Melonius Thunk

Name That Tune

There's an African Proverb that goes something like this: "When the music changes, so does the dance".  And isn't that true of our moods, too?  There are certain songs that brighten my mood without fail. 

"I Gotta Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas has topped my list of upbeat feel-good songs for a while now.  Recently I added Macy Gray's "Beauty in the World" to the list along with "The Sound of Sunshine" by Michael Franti and Spearhead.  And I'll never forget the way I wiggled in my seat the first time I heard Nina Simone's "Funkier than a Mosquito's Tweeter"!

Here are a few other songs that would go on my feel-good playlist (in no particular order):

Tom Petty - "Running Down a Dream"
B-52s - "Love Shack"
ABBA - "Take a Chance on Me"
Sheryl Crow - "Soak up the Sun" and "All I Wanna Do"
Simon & Garfunkel - "Feelin' Groovy
Don McLean - "American Pie"
Katrina and the Waves - "Walking on Sunshine"
Weather Girls - "It's Raining Men"
Bonnie Rait - "Something to Talk about"
Lynyrd Skynyrd - "Sweet Home Alabama"
Paul Simon - "You Can Call Me Al"
Outkast - "Hey Ya!"
Kool and the Gang - "Celebration" and "Ladies Night"
Bee Gees - "You Should be Dancing"
Midnight Star - "No Parking on the Dance Floor"
R.E.M. - "Stand"
KC & The Sunshine Band - "Keep It Comin' Love", "Get Down Tonight", and "Boogie Shoes"

This is by no means a comprehensive list.  What's missing?  What songs makes you smile?  I'm talking about the ones that start your foot tapping as you instinctively reach to turn up the volume.  The ones you'll sing at the top of your lungs as you drum on the steering wheel....  What tops your list of feel good tunes?

For the Love of Cuba!

Or Cuban musicians, anyway.

Tonight I attended the Tiempo Libre concert at Transylvania University.  What a concert it was!  Complete with keyboards, guitar, drums, congas, trumpet & trombone, saxophone, and a very limber lead singer.  This was high energy at its best.  These guys jumped, jigged, and shimmied without abandon.  Their version of Latin Jazz certainly made it difficult to sit still in your seats.

I took my mother and grandmother to the concert as we continued to celebrate their birthdays.  I told them there would likely be some hip shimmying, but I had forgotten exactly how much . . . and the degree of said shimmies.  Perhaps my favorite comment of the evening, courtesy of NaNa in reference to the lead singer, was "I don't know how he keeps from throwing something out of place!"

Alas, one of the best parts of the concert was watching the students (and a few others) dance with joy along the side aisles and front of the theater.  Beaming with smiles and overflowing with positive energy, they truly let the music move them.  At one point there was even a congo line that encircled the theater's mid-section -- the smiles on the participants' faces were simply radiant.  I wasn't one of the "others", and I missed the congo line, but I know I was not the only "mature" attendee tapping my feet in my seat and dancing in spirit.

Yes, it was a very nice evening.