The MTV of Life : Inspired by Nick Hornby's "High Fidelity"
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Hi there,
Well, I have watched a good movie today here in the small town cinema, where I stayed, and it is entitled High Fidelity. It is about a records store owner, going thru some problems with his r/s and then he started talking about his life, and how he chronologically put it with the music of his life. I liked the presentation of the story and how the book is written as well, after reading the first few chapters. I liked it very much.
The MTV of life. This is what I am going to talk about, using bits and pieces of my life as an example. It is like how people's lives are shaped by the music of that era. We are all taken by the trends of the popular culture (or Pop-Culture). I remembered that the first time, I started listening to music, I fell in love with Wham's "Careless Whisper". It was like the time where I once listened "We are the World". Then of course, as I grew along, songs like "The One and Only" by Chesney Hawkes (I like it because it makes me feel good about myself and would play once in a while on my mp3 player these days, with acknowledgements to Revey) and "Waiting for Love" by Alias (which I could not find it anymore).
Just as those songs are there, you have Depeche Mode with my two favourites "Strange Love" and "Policy of Truth", and plus "The Great Commandment", and then followed by the Pet Shop Boys with "Domino Dancing". That is how my secondary school days passed, and we used to have fun bbq and outings. Well, I still liked the times, where I can still say,"I will most likely to be single since I got so much to do.." (it's a guy thing)
There are always love songs popping around my life, as I grow along. You got Mariah Carey's "Love Takes Time", Southern Sons "You were there", Bee Gees "How deep is your Love", Steven Bishop's "It might be you", and the list goes on. It reflects a certain time where I got infatuated with gals. It is like this, you get infatuated with a gal, and then u get disappointed and there will be a love song which can relate how you feel.. One would start to fantasize how miserable they feel after a rejection, and bitch about how things would have been... We always rely on love songs to feel miserable. Actually, we don't really have that much disappointment. It is like you get over a gal easily if it is just infatuation. I normally walked in the park with nice and soft music and then it is okay... You get nice soundtracks like "The Wedding Singer", "Pretty Women" or even "Dying young" playing once or twice...... I am a Bon Jovi's friend and loved "Living on a Prayer", "Blaze of Glory" and my favourite song "I will be there for you", plus Oleta Adams' "Get Here", Journey's "Faithfully", with the nice touch of music in the songs...
Somehow, I started listening to Chinese songs, and that Jeff Chang's songs are the ones which made me really feeling sad, not to mention Dave Wang Jie and Chang Yu. Well, if you think about it. There is a projection of myself part of the music. It is like walking in town with you listening to "It's a game, it's a dream" by Wang Jie, and "My Happiness and Saddness" by Chang Yu... Sometimes, some songs expressed how people yearn for relationships, and sometimes, they expressed how people feel when they are betrayed or hurt in a r/s. Recently, Sammi Cheng's "Love Story" and "I think I should get it", Aaron Kwok's "If you are serious", Eason Chan's "Premonition" and other songs also dominated as well. I like a song which sings of Chinese virtues called "Zi Yue" and also some Cantonese songs, particularly the two theme songs for the new 100 episode megaproduction TVB serial entitled "Chong Sei Gei" (At the threshold of an Era).
Then when I got serious into properly having r/s with my two ex-gfs. Songs like "Say Yes" by Chage and Aska came to my mind, and when we break up, Trisha Yearwood's "How do I live" and 4pm "Sukiyaki", plus Michael Bolton's "How am I supposed to live without you?" would be played over and over again in my CD player. Well, I remembered that the song for my first ex-gf is a duet song by Jeff Chang and Yu Taiyan "Missed you, missed love", and for the second ex-gf is a song by Kenny Loggins entitled "The First Time", which is when she fell in love with me. I once even joked that if we get married, we would make that the last song to slow dance with her.... The happy moments of a love life expressed thru music also, just as to sad ones. Nowadays, when I hear these songs, I prefer to be feel happy, and reminiscences of happy moments would come. Perhaps, I have gotten over, or perhaps they can no longer hurt me. All the kisses and caresses...so far away.. If love is a choice, who would want exquisite pain, and that comes from the song "How can I not love you?" by Joy Enriquez
Of course, I also turned to listening to classical music like Vivaldi's "Four Seasons", Chopin's "Ballade in G minor" and Debussy's "Claire De lune". Tell you something, classical music makes me feel at ease and now my favourite is Chopin and the Impressionists era. Not to mention about harp music and new age music, people like Kevin Kern, Yukie Nishimura, Jim Brickman and a lot of compilations like "Heartstrings", "Sanctuary", "The Celestial journey". New Age music has now dominated my CD compilation, giving me a sense of grandeur and purpose to the existence of my life. Exotic songs by Nightwish and Loreen Mckimmit would give me inspiration to write stories and the MI-2 soundtrack give me some inspiration for John Woo's type of fighting scenes, when I need to concoct battle sequences thru my stories.
What about now? When I am working in the bar, I would always play "What will I do" by Cagnet (hey it happened once to me, when a lady friend of mine entered to visit me) and recently Tori Amos "Carnival", fantasing that I would be passing into the streets of London, with the One walking past me, without knowing me, or this pretty babe will enter into the bar with style and elegance and we meet and chat.. Or perhaps, I would put on Latin and Spanish music which I grew to like, since these songs can expressed very sad to extreme words into happy tunes... It is better to be happy than to be sad. Well, there will always be songs which talk about life like "Naked and Sacred" (with thanks to Naivegal for introducing me that song), "Bizarre Love Triangle" by Frente, "Stay" by Lisa Loeb, "You gotta be" by Desree, and "Praise U" by Fat Boys Slim to get around. Recently Bon Jovi's "It's my life" and Limp Bizkit's "Take a look around" seemed to dominate my life now, seems to bring me a stronger force in dealing with life, and moved along thru the good and sad times of solitude in the current moment. Other than that, I go back to the times where Frank Sinatra music where I also listened to as well, like "U can't take that away with me", "It's a paper moon", "Thinking of you tonight" (I recalled I feel really cool and packed with feelings about things when I was walking in the streets of Edinburgh with this song playing in my discman), "Come fly with me", or sometimes, with the ballades of Chicago like "What kind of man would I be?", Air Supply and even Carpenters....
I once make a joke with a lady friend that if Fate is watching me in a television box, this song is playing now in the background. Perhaps, in the eyes of Fate and Destiny, or even God, everyone do have a MTV in life. It is just that time or that moment where I could feel for things and people around me. Not necessary about just the person I once loved, but also for the people who I cared for, and the family and friends I have. Perhaps, I will get new songs entering into my MTV of life, with new encounters and feelings, but that remains to be seen now... Now is the most important, and I would look forward to a beautiful future....
Enjoy yourself and hope that you enjoy your own MTV as well.....
yours sincerely,
Prodigal
With Special Dedication to the people in the Singles Thread..... I wanted to post this there, but decided that I should give it a life of its own and also hear about what other people would say......
"Laugh, and the world laughs with you;
Weep and you weep alone;
For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth,
But has trouble enough of its own."
- Ella Wheeler Wilcox "Solitude"
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"I wish that I could have the love of a woman who could come to my life, lift me from sorrow, depression and loneliness, and push me to higher heights. However, love is not about finding someone to relieve you, but love is about you devoting your heart and soul to love that someone, even if you know that someone do not love you the way you do."
- Prodigal
[This message has been edited by prodigal (edited 30 July 2000).] -
I believe a good song is a song that can relate to people. A song that can capture the feeling of a person at that single moment will be a memorable and good song. It's hard at times to express what we feel inside, and therefore, we rely on songs to sing out our sorrows or happiness.
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
Yup,songs help to express our thoughts and feelings out at certain times,heeheh
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When you were born, you were hungry and everyone around you was full. Live your life so that when you die, you're the one full and everyone around you is hungry.
~~~
Diablo 2 rockzzzzzz -
Dearest Naivegal,
Like the one which goes like "Rubber Duckie u are the one, you make my bathtub so much fun..."
yours faithfully,
Prodigal
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"I wish that I could have the love of a woman who could come to my life, lift me from sorrow, depression and loneliness, and push me to higher heights. However, love is not about finding someone to relieve you, but love is about you devoting your heart and soul to love that someone, even if you know that someone do not love you the way you do."
- Prodigal -
Dearest Prodigal...
And what did you think about when you heard that wav?!
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
Dearest Naivegal,
I was thinking about you when I heard that wav file, thinking how adorable you are in real life.
yours,
Prodigal -
Dearest Prodigal...
I think it's more like...how stupid, silly, thick-skinned I must be when I decided to send that wav to the whole world! ahhahaha
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
Dearest Naivegal,
Well, maybe silly and thick-skinned you may be, I find it a nice song to cheer me up when I feel really down.....
yours sincerely,
Prodigal
[This message has been edited by prodigal (edited 29 July 2000).] -
Dearest Prodigal...
Well, at least my pettiness can bring a smile on your face... =D
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
Dearest NaiveGirl,
Well, I think that it is more the cheerful side of you who can bring a smile on my face... Not to forget your musings in the other threads as well...
yours sincerely,
Prodigal -
Dearest Prodigal...
Well, I am happy that I can at least put a smile on your face none the less...Hope that the smile will stay there... =D
I am not so much of a cheerful person. I was called a "ice-princess" before and not to forget bitch and slut! ahhahahaa
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
The first english song that pierced through my consciousness is Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting". However I didn't know much English then so songs like "Nothing Compares to You", "A Shoulder to Cry On" just carry music with sad undertones that I could feel but could not comprehend.
Then there was New Kids on the Block. Love was like their songs: full of saccharine, blind optimism and adolescent confusion. I dreamt of dancing lambada with my first crushee and both of us loved Vanilla Ice. As soon as I left their lively beats Guns N Roses and Red Hot Chilli Pepper beckoned, and I discovered something deeper than boybands and fads. And I found that my love for solitude had slowly turned into my fear of loneliness. I still remember these words from Under the Bridge:
Sometimes I feel like I don't have a partner
Sometimes I feel like I am all alone
With this city I live in, the city of angels
Lonely as I am, together we cry....
Suddenly it was a fast forward to Singapore. Secondary school days passed by without any impression because I literally didn't speak for two years. Perhaps the way Michael Learns to Rock butchered this language and the frequency of their songs being played freaked me out from English. I did find blur during the same time, though and I learnt that sadness and despair could be hidden behind gregariousness. Joy was weekend when Liverpool played and Mark Richmond brought "Country House" into the box. "Ha ha ha ha, I am sad but forget about it, ha ha."
In JC I became an addict; I loved getting high on lows. Listen to Aerosmith's "Hole in My Soul" and Adam Ant's "Wonderful" while wondering myself if I would ever get a real boyfriend. I used to get so depressed thinking that if the world had to go to heaven two by two, no one would pick me. I thought love would be my saviour and that it would reverse my world after everything else has "Paint It Black"
Now, I listen to George Michael without letting his words carry me away. "Don't Call Me Baby" rules the day though sometimes I gave in to Britney Spears and Ricky Martin and they made me so approachable, oh no, I'm a Madison Avenue, a Sinead O Connor, a Dolores A Riordan. There are also private moments with Vonda Shepard's old songs like "You belong to me" and I once shared them with someone I trusted to understand that my heart in truth is as fragile as a rose but he's gone.
That's my MTV, it's becoming more and more like a descending spider each day.
So how low will you go today, Maya?
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My notion of a husband at forty is that a woman should be able to change him, like a bank note, for two twenties. -
Dearest NaiveGirl,
Just as you can put a smile on my face. I would also hope that I can cheer you up with a smile on your face. *cheer up*
Forget about what people once call you, just as you always tell me that I should not care about the past...
Take care...
yours faithfully,
Prodigal -
Dearest NaiveGirl,
Here is something I found in a homepage which is appropriate for the rubber duckie
*sings* "Rubber Duckie, you are the one, you made my bathtub so much fun..."
Hope you like this and feel better.
yours faithfully,
Prodigal -
Dearest Prodigal...
The rubber duckie theme is tet's theme lah!!! I found her wav very amusing that's is why I also sang a version of it leh...
Maybe you shld dedicate that picture to her..
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
Dearest NaiveGirl,
Actually, I found the picture to cheer you up, and was not thinking of dedicated to anyone. I can always dedicate to both singers of the Rubber Duckie Theme : Tet and NaiveGirl....
Anyway, get well soon and do take care.
yours
Prodigal -
Dearest Prodigal...
kekekekee...Thanks Thanks!!
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Float like a butterfly...Sting like a bee... -
My affair with music started when i was inducted into pop music by my neighbour who was a few years older than me and introduced me to Stevie Wonder,Sheena Easton(wonder where did she go to now),Chicago and the like which i was just 8 years old,my uncle also further encouraged it by letting my listen to those songs on his walkman in those days.But I got sidetracked by Transformers and Mask toys and once i started studying for the 1st time in my 5th year of my primary school life in preparation for my PSLE(as the thought of sweeping the roadsides for the rest of my life with a Bangladeshi colleague named Anil didn't really appeal to me as incessantly drilled into my head by mum).I lost touch with music completely and when i got into secondary school,it was even worse as i was playing and fooling around and found a new love which was able to bring me to heights of euphoria and to the greatest depths of despair,it was computer games which i spend half my lower secondary school life playing,but girls didn't particularly appeal to me even though there was an all girls convent school just across the road from my school.but in upper secondary,my good friend introduced me to this group called Gun N Roses(which to me at that time looked like a bunch of faggots in tight leather pants and who screams and yelled like his pants was constricting him).I was wrong,i was blown away by "Sweet Child O Mine" and that killer opening guitar riff.I soon discovered the guilty pleasure of rock,suffice to say i was immediatly hooked and soon discovered other rock bands like Motley Crue,White Lion,Warrant,Winger and the rapping hard rock style of Faith No More etc etc.I also learn to appreciated their outlook on issues like war on "When The Children Cry" and infidelity "I Saw Red".Soon after i progressed to more heavy stuff like Metallica,King Diamond and when i was in Secondary 4,my attire when i went out was black jeans,black rock T-shirt and black Doc Martens(complete with a earring when i was in poly),heehe.I learned the guitart after my O levels and spent many hours trying out the new Guns and Roses riff or trying to learn a new Metallica riff.I also went for many concerts duing that period eg Depeche Mode,Metallica,Def Leppard etc etc which burned a big big hole in my wallet and on hindsight kinda regretted it.During poly,i soon fell in love with Nirvana which heralded the end of big hair and tight leather pants and switch to Pearl Jam,Nirvana etc etc,but i soon layed off my rock style on the advise of my fren becos of a girl i liked(the song "Heaven" will always hold a special place in my heart and everytime the song is played,i will never forget the unfortunate circumstances i heard it)and reverted back to the normal teenage dressing style and junked all my rock CDs and started listening to pop(which i held in distaste during my rock years) like Bryan Adams,The Cranberries who sang of love lost and love found.But my true roots were not to stay buried for long as once i entered the Navy,i began to listen to music again,starting with pop like Crowded House and soon progressing back to my roots with rock like Guns And Roses,Poison again and also learn to appreciate J-Pop which my sister continually blasts in my house.To date,i am still hooked on music,but have learnt to appreciate other forms of music like Classical,Chinese Pop/Rock etc as i believe a song just have to have that certain quality to make it nice regardless what language it is sung in.heehe
To those who are reading this and falling asleep,i don blame ya for it,ahahahaha
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Makan begins with a drool, grows with a chomp, ends with a burp.When you were born, you were hungry and everyone around you was full. Live your life so that when you die, you're the one full and everyone around you is hungry.~~~
Diablo 2 rockzzzzzz
[This message has been edited by moose (edited 03 August 2000).]