actual classic.
1965 – Help! The Beatles, yes, and a pretty good song, though there are better, given that both Ticket to Ride and Yesterday were the same year.
1966 – Sunshine Superman. Ugh. I can listen to some pretty syrupy stuff, but Donovan? Ugh.
1967 – Ode to Billy Joe. Oddly, I just read about somebody making a commemorative documentary about this song. There is no accounting for tastes.
1968 – People Got to Be Free. I have probably not thought about this song since 1968 and there is a reason for that.
1969 – Honky Tonk Women. Ah, the Stones. Much better.
1970 – War. Edwin Starr’s one-grunt wonder.
1971 – Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey. Surprising earworm potential.
1972 – Alone Again (Naturally). A song that makes as little sense now as it did when I was a teenager.
1973 – Let’s Get It On. You can’t really go wrong with Marvin Gaye.
1974 – (You’re) Having My Baby. No. Just, no.
1975 – Rhinestone Cowboy. And that was before Glen Campbell had Alzheimer’s.
1976 – You Should Be Dancing. Yes, I should be dancing, but I have no memory of this Bee Gees song and I think I prefer it that way.
1977 – Best of My Love. Nor do I remember this, or The Emotions, who sang it. I prefer not to recall the emotions of my college years.
1978 – Grease. Actually, why don’t we just cut out all the disco era?
1979 – My Sharona. Is it any wonder that the records I have from that time period run to Ian Dury, Elvis Costello, and Devo? I was not a disco queen.
1980 – Upside Down. This actually worked fine in Jazzercise class.
1981 – Endless Love. It was a chart topper for several weeks, but I am blank.
1982 – Abracadabra. The Steve Miller Band means things are improving.
1983 – Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). Someone should write a dissertation on the songs of Jazzercise. I seem to recall a particularly painful abs routine.
1984 – What’s Love Got to Do With It. I was totally focused on grad school at the time, so love had little to do with anything.
1985 – St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion). No clue. Apparently John Parr performed it, which also doesn’t help.
1986 – Venus. Bananarama. I was working and had a car at this point. I listened to the news.
1987 – La Bamba. Even in the Los Lobos version, this is still the single best dance song of all time.
1988 – Monkey. George Michael and back to the news.
1990 – Blaze of Glory. Jon Bon Jovi supposedly owns Django Reinhardt’s guitar. I find this vaguely disturbing.
In fact, let’s just forget the 1990’s on. That goes for the news, too.