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Pop Rock Nation

Author: Jenny

  • Breakup songs…

    Sometimes relationships end and inspire breakup songs…

    Over the long weekend, I had occasion to break up with a “friend” from childhood, someone I have known for most of my life. Over the years, we had grown apart and become more “frenemies” than friends. She’s actually the one who got me to join Facebook, but we rarely interacted. When we did interact, it wasn’t necessarily pleasant. In fact, a few years ago, I had started filtering her posts because I found that they had a tendency to raise my blood pressure. More than once over the years, I had thought about unfriending her because it seemed like we had nothing in common anymore. I didn’t do it, because I thought there might be unpleasant fallout and it didn’t seem worth the potential trouble.

    Yesterday, I finally took the plunge. As I sit here writing this, it seems kind of ridiculous. I mean, it’s Facebook, right? But Facebook has changed how people interact with each other. It seems like everybody has a computer now and that’s how many people communicate. In the past, when relationships died, there might be a blow up. Or the death of the relationship might be quiet, as people gradually stopped seeing each other. Nowadays, you may find out you’re not friends anymore when you get dumped on Facebook. It’s happened to me, too.

    I decided to drop this person from my online life when I got the sense that she was just connected to me because she wanted to see what I was up to. I realized that the relationship had died when I found out from a third person from our hometown that my former friend had a baby. I didn’t even know she had been pregnant. Later, I found evidence that she had her Facebook privacy settings fixed so that she could see me, but I couldn’t see her. I don’t know why she would hide her pregnancy from me. I would never begrudge someone having a child… except maybe Michelle Duggar. Then I realized her pregnancy was none of my business. After careful thought, I decided it was time to part ways with this person with as little drama as possible.

    Anyway, I find that music helps me heal when my feelings get hurt. The very first song that came to mind when I decided to break up with my ex friend was a classic by Harry Nilsson…

    “You’re Breakin’ My Heart” by Harry Nilsson is a great song about breaking up. The melody is powerful and almost fun, with profane lyrics that invoke the f-word. Since I was pretty angry when I found out what this so-called friend had done, it seemed highly appropriate.

    The next song that came to mind was one by British singer, Lily Allen. I recently decided that I need to familiarize myself more with Lily Allen’s music because I find her both hilarious and refreshing…

    I read somewhere that this song was actually inspired by George W. Bush. However, it also works when you’re breaking up with someone who disgusts you somehow. Lily Allen sings about someone who is racist, hateful, and homophobic– maybe that applies to George Bush. But it can also apply to someone who does nasty things.

    Kate Miller-Heidke’s hilarious “Are You Fucking Kidding Me” is about a romantic breakup…

    but given that it’s about Facebook friend requests, I think it’s entirely fitting for this situation.

    If you want to go silly, yet old school, you could always pull out Rick Dees’ hilarious classic “Eat My Shorts”…

    I was so glad to find this on YouTube. I remember hearing it on radio shows in the 1980s, but had a hard time finding it. Thank goodness for YouTubers who have my sense of nostalgia.

    Phil Collins has a very well-known song about breaking up…

    I read somewhere that “In The Air Tonight” was inspired by Phil Collins’ first ex wife, Andrea, whom he divorced in 1979. If you really want someone to get the message that the relationship is dead, this song gets the point across in a macabre way. Isn’t it interesting how breakups can inspire art and music?

    Another classic break up song that comes to mind is “Something I Can Never Have” by Nine Inch Nails…

    Ironically, the friend I broke up with actually helped me discover Nine Inch Nails. I don’t know that this is a good song for me personally, because my feelings about this particular breakup are not quite this deep and searing. But if you have a very intense relationship with someone and it falls apart, you might be depressed, angry, and hurt enough to relate to this very wrenching song about falling out with someone you once loved.

    In 1976, Marvin Gaye divorced his ex wife Anna Gordy. Because he had run out of money due to overspending and a drug habit, he didn’t have money to pay his ex wife alimony and child support for their son, Marvin III. Marvin’s attorney, Curtis Shaw came up with the solution. Gaye would give his ex wife half the royalties from his next project. The result was Gaye’s 1978 album, Here, My Dear. Here, My Dear is chock full of bitterness, including this hit…

    “When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You?” pretty much sums up the anger and hurt that can arise when a relationship dies.

    There’s also the ever popular Supertramp hit, “Goodbye Stranger”, which is about a musical partnership breaking up. It could also be about a romantic breakup, I guess.

    This is another song that reminds me of my former friend. We were both big Supertramp fans back in the day.

    And finally, there’s “On My Own”, a duet from Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald…

    This is kind of a sad song about a formerly romantic couple who decide to break up and express their bittersweet feelings in a nice 80s era ballad.

    I feel okay about what I did. At least it helped me get over writer’s block. I’m sorry it had to come to this, though. Officially breaking up is never fun, even when it’s just with an ex friend you no longer talk to. It would have been far nicer to just fade away.

  • In honor of the shutdown…

    In honor of the shutdown…

    Money...
    Money…

    The government has partially ground to a halt. Here are some songs in honor of the shutdown…

    I don’t pretend to pay a lot of attention to what goes on in Congress. I am not fond of politics, especially when it comes to arguing about them. However, because my husband, Bill, is a member of the Army, this government shutdown business does affect us somewhat. Yes, we were told that members of the military would continue to be paid while 800,000 or so other government workers will be furloughed until this mess gets sorted out. However, my husband has told me that there is a possibility that despite the fact that the “Pay Our Military Act” passed, his pay may still be delayed. This is what it says on the front page of the Defense Finance and Accounting Service’s (DFAS) Web site…

    We are aware the President has signed the “Pay Our Military Act.”

    We are awaiting further guidance from the Department of Defense to ensure we accurately implement all elements of the Act.

    We believe all pay and allowances included in mid-month pay are covered by the Act and pay will be received on time.

    Hear that? They believe all pay and allowances included in mid-month are covered by the Act… How reassuring. Actually, I realize that we are very fortunate because Bill gets paid pretty well and we have managed to squirrel away some cash in advance of this mess. There are many military folks out there, along with government and contract workers, who don’t have anything to cushion the financial blow of a prolonged furlough.

    Anyway, I thought today might be a good day for a post about songs in honor of the shutdown. The first song that immediately comes to mind is Bob Dylan’s classic hit, “The Times, They Are A Changin’”. I have to admit, this song popped into my head the other day when I sang it on SingSnap. I happen to own a great double CD set called No Nukes, which was originally released in 1979 when a bunch of stars got together to do a concert to protest nukes.

    A clip from the No Nukes documentary.

    And here’s Bob Dylan’s version.

    Gwen Guthrie’s “Ain’t Nothin’ Goin’ On But The Rent” is a reminder that the bill collectors may be knocking if something isn’t done soon…

    This song is really more about a gold digger, but the sentiments are still sort of the same. When you don’t have a paycheck, you suddenly start worrying about meeting your responsibilities.

    ABBA’s “Money, Money, Money” might inspire a few folks to try their hand at gambling as a way to raise some quick cash…

    What really blows about this is that some people are still working, even though they might not be paid on time. Bill told me that a bunch of civilians were recalled to work yesterday because it was decided that they would eventually be paid. Therefore, they didn’t need to be sitting at home doing nothing. My reaction to that? That’s bullshit! It’s probably a good thing I don’t work for the government.

    The Beatles sang a song about taxes…

    Don’t our taxes pay for all the folks in Congress hashing it out right now? Fat lot of good it’s done us. I fully understand that taxes make the government function… except when they don’t. It would be nice if the folks responsible for this shutdown gave up their paychecks too.

    Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t include an entry by Pink Floyd…

    Pink Floyd’s “Money” is no doubt on a lot of peoples’ minds right now as mid month looms and bills come due.

    Donna Summer’s classic 80s hit “She Works Hard For The Money” resonates with women, especially…

    And there are no doubt some mothers and fathers who are single parents trying to cope with these furloughs. Of course, this song is really about women who work in low wage jobs, but even if they aren’t being directly by the shutdown, those who wait tables or work in retail will be affected as business slows because people aren’t getting paid.

    I have to add James Taylor’s “Money Machine” because I happen to love his music… and this song, in all its cheesy 70s glory, does sort of illustrate the power money has on society.

    I know the money has to come from somewhere, of course. And Congress has to straighten some stuff out, which will no doubt require compromise from all parties. I sure hope they come to a conclusion sooner rather than later.

  • Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, and Sinead O’ Connor…

    Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, and Sinead O’ Connor…

    This has been an interesting week in the music world, especially for Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, and Sinead O’Connor…

    First thing’s first. I am not really a fan of Miley Cyrus’, Justin Bieber’s, or Sinead O’Connor’s. I listened to Sinead back in the late 1980s because she had a hit song that was always on the radio and I listened to the radio a lot in those days. But I can’t honestly say that I purposely follow their careers much nowadays. Of course, because I am on the Internet all the time, I constantly see gossip pieces about them.

    The first one I saw this week concerned Justin Bieber, who apparently felt his bodyguards should carry him up the Great Wall of China. This incident follows a number of other weird incidents in which Bieber is caught acting out in public. In April, he was criticized for writing an egotistical remark at the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. In June, he was seated next to a pretty young lady at a Miami Heat game and apparently treated her very rudely. A few months ago, he was in the news again for peeing in a mop bucket in a restaurant’s kitchen and for abandoning a monkey in Germany.

    Personally, I don’t really get the massive appeal of Justin Bieber. I mean, he was kind of cute when he was younger, but now he looks a little like Vanilla Ice back in the day. And he certainly doesn’t indicate that he’s a very charming person. In August, he rubbed a fan’s cell phone on his balls while performing at a concert. Granted, he was sick of people throwing stuff at him while he was performing, but still… Yuck! It looks to me like Justin Bieber holds most people in contempt. Money doesn’t seem to have made him very happy. But yeah, the trip up the Great Wall of China on the backs of his bodyguards really takes the cake.

    What happened to this kid?

    Moving on, a friend of mine in Ireland alerted me to an open letter Sinead O’Connor addressed to Miley Cyrus, advising her not to let the music industry exploit her. I read Sinead’s letter and I really didn’t think it was offensive. Maybe if I were Miley Cyrus, I would think it was out of line, but as a regular person, it appears that Sinead O’Connor was trying to do Miley a solid.

    Miley apparently didn’t think so, though. She took to Twitter, bringing up Sinead’s painful past. Sinead responded, asking Miley who was advising her and chastising Miley for mocking Sinead for her issues with mental illness. There’s nothing like a cat fight between pop stars.

    I think Miley Cyrus was rude in how she responded to Sinead O’Connor, but I also think her response is typical for someone her age. She no doubt thinks she has things handled, just like a lot of young people do. It takes awhile before age and experience starts to humble you and you learn that you don’t know nearly as much as you think you do. In any case, I guess Sinead O’Connor has learned that no good deed goes unpunished.

    Have a great weekend everybody!