Song a Day?
March 31st, 2005 by Ian
Was sent another blog this evening. It was okay. What I liked about it was that the guy was sending a song a day to his boyfriend. He did it as a way to show his bf what he was feeling that day about him. I think that is an interesting idea. I’d kind of like to incorporate something similar into my blog. Just post a song (just title and artist, not the mp3 file) every day of my current mood.
I find music to be very integral to my life. I often use it to sort out my emotions. Or enhance them. Back in my “dark days” (indulge me here, it was college) music could change my entire attitude. Throw on Tori Amos’s “Pretty Good Year” and I was wailing with pain. Then put on Ani Difranco’s “Little Plastic Castle” and I was bouncing off the walls. A little Pearl Jam could get me into a rage. I was very emotional back then 
What I’m trying to get at, is that music is very important to me. And since it is important to me, I like to share it with others. I thought this “Song a Day” thing could be a way for me to share. Perhaps if a reader is bored enough, they’ll go find the song online and listen to it. Perhaps even enjoy it. Then I will have spread a little musical joy.
So we’ll see how it goes. If this is like everything else I do, I’ll either be gung-ho for a month and then slack off, or never really start it. Here’s hoping it is neither.
For the first song, I’ll start with my favorite artist. You should know by now that it is Tori. Today’s song of the day is “Pretty Good Year” by Tori Amos. I find it to be a very emotional song. I remember reading somewhere that the lyrics are actually from a letter a fan wrote to her. The lyrics are not very specific as to the events (as most Tori songs are), so it lets you interpret it in your own way. I often find it able to fit into my current situaions very easily. And it always helps to reveal a little something to me.
Now, since I am writing this at 12:20, does this count for March 30 or 31. I’m saying 31 to keep my life easier 
Having just heard (seen) this song for the first time (yes, I was on the same blog), I liked it. The vid-clip is kind of cute too (yes, it doesn’t hurt that there are boyz only wearing boxer briefs), and I really like the *smirk* in her eyes during the song. As for the words, I’m not really good at “hearing” words, but will hunt out the text and read them over. I did like it though.
Very cool idea sweetie.
Looking forward to hearing what songs you mention. I’ve always enjoyed being introduced to all the cool music you know about! I’m so mundane in my music tastes, but I definitely feel the same way…that different songs can bring back memories or be perfect for a mood.
Yes! Music is exceptionally important. Music can be like a file access system for your brain, causing you to instantly access certain memories and emotions.
The same music can mean different things to different people. The same song can make one person cry and another laugh. It is completely valid that lyrics mean different things to different people.
Can I give an example, too? At a particular point early in my college years, I was pretty fragile emotionally. I was just getting settled into the Dallas area, getting used to being away from home, and a bit overwhelmed by it all. After a particularly nasty episode with “friends” here, I was cementing solid friendships with people in Longview - where my parents were. I would drive home most weekends to spend time with them, and after a while the song “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” by Elton John became very important to me, especially the line I would sing at the top of my lungs in my car, sometimes with tears in my eyes, on Sunday nights on the way back to Dallas after a fun weekend with my friends in Longview: “And I thank the Lord for the people I have found.”
…and I still do.
Oh, that was a good story. Thanks for sharing
That’s really cool, Ian. I will have to hunt down that song, as I never really paid attention to the lyrics (and dang it, I didn’t rip that album yet, so I can’t just pull it up off the network!). I feel the same way about “Doughnut Song”. I used to interpret it about my father, when he left my mother. Years later, I applied it to different relationships. She may have intended it to be about a romantic relationship, but I never took it that way. That’s what I love that about her music–you can listen to the same song at a different point in your life and get a totally different meaning from it!
You’re right, Stephanie. I never thought about that but it is very true. Perhaps that is why she has remained a favorite of mine through the years.