in which i talk about songs that are more than songs

so, we all have songs that stick with us through the years, ones that transcend experiences and people, that never fail to remain relevant. the more i talk to other music lovers about these songs, the more i discover that these songs almost always stem from our youth.

for a good ten years, when anyone would ask me what my favorite song was, i wouldn't hesitate to say running to stand still by U2. this is a beautiful, brilliant song that has so much meaning to me - but, the truth is, over the years, it's faded in importance. when i hear it now i feel nostalgic, as one does when they think back on years past and the events that painted those days. it is no longer my favorite song, and that is because it has served it's purpose in my life and has stepped aside so other songs can become meaningful.

U2, in general, is one of those bands that, despite their popularity, finds strong loyalty in a wide swath of varying music listeners. at their last concert, which, admittedly, was the social scene of the year for angelinos last year, i spotted elementary school aged children, baby boomers, hipster teens and gen y-ers, hippies, yuppies, the elderly, frat boys, intellectuals, and goths all mingling together as they enjoyed the ultimate in rock music. there were nearly 100,000 of us at that show - 100,000!!! it was crazy crowded, the biggest show i've ever been to, and yet, at the same time, there was a feeling of camaraderie, of all of us sharing a moment with a band that's maintained popularity and meaningfulness over three decades. it was wild and conflicting - too crowded and yet intimate at the same time.

my biggest regret (other than being surrounded by drunk idiots and having to walk, uphill, nearly two miles while eight months pregnant to get back to my car) is that they didn't play bad. this song is the sort of song i talked about at the beginning of this post - it's stuck with me for twenty plus years, never allowing me to lose interest or to pass it by in favor of flashier, trendier songs. every time i hear it, especially those opening strains that the edge plucks out, i get goosebumps.

i never skip it on my ipod. and i'm lucky enough to have heard it live before, just not recently.

it's about heroin addiction (as is, according to the husband, running to stand still). and that's the beauty of music - while the artist may have written it about something specific, it's still a partially painted canvas, left ready for each listener to fill in with their own influences, beliefs, and experiences. bad isn't about addiction to me. instead, i've taken it, held it close, let it fill me, and made it mine. it's one of the songs that refuses to leave me, and i like it that way.

if you twist and turn away
if you tear yourself in two again
if i could
you know i would
if i could, i would
let it go
surrender
dislocate

if i could throw this
lifeless lifeline to the wind
i'd leave this heart of clay
see you walk, walk away
into the night
through the rain
into the half-light
through the flame

if i could, through myself,
set your spirit free
i'd lead your heart away
see you break, break away
into the light
and to the day

so let it go
and so fade away
so let it go
and so fade away

i'm wide awake
i'm wide awake
i'm not sleeping
oh, no, no, no
i'm not sleeping
oh, no

if they should ask, well maybe they'd
tell me what i should say
true colors fly in blue and black
bruised silken sky and burning flag
colours crash, collide in bloodshot eyes

if i could, you know i would
if i could,
i would let it go

this desperation
separation
condemnation
revelation
in temptation
isolation
desolation
isolation
let it go, aha

and so fade away
so let it go, aha
and so fade, fade, fade away
so let it go
and so to fade away

i'm wide awake
i'm wide awake
wide awake
i'm not sleeping
oh, no, no, no

two videos for you to enjoy today:
the first is U2 performing this brilliant song at live aid back in '85, back before bono was the fly and all of his other sunglassed world-saving personas. here, he's simply bono. i think i like him this way best.

the second is a cover of the song. oh, HOW CAN IT BE? you're saying. how can anyone even DARE to cover such a song? but luka bloom dared, and it's so frigging wonderful, it has to be shared:




what about you? are there any songs that, no matter what year it is, still are just as powerful to you as the first time you heard it?