Songs that changed my life as a teenager
Remember when the songs you knew all the words to had a place in the charts and not the golden oldie station? Here is my list of ten such songs.
Who Wants to Live Forever - Queen
And it’s still one of my favourites. It’s just that you won’t find it in my phone’s playlist. You see, I cannot stand to listen to it too often! I burst out in tears and the funny thing is the other day I was crying, and I started thinking of the lyrics of Who Wants to Live Forever. ‘What is this thing that builds our dreams, then slips away from us?’
Kryptonite – Three Doors Down
YEAH! I painted the lyrics on my bedroom wall and it is still there. Strange, my parents never painted over it. Or washed it off. I had many lyrics and quotes on my wall as a teenager and ‘If I go crazy, then would you still call me Superman?’ really got to me. Living with depression is really not something you can control easily. It takes hard work and physical exercise and the right amount of medication. And other tricks you pick up along the way. But it is never easy, and the next hurricane may just be around the corner. You are never safe. It’s a valid question to ask and who ever responds positively can never do so lightly.
The Wall - Pink Floyd
I was the luckiest little girl growing up because I listened to Andrew Lloyd Weber and Beethoven because my sister did. I listened to Elvis and the Brat Pack because my parents did. And lastly, I had my brother’s influence. The type of, ‘Don’t tell anyone that I played you this tape but listen to this…’ influence. And I am forever thankful for all three influences. But the secret to the really great classics is that they often cause friction. As much as the Brat Pack was celebrated, Elvis was banned. As much as Beethoven was loved, Lloyd Weber was rejected a few times before he had his first breakthrough at a very young age. I listened as much to my brother’s Roxette tapes in public, as I listened to Pink Floyd in private.
Corduroy – Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam man! Eddy! The whole album is what happens when record producers just say, go mad. Spin the black circle - is this is drug reference? I have always thought so!
Been a Son – Nirvana
I was in deep trouble for wearing a Nirvana T-shirt one day in High School. I had gotten to know about too many artists just after they passed away. Kurt was one of them.
Hedonism – Skunk Anansi
A really cool chick with a cool voice singing great songs with fantastic lyrics. Sad and hard hitting! One of the many reasons I chose to go to England after school and not America.
So Young – The Corrs
My guilty pleasure! So soft and innocent. Violins and light happy female voices. I was introduced to Irish music by my one English teacher in High school. And the Corrs and Moira Brennan and Enya (did you know that they are sisters?) and U2 and so many other Irish artists have brought their music to the international stage and had great commercial success while being extremely unique. The Corrs lacked individuality and did not have such a strong message like all the other Irish artists that I liked. They were borderline Westlife…. But I like to think that they were just a little less commercial than a boyband thrown together by a CEO seeing Dollar signs. They were family members after all.
Zombie – Cranberries
Another Irish one! Dolores has a haunting voice and it lingers in your ears long after the song ended. Linger pun intended…
Whipping boy – Sinead O’Connor
If you can find the Universal Mother cd, please listen to it from beginning to end.The cd was absolutely meant to be listened to one song after the other, but to me, Whipping Boy stands out. Amidst the cd where O’Connor blatantly hates her mother and blames the English for the Irish famine, she has hidden a little feminist, vocal gem. I listened to it before I knew pain and when I was in the middle of ending my abusive relationship, this song often popped in my head. I held onto it and sang it like I was worshipping. The song has always stirred up a fire in me and the fire seems to be growing stronger and stronger. And O’Conner may have recently been in the news again for disappearing, but she will always be one of my favourite artists.
Don’t Speak – No Doubt
It just felt as if she meant the words. Really meant it. Don’t speak, because I have loved you for so long that I know what you are going to say before you say it. It just so happens that this time, you are not saying something that is going to make me feel loved by you. You are not going to say, I love you; you are about to say, I am sorry. And I don’t need another I am sorry from you. BECAUSE IF YOU MEANT THE OTHER THREE WORDS YOU KEPT SAYING YOU WOULDN’T HAVE HAD TO SAY THESE THREE.
