Music of My Life

Aubri has tagged me ... and, wow, I'm not all that sure WHY, since I'm nowhere as musically inclined (Don't get me wrong. I like songs ... but I'm nowhere the music patron that she is.) ... but here I go:

Pick one album you remember the most about every 5 years of your life and tell us why its important to you.

0 years old - My mom will tell me that when I started crawling, I'd BEE-LINE (is that the right term? Spelling? I don't know) for the television every time the commercial for some country singer's CASSETTE/RECORD would air.

Maybe it wasn't country ... it could have been folksy-type music. But EVERY. TIME., I'd be squirming my way to the television set to gaze and listen in utter rapture.

I wish I could remember who it was supposed to be. I'll have to ask Mom. Or maybe Dad'd remember.

5 years old - Besides regailing my Nana with loud renditions of "Little Bunny Foo-Foo" and "I Am a Child of God," I remember listening to "Thiller" by Michael Jackson (yes, children, there was a time when he was considered such a talented dancer/singer. There was a time when he was not AT ALL creepy. There was a time he had his original nose. And chin). 
I also loved Cyndi Lauper (c'mon, what girl in the 80s didn't want to BE Cyndi Lauper? "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" always makes me so happy when I hear it.
I also listened to a record (yes, we were OLD SKOOL, people. I STILL listen to cassettes at times.) of Primary songs from church... I think it's entitled "Sing with Me" ... No, that was the OLD Primary songbook ... Blast! I canNOT remember the title! Something about singing together ... and that the main color (besides the image on the record) was a warm brown with yellow sprigs/spots on the record case ... Drat my bad memory.

I bought my first just-for-me tape when I was in second grade -- M.C. Hammer.
I also recall, in thrid grade, choosing out of the prize box, a record of ... classical music. The Skater's Waltz, William Tell Overature ... things like that. Too bad there was a huge scratch on it, it was a great collection.

10 years old - By this time, we had made the BIG move to primarily listening to cassettes (even though the cool kids were buying these new-fangled things called see-dees :P). I would occasionally listen to a couple of my mom's records (West Side Story and Annie), but mostly she and I would listen to Broadway musicals - Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera (which is why I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Michael Crawford -- Sorry, Bri ... but to me his wonderful voice IS the phantom), Evita, Cats ... It'd be a few years before I got into Miss Saigon or Jesus Christ Superstar.

You can imagine how popular this made me at school ... "Do you like Meatloaf?" "My Nana makes a good one." (No, really ... that was a VERBATIM conversation I had with a friend. And that was in JUNIOR HIGH.  ... I've lived a rather sheltered life, no?)

I also liked soundtracks, especially Disney soundtracks. And I had the soundtrack to Ferngully (Hellooooooo Tim Curry! -- No wonder I eventually wound up having such a soft spot for Rocky Horror Picture Show, huh?)

I also started to like Harry Connick, Jr. and Ace of Base "The Sign".

For the record, I was the one girl at my (small) school who hadn't cared for New Kids on the Block. I can sing a couple lines of songs ... mostly to be ironic.

15 years old - By this point, we were starting to buy CDs. And I was gearing up to watch MTV (I watched it near-incessantly during the last couple of summers at home in high school). I still listened a lot to musicals ... started to really get into Swing. I loved No Doubt. I had Alanis Morrisette's CD. And Sarah McLaughlan's "Building a Mystery." I fell for the siren song of the Spice Girls (because they were FUN! They still are. A-zigga-zig-ah!) I bought one Backstreet Boys CD ... and my favorite song wasn't one of the ones that played on the radio (#7 - Hey Mr. DJ, if you really were curious).

Mom and I listened a lot to the soundtrack for Forrest Gump. I loved Bob Dylan's Rainy Day Women ... she didn't care for it much.

Toward the end of high school, I discovered Rammstein.

I loved the soundtrack for Batman Forever ... didn't hurt that it had Chris O'Donnell in it (Oh, I crushed on him a bit <-- Understatement.)
My friends really helped my musical knowledge -- I was treated to The Beatles, Jimi Hendricks, Metallica, Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, The Offspring ... My friends are so very good to me.

Like Damien who made me an AWESOME mixed tape. I only wish that I knew ALL the songs on it, so I could create it perfectly on a CD. ^_^ (He was amazed that I liked reading song lyrics as much as I do.)(I think he was even more amazed that I ADORE Ozzy Osbourne's "I Just Want You." ... I'm complicated.)

I also discovered Cibo Matto -- and am still SO SAD that they've broken up. Because I love me some crazy Japanese-American pop.

20 - By now I was married. Not a whole lot of money for CDs, so I relied on my friends to hook me up with most of the new music I got. I have some great mixed CDs ... and having a computer with a CD-burner meant that I was able to make my own mixed CDs.
Jenny-Boo told me about Shakira ... and I bought her CD, "Laundry Service." I still REALLY like that one.

Shortly before getting married, there was an AWESOME CD shop down the street ... I really SHOULD have bought the soundtrack to Jane Eyre: the Musical ... I still haven't heard any of the songs.
Friends introduced me to the joys of Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies (who are AWESOME) and I got even more into Weird Al and They Might Be Giants. And Barenaked Ladies (Only the second-worst name for a band, according to my mom. The first would be Butthole Surfers ... It's so hilarious when she's all, "Oh, I like this song. Who is it by?" And I tell her ... and then she's shocked and lightly rants about how much she HATES their names! Never gets old. I love my mom.)

25 years old - By this point, Michael's made sure that I've learned to appreciate Elvis (my mom wasn't crazy about him, so we didn't listen to him much. I know! Complete travesty! I still love my mom). 
Since we have added the munchkin brigade to the mix at this point, we have even less money to spend on music ... but I can make a mean mix-CD, if I do say so myself. (Ask Aubri or Sheri! They've each received one ... maybe more than one in Bri's case. 
Since we have broadband internet, I get to listen to lots more music now ... And I'm pretty eclectic. I have found that I rather like Johnny Cash. ... And I find that I'm woefully clueless about music and bands in general. I'm never really going to be cool like Bri about these things ... but I'm happy with what I can get.

You know that I don't tag ... but if you want to, just comment and let me know that you've done it. I like to read responses ... I just feel demanding if I do the tagging.