With quarantine fever brought by COVID-19 lockdowns and the
slow return to near-normal, the 30-day Song Challenge is back on Instagram. Users are invited to list the song as per the
prompt for that calendar day. It is quite interesting and entertaining to go through the musical bibliography of our life stories to answer this song challenge. Certainly a great diversion from the worries of this 2020 scourge.
Back in 2018, I did an abbreviated version of the 30-day song challenge: https://jcerrudocreations.blogspot.com/2018/07/musical-challenge.html Like with my 2018 post, I decided to do a shorter list and
added a few things on my own.
A song that is funky with swag moves
“Uptown Funk” - Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars
I like (but do not understand) the Michelle Pfeiffer reference; the lyrics are (sorry) atrocious, but the music is delightfully infectious. There is abundant charm, cheekiness, and raucous energy in the song. Bruno Mars can do no wrong with that choreography; his moves confident and graceful. The groovy and retro swag dance moves with the Hooligans on the city streets have inspired “euphoric dancing” whenever or wherever it is played. No wonder this song is such a big hit here and abroad and had topped the Billboard 100 for several weeks.
1.
2. A song I never get tired of
“Save The Last Dance For Me” -Bruce Springsteen
The song was originally recorded by the Drifters in 1960, with versions later by several artists like Michael Buble, and recently by the REO Brothers. Here with my 80’s crush Bruce Springsteen is the sexiest version of this song. I sit here with a huge smile on my face as I live vicariously through that woman. I am that woman in this video, totally overwhelmed by the song and the man. It is such a sweet, sweet song and I can just imagine myself self-combusting with happiness if the Boss danced with me, sweat and all. I don't know if I would have survived that kiss. Oh my! If it was me, I would have probably thought, "I died and went to heaven."
3. A song that reminds me of someone I’d rather
forget
“That Don't Impress Me Much”- Shania Twain
I like empowered women who are not easily impressed by men
who get by on brains, looks, and brawns but are too self-absorbed to provide
women with the emotional connection that we all crave. And I have seen a fair
share of men like these. I may not be able to pull off a leopard print coat like Shania, but I can be haughty and disdainful with men who mistakenly think they're all that, even if they look like Brad Pitt.
4. A song that I did not expect that I will put
on repeat
“Ordinary Song”- Marc Velasco
Marc is a Filipino acoustic/folk-singer who is so unassuming but
has totally surprised me with how the song hooked me. It is not really just an ordinary song; it is an earnest, romantic song. Cannot explain why.
5. A song I like from the 70s
"Hotel California"- The Eagles
The song lyrics has been misinterpreted in many ways, but I just love the Eagles particularly Glenn Frey and Don Henley, so I don’t care. Maybe it was because my brother played their songs almost non-stop back then in Manila. He used to jam to Eagles songs with his friends. It’s only later when I recognized the exquisite guitar solo between Felder and Walsh which has been the standard by which all guitarists were judged.
6. A song I like that’s a cover by another
artist
“All By Myself”- Charice
The song was written by American artist Eric Carmen in 1975 and subsequently covered by the great Celine Dion herself. But it was Charice’s powerful version that gave me goosebumps as she pulled no stops in singing her heart out. She shattered the roof and brought the house down. Charice was poised for superstardom when, out of nowhere, we learned that she transitioned into a man and is now known as Jake Zyrus. I know he had to do what was best for him and that he is happy with the decision.
7. A song with a person’s name in the title
“Fernando”- ABBA
"There was something in the air that night, the stars
were bright, Fernando.” The song by the Swedish group is a nostalgic toast to
old memories. The group seems to have a predilection for persons’ names as
titles in their songs like Mamma Mia and Chiquitita.
8. A song that moves me forward
“Climb”- Miley Cyrus
Long before I got turned off by her gyrations and twerks, Miley
performed this country pop song as the lead single off the soundtrack of her
movie Hannah Montana. The song is about pursuing your goals no matter how hard
the journey, no matter how high and arduous the climb is.
9. A song I like by an artist no longer living
“I Will Always Love You” - Whitney Houston
Gone too soon. I know
this was originally Dolly Parton’s song but Whitney whipped this song into the
stratosphere with a tour-de-force and bombastic performance.
Stephen Holden of the New York Times wrote: “Houston
transforms a plaintive country ballad into a towering pop-gospel assertion of
lasting devotion to a departing lover. Her voice breaking and tensing, she
treats the song as a series of emotional bursts in a steady climb toward a
final full-out declamation. Along the way, her virtuosic gospel embellishments
enhance the emotion and never seem merely ornamental.”
10A song that breaks my heart
"Tears in Heaven"- Eric Clapton
This is a most tragic song about Eric Clapton’s 4 y/o son
who fell to his death from a 53rd-floor window. The anguish and
profound sadness in the song breaks my heart every time I hear it.
11A song by an artist whose voice I love
“Iingatan Ka” (Taking Care of You) by Carol Banawa
In the late 1990s, I was obsessed with Carol’s voice. She had
that airy, melodious golden voice that just rendered the song a sweet, poignant
homage to mothers. This song is a grateful daughter's promise to the woman who gave her life; that she will always take care of and watch over her mother. She left Philippine showbiz in 2003 to migrate to the United
States to start a family. Now, I like her even more because she is a nurse like
me.
12A song I like that’s a cover of another
band
“In My Life” | The Beatles- cover by the REO Brothers
Here’s my new obsession, the REO brothers. They’re a band of 4 Filipino brothers (sometimes five) who have astounded professional musicians all over the world with their musical instrumentations and tight vocal harmonies. They are a versatile group who can switch from the Beatles to the Bee Gees, Beachboys, Cliff Richard, Hollies, Critters, Dave Clark 5, the Turtles, Earth Wind and Fire, Eagles, Simon and Garfunkel, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. "In My Life" evokes remembrance of people and places in life, with the lead vocalist Raymart sounding Lennon-ish. I discovered them during this COVID-era, and I am pleasantly surprised that these young men can actually do much more than the Beatles.
13A song from a favorite musical
“On My Own” (Les Misérables)- Lea Salonga
Lea is a famous Filipina singer and actress who conquered
Broadway as “Miss Saigon” and later sang the voices of Disney princesses
Jasmine and Mulan. She even managed to star as Eponine and Fantine in Les
Miserables. She transcended the color barrier on stage and became the first Asian Eponine. She is hands down, the best Eponine. The song is about unrequited love for Marius, and Lea infused the song with such emotions with her crystalline voice. What did Marius see in Cosette anyway?
In the rain the pavement shines like silver
All the lights are misty in the river
In the darkness the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me forever and forever
