Because some musical memories have not yet been written, or are in the very act of being written, and we do not yet know the outcome. Aside from the possible, but more rare, exception of scent, music is probably the most powerful trigger of a memory for me. All kinds have the capacity to rekindle a moment – from moody midnight music for the city to the modern day Muse, from songs that make you want to get into the Groove (Armada) to those that just make you want to ride a motorcycle with a mannequin strapped to your back. There are songs for saying good-bye when you’re not quite ready, songs for a flaming September, and songs for growing up and letting go.
Songs of warped vanity obviously tickle my fancy, but songs reminding me of my friends were just as powerful. From the slightly country-tinged sounds of Patsy to the hair bands of the 80’s, from a simple pair of waltzes to Whitney Houston to Madonna, Madonna, Madonna… (and Madonna).
There is a song for every moment, whether that encompasses leaving on a jet plane, falling in love, living to tell, dancing the night away, a hazy shade of winter, or… Christmas – and songs for every season ~ fall, winter, spring, summer, more summer, and back to fall again.
This latest was recently recommended to me. I’m not sure what sort of memory it may one day invoke, what events may or may not transpire or be remembered at a later date – it’s all too soon to tell. But for the first time, you may be catching the chameleon in motion, in the midst of transformation, in the middle of the night…
