On which I write about the books I read, science, science fiction, fantasy, and anything else that I want to. Currently trying to read and comment upon every novel that has won the Hugo and International Fantasy awards.
By now, pretty much everyone should know the drill on these. I know a woman named Renee. She is, in fact, one of our best friends and part of the most badass couple we know. As usual, the lyrics of the song have no relationship to the actual person other than the fact that her name is in them.
On a more song-related front, I picked the recording by the Left banke because it is my favorite version of the song, but it has been recorded by a surprising number of artists. The most famous other version of the song was performed by the Four Tops, but it has also been done by Linda Ronstadt, Herman's Hermits, and Cyndi Lauper among others. It seems kind of odd that so many much more famous artists have covered the song, as the Left Banke really only had two hits (this song and another titled Pretty Ballerina), and has mostly fallen into obscurity now. Their song lives on though.
So, after a brief break on these, I'm back to the "name songs" with one that is just a little bit off. The song isn't off - the Allman Brothers produced a classic with this one, but the person who triggers this song to run through my head is not actually named Melissa. Actually, it is two people, who each have different (although very similar) names who make this song run through my head when I run across them when I am going about my day. As usual, the content of the song other than the name is irrelevant to the association. It seems weird to have a song associated with someone's name that isn't actually their name, but there you have it. My brain apparently works in strange ways sometimes.
Here is another "name" song, this one is what pops into my head when I see a woman I know who is named Jackie. There's nothing about the song other than the name that applies to her, but as I have said before, the name associations in my head are so strong that they seem to override almost every other consideration.
On an entirely unrelated note, this is the second song in a row that features the word "blue", which makes me wonder how common songs with "blue" in the title are in the last several decades of music music. There are, of course, the two songs I have featured here - Crystal Blue Persuasion and Jackie Blue - but off the top of my head I can also think of Blue Suede Shoes, recorded by a number of artists but most famously by Elvis, Blue Velvet, recorded by Bobby Vinton, Blueberry Hill, recorded by Fats Domino, and Blue Guitar, recorded by the Moody Blues. Bobby Vinton seems to have made a habit of recording songs with the word "blue" in the title: In addition to Blue Velvet, he also recorded Mr. Blue, Blue on Blue, Blue Moon, I Am Blue, and Blue, Blue Day, and a whole pile of others. Thinking about it, it is entirely possible that a decent portion of the songs recorded with the word "blue" in the title are because of Bobby Vinton's career.
Is the word "blue" particularly prevalent in the history of contemporary pop music? I don't know for sure, and I don't really have the inclination to do the research that would provide an answer one way or another, but it does seem like it is true.
Continuing the theme of "songs that spring into my mind when people with a certain name", here is Tommy James singing (or more accurately, sloppily lip synching) his hit Crystal Blue Persuasion. There is a name in there, but it isn't really used as a name in this song. In any event, this is the song I associate mentally with one of the people I know, so it goes on the playlist in my head whenever I see them.
On an entirely different note, to me this video is pretty hilarious. Tommy James gives absolutely no fucks whatsoever about trying to match the recording. Near then end, he simply gives up completely. In addition, this video was allegedly made in 1971, after James had left his band and gone solo, but the recording James is lip synching to is fairly obviously the studio recording made in 1969 by the entire band.
#1 on the Billboard Hot 100: November 8, 1986 through November 15, 1986.
#1 on the Cash Box Top 100: Never. #1 on the U.K. Chart: Never.
Continuing with songs that are associated in my mind with specific people that I know., here is Amanda by Boston. There isn't really much to this other than the fact that I know a woman named Amanda, and whenever I see her, this song simply pops into my head unbidden. I still don't really know how common this quirk of mine where certain people are associated with songs based on their names actually is, or what it might signify, but it seems at least moderately interesting to me.
As a band, Boston seems to be plagued with a lot of odd misconceptions like this. I have had numerous people confidently assert to me that even though the band's debut album was a wildly successful album, they were never able to really build on that success, and every album after the first was a flop. The trouble with this narrative is that Boston's debut album topped out at number three on the album charts, while Don't Look Back and Third Stage both reached number one (although, to be fair, Boston had more staying power than either of the following two albums). Sure, the band never again had an album that sold as many as the seventeen million copies that Boston did, but calling an album that sold seven million copies (as Don't Look Back did) and another that sold four million copies (as Third Stage did) complete failures seems to be a bit harsh. It has, however, apparently taken root in the public consciousness that Boston was a one-album wonder, which seems decidedly unfair to the band, but is something that is unlikely to change.
As I mentioned last week, there are people who I associate with songs, mostly due to their names. Angie, by the Rolling Stones, is one song that fits in that category. I'm not going to explicitly say who this song is associated with in my brain, but it won't be all that hard for most people to figure out.
The odd thing about these associations is that they crop up without my really thinking about them, and most of the time the content of the song is irrelevant - only the use of the name triggers the association. I have no idea what this quirk might mean, but it is kind of interesting to me, because I've never met someone else who has a soundtrack like this running through their head all of the time.
A somewhat idealized and simplified version of the history of the passage of the Declaration of Independence is told in the musical 1776. After some introductions that establish the character of John Adams and the fact that Congress has become mired in indecision, refusing to even consider the question of independence, the story proper kicks off with this scene. Benjamin Franklin convinces the charismatic but somewhat dim Richard Henry Lee to head off to Williamsburg to use his considerable influence to persuade the colony to adopt a resolution in favor of independence. Given that 1776 is a musical and Richard Henry Lee is used in the early going as comic relief, the scene is played for laughs, but it is almost certain that the reality was nothing like this - among other things Richard Henry Lee was probably not nearly as affably dopey as he is portrayed here - he was, after all, one of the most successful politicians of his era. It is, however, true that Lee, at the direction of the Virginia legislature, did propose a resolution on independence.
The song uses a play on Lee's name for much of its humor, and this aspect leads me to my next point: I associate songs with particular people and places. I live in a town named after Lee's family, and whenever anyone says the name of the town, I always think of this song. There are people that I know that I cannot see or talk to without hearing a particular song playing in the back of my head. I don't know if this is a common phenomenon or if this quirk is particular only to me, but it does create an interesting soundtrack in my head.
