Song Flashbacks

This morning on the radio I heard Sting's Love is the Seventh Wave and was instantly transported back in time to 1988, driving down Ygnacio Valley Road in Chris W's (POPnet handle: Number Six) yellow AMC Hornet, en route to a party.

I love song flashbacks. When I hear Groove is in the Heart by Deee-Lite, I'm back in my dorm room freshman year at UCSD, dancing with my roommate Amanda. Push It by Salt-N-Pepa puts me back at a high school dance, doing the Running Man. When I hear The Flag by the Barenaked Ladies, I'm driving in my car from Indiana to Kentucky on my first solo road trip.

When I hear Help Me Rhonda by the Beach Boys I picture my Dad dancing in our living room, clapping his hands and singing, and everything seems right with the world. Early Morning Rain reminds me of Jon...it was on a mix tape from him and I listened to it over and over in my Honda station wagon in high school.

Some songs have multiple memories. The Summer of '69 by Bryan Adams brings to mind hanging out at Jason's house in high school, singing along in his living room, as well as early days of dating Chris, jumping on the bed in his studio apartment and air guitaring.

Some songs are sad, reminding me of breakups, or my lonely first summer in Indiana. Some songs make me tearful but for good reasons: the lyric "And when I take your hand, I watch my heart set sail," from Mark Cohn's True Companion fills me with love for Chris.

And there are songs that I just can't help dancing to, like It Takes Two to Make a Thing Go Right by Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock. Lisa and I heard that in the mall the other day and just started grooving at the Gap.

I love how music brings back such powerful memories. Got any song flashbacks? Share them in the comments!