I clicked on iTunes yesterday and was momentarily shocked when there was nothing on my playlist. Shocked because I have over 12GB of music and I didn't expect to see an empty iTunes library staring at me. We got a new desktop recently and I haven't updated the music on it yet. Anyway, so while I was updating iTunes, I started listening to some songs I hadn’t heard in aaaaaaages. Some made me laugh, some made me nostalgic, some I’m not sure why they are on my playlist at all. But it got me thinking about how songs can trigger certain moods and how our brain makes certain associations with certain songs. They are not necessarily always our most favourite songs but they just stick with you anyway.
Off the top of my head, these are some of the songs that I always associate with something/ someone.
Everybody Hurts – R.E.M: This is my ultimate sad song. Whether it’s a fight with V or missing home, this song always makes me sadder yet better.
Yellow – Coldplay: This is the first Coldplay song I ever heard and I love Chris Martin. Sometimes it makes me feel romantic, at others it reminds me of school and a cousin and his car stereo where we discovered many of our favourite artists together
Leaving On A Jetplane – Janis Joplin: Between 2003 and 2006, I couldn’t listen to this song without crying. V was studying in a different city and I’d only see him once every 6 or 8 months. It also reminds me of my best friend A because we listened to this the day before I left for Aus and it’s so true… “don’t know when I’ll be back again….”
That Thing You Do – The Wonders: Again reminds me of A and my sis because ever so often we’d go a little mental and dance to this song (in the secrecy of our homes) like there was no tomorrow.
Turn Me On – Kevin Lyttle: It was such a HUGE rage a few years ago and my sister made up this little dance for my dog, where she would be flailing his little paws all over the place. It makes me laugh so much and reminds me of all the torture we put our dog through! It’s a happy-sad song now.
Romeo & Juliet – Dire Straits: It’s not exactly a love song a couple should be singing but somehow V & I both love this song and he loves to play it so it always makes me feel gooey. :)
Anything Metallica: V worships them and I started listening to them a lot more because he insisted on playing all the songs for me. I quite like them now. But I can’t listen to them all the time.
Say My Name – Destiny’s Child: Hahaha… okay, my cousins and I came up with a ridiculous harmony version of this song when it first released. It’s funnier because none of us can really sing and we did a four part harmony with seconds et al. I heard this at the sushi place the other day and I was laughing by myself. Must’ve looked a bit loopy I reckon.
Never On A Sunday – Melina Mercouri: My mum used to sing this song when she was in one of those happy moods where annoying me only made her happier!
I Want To Break Free – Queen: I went to an all-girls Catholic school and there would be days we wanted to “break free” from the sometimes archaic rules we had to follow. We even had a wooden desk beating nice percussion beat to go with the song.
Absolutely Everybody – Vanessa Amorosi: This used to be the theme song for the ads on Star World (an Indian TV channel) at one point and my sister and I were obsessed with it. We had a thing for TV & movie theme songs and would download almost all of them.
I’d really like it if some of you did this and wrote about your songs and the memories you associate with them. Its fun!
