My brain is hard-wired to change the station instantly when certain songs come on the radio. I can shut down "Walking on Sunshine" or any Doobie Brothers song within .34 seconds. On my drive home just now my hand jerked forward to change the station when the DJ announced the next song, but something stopped me and I decided to give a "Love Shack" a fair trial.Even though I love certain B-52's songs, I have never been able to stand "Love Shack." It just plain drives me berserk. However, tonight as I tried to listen with an open mind and a critical ear, I realized that it actually is quite a sophisticated and bizarre concoction. The song has the same oddball humor that makes songs like "Rock Lobster" and "Private Idaho" all-time classics, but what's really amazing about the song is the sheer number of ideas in it. Every single line in the song, even each instrumental line, is a memorable melody and there are interesting counterpoint lines weaving around every killer hook. The song's ambitious, multi-sectional structure veers all over the place, but they somehow hold it all together. It's so strange it might seem experimental if it weren't so dang catchy.
So there you go - I gave "Love Shack" another chance and I came around. I keep hoping the same thing will happen with tomatoes and mushrooms, but every time the reevaluation yields the same outcome.
P.S. - I fully intend to blog about the more important stuff that's been going down in my life recently, but right now even blogging about it all sounds too exhausting. Let's just say that things have been crazy but everything has played out in a "best case scenario"-type fashion.
3 comments:
I have never liked Rock Lobster but I like Love Shack, and I love Roam. :)
It's hard to come around with certain foods. Every so often I try to like yogurt but I still can't stand it. At least we try, right?
There are certain things, like raisins, pigeons, and negative ten degree windchill that I am certain I will never like. But I often find that if I am actively disliking something (as opposed to just not caring for it), it's usually out of stubbornness on my part. Over and over again I find that getting to know a person who rubs me wrong, re-reading a book I hated in high school, learning something about a piece of music, or just listening to a friend tell me what they like about what I don't, can change my opinion. Not always, but more often than I usually expect.
I'm not sure I'm quite ready to stop being stubborn about "Love Shack," though.
I'd really like to call you a nerd for your deep musical evaluation of Love Shack, but the whole "pot calling a kettle" line came into my head, so I'll refrain.
I also dislike tomatoes and mushrooms!! And really, I never liked Love Shack, either, but I'll try it again, if you insist.
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