My top 5 songs: all more for their meaning to me, at a time in my life, than there musical quality.
1) The Choir Boys - Run To Paradise
In my early 20's I was a pool shark. Literally. Not a hustler, but I did take quite a few beers and $5/$10 bets off people, but that was usually my limit. There are so many stories I could share. I played in some scary places run by the "Turkish mafia". Guys plonking down big wads of cash, wanting to play me in high stakes games. I never did though. Bouncers at one pub, that let me and my friends stay hours after closing, with free beer, because I kept beating them game after game (for only a $5/game bet). Where this song comes into it is, it was my "juice". I could be in a tight spot in a game, and if this song came on, I just couldn't miss! I'd let the rhythm go through me, and it was at the pace of my game. It's hard to explain. When you get on a roll, you get a rhythm. This song was my perfect rhythm!
I can't play for sh1t these days, as my eyes just don't cut it anymore. Haven't picked up a stick seriously in 20 years.
2) Divinyls - I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore
One of the many, many times in my life, that I found myself in a weird head space. I got home pretty drunk, and was home alone. I wasn't depressed, but I was very much wrapped up in my thoughts. This song came on, and particularly the guitar opening, just spoke to me. It was raining a strange rain outside. Largish drops, but not pouring rain. At 2.30am I went outside, and danced in our front yard, in the rain, with this song playing over and over. I was out their dancing for about 25 or 30 minutes. When I was done, I went back to my chair, and just smiled to myself. It seemed pretty unreal at the time.
3) AC/DC - Shook Me All Night Long
January 1981, long before "schoolies week" was a wet dream in some promoters pants, me and 6 mates went to the Gold Coast for 2 weeks of non-stop drinking, and whatever other trouble we could get up to. This was the first song that came on, at the first club we went to, and always instantly takes me back to that trip. It was an amazing trip for a group of 18 and 19 year olds! Probably tame in comparisom to what some of them get up to today, but we did ok. Not sure many of todays 18/19 year olds could drink beer 16-18 hours/day, every day for 2 weeks, what with pills and powders being more the order of the day, these days!
4) Linkin Park - Numb
This song is generational. My favourite band, and it speaks to me, and I can see how it speaks to my 20 year old grandson, too.
5) Pearl Jam - Better Man
I'm a very lucky man. I have 2 large groups of friends, and 2 amazing families. For around 7 or 8 years in a row, on Melbourne Cup Day, we would meet at one particular friends house, from one of those groups. Around 20 to 25 of us. We'd drink, punt, laugh, bbq, drink some more, then around 7.30 or 8.00pm, we'd crank up the music, and sing and drink even more. It was usually around a 14 hour session, from 11am until 1am, until his wife would get sick of us, and kick us out. Greatest times of my life. Great friends, drinking, punting, laughing, singing. I really have missed them, these past 10 years in Denmark. This song reminds of those times, as we'd really belt this one out, when it came on.
