Play Me

I think I have said before that I am firm believer that a musical soundtrack should follow each one of us everywhere we go. The requisite scary music should come on before something awful happens and we should be serenaded with songs of love for those quiet moments. Someone near and dear to me once wrote down what he considered the “Soundtrack of his life” and while that is an undertaking I aspire to one fine day, for right now, I have to settle for snippets of the songs that I used as memory place cards at the banquet table of life. If you find some of my choices schalmtzy, feel free to go suck the proverbial egg. These are the songs of MY life, baby, and that’s just the way it is.
First slow dance- Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird”. 8th grade Christmas Dance. A real genuine boy asked ME to slow dance, which I thought meant he wanted me to eventually bear his children. The year was 1978 and I was wearing an iced blue satin disco dress and a white crocheted granny shawl. The unfortunate lad, Harry Thompson, esq., I am sure did not know that he fueled my adolescent fantasies, inspired by hearing Rod Stewart singing “Tonight’s the Night”. I think to poor Harry, I was just this entertaining girl from class and this was just a dance. I had my first boy/girl birthday party a couple of weeks later, and somehow arranged it with my girlfriends that Harry be the one who played “Seven Minutes in Heaven” with me. I got my first peck kiss outta that one. Alas, our love was not to be…
First OMG make out session- The Knack’s “My Sharona”. I mean, honestly, who wouldn’t want to jump on someone when that song is on? Could Doug Feiger, of blessed memory, have made an anthem more about teen aged humpery? I was 14, but I had told my “date” of the evening that I was 16. Anyone who has known me long enough knows who this boy was, but for fear that he might sue me some day, I prefer to refer to him as “Jeep, the Creep”. He prided himself on his “Russian hands and Roman fingers”. Still, that I can remember that particular evening 31 years later, must account for something.
The “first” time- Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band’s “You’ll Accompany Me”. To be in love like I was the first time made all the difference in the world. I was not a particularly big fan of Mr. Seger, nor am I now. I bought the album for my first love for his birthday that year and that was what we somehow picked to consummate our teen aged obsession. Still, at least the song doesn’t suck, and the memories of that fragile time in my life don’t suck either.
The first time I actually felt “sexy” and knew someone else thought I was too- The Hollies- “Long, Cool Woman in a Black Dress”. I was modeling some such new outfit for an admiring beau, when he put this on the turntable. You know, you strut a bit more with a soundtrack behind you! By the end of the song, I was posing like some cheesed up model out of “Blow Up”, a film I was forced to watch about a jillion times.
One of “those” nights- Van Morrison’s “Astral Weeks” (the entire album.) There was a night, a long time ago that I was with someone and this was the background music for the evening. In my mind’s eye, the tracks were seamless and I remember hours passing without break and no words exchanged. I may have conjured up the memories of this night in my head and my memories may be all shadows and light and never more. The other party involved that evening is gone now but obviously this album has stuck with me for a long time. “Slim Slow Slider” is my favorite epic on the album and its title and lyrics fit that night like a glass slipper. To be like that again is something I only dream of now.
A sure fire song to get me going- Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On”, possibly the sexiest song in the entire world. I feel like slippery quivering jellied satin when I hear that song. Put that one back to back with “Sexual Healing” and I might even be tempted to date a chicken. M-mm-mm good…….

I do have to admit to memories associated with other songs as well- Mike and the Mechanics “All I Need is a Miracle”, Jim Croce’s “Long Time Ago”, Styx’s “Lady”, Cheap Trick’s “I Want You To Want Me”, The Bangles “Eternal Flame”. Fleeting moments with fleeting pop songs and I neither dis the memories or the music. It was what it was at the time.