Notes On Music

 
"I want to know
Have you ever seen the rain?
Coming down on a sunny day."
 - Have You Ever Seen The Rain, by Creedence Clearwater Revival 


It's interesting how sounds, smells, sights, and tastes can link a person to certain memories. For me, music specifically has always had a way of instantly conjuring recollections and feelings. Last night the old song 'You're Just Too Good To Be True' came on the radio, and I immediately thought of two things. First, how a past boyfriend, Andrew, loved to play that song for me, singing along with "Can't take my eyes off of you" in a sappy sweet way. He was a sappy-sweet kind of guy: another song he liked to play me was 'Kiss From A Rose' by Seal, because Rose was a nickname he had for me.
The other thing that came to mind was a recent 'This American Life' podcast. The episode paid homage to a collaborator of the show - David Rakoff - who had just lost his battle with cancer. The podcast played a series of clips from David's radio career, including a musing on his cancer treatment: how when he underwent radiation, lying quietly in the treatment corridor, each time the song 'You're Just Too Good To Be True' would begin to play, always starting up at the same point; the swell of the orchestra, bold and brassy, as Frankie Valley belted out "I love you baby!". Right on queue, every time. I suppose that during such an uncertain time, it's nice to have something you can be sure of.

When I hear the song 'I Want You Back' by Jackson 5, I think of my brother. In a moment of honesty that I'm grateful for, he told me that he played that song to the girl he wanted to get back together with. It was sort of a last-ditch effort. The hope that a song which is so upbeat yet pleading both at once, sung by a young and earnestly enthusiastic Michael Jackson, would touch her heart. But no, it wasn't meant to be.

Another song which reminds me of a vulnerable moment is 'Daughters' by John Meyer. Back when that song was fairly new, a friend told me that when it came on the radio she would call her father. She wasn't close to her father. She took the song as a reminder to call anyway. She said this with almost a shrug, passing quickly to a new topic, as is her way. But it's stayed with me.

I have happier song memories too, of course. I remember where I was the first time I heard the song 'Shadowfeet' by Brooke Fraser. I was driving home and the song broke from the radio in the darkness, gripping me though I couldn't say exactly why. I pulled into my apartment complex and looked up the song on my phone right then. The music video made me love the song even more. Fraser became one of my favorite artists, and when she performed a concert near where I lived last year, I stood in a sea of fans and had her sign a CD after the show.

Once, I danced in the moonlight to the song 'Dancing In The Moonlight' with my boyfriend Sean. After he broke up with me I couldn't hear the song without crying. Yet somehow it remained a favorite of mine anyway, and when I hear it now I just smile, turn it up, and sing along.

'Hold The Light' and 'Mystery Of Mercy' by Caedmon's Call are so heartbrokenly hopeful they make me want to cry, while their songs 'All Things New', 'Share The Well', and 'Hands Of The Potter' fill me with joy.

The song 'Rainy Zurich' by The Fray was one I had heard many times, yet one day when it came on I heard it a new and fell in love. I picture it played at my wedding, and maybe one day it will be.

What are some songs/smells/tastes/sounds/sights etc. that have touched you?