This songs matters to me, because: (your explanation here)

That's an interesting point. There are definitely songs I associate with trips and vacations. The Bubbler/Z Man clan went to D.C. in '85 and I think I heard Howard Jones' Things Can Only Get Better approximately 100 times on the trip. Similarly, I remember hearing State of Shock and Eyes Without A Face many, many times on a trip to the Black Hills in '84.

In '01, Mrs. Bubbler and I drove to my dad's in New York. Dido's Thank You was unquestionably the song I associate with that trip.

These days I have XM and can listen to whatever I want. Another bit of collective memory bites the dust.

 

Thanks boys. Exactly what I was looking for.

 

Fen, that wouldn't be the famous 'Lanche would it?

 

Better Off Without Me by The Gathering Field

The Gathering Field was an obscure band that no longer exists and never got much real attention outside of Western PA.

My attachment to the song is pretty much ass-backwards. Mrs. OOP and I have fairly different interests, except for music, where we have almost always been in perfect sync. Very shortly after we met, she introduced me to the music of The Gathering Field. The first song she played for me was Better Off Without Me, which could definitely have been taken the wrong way.

To this day, they are our favorite band. The lead singer still tours on his own, so we go see him if he performs anywhere close enough for us to go. Every time we listen to that CD and hear that song, it's a reminder of that time when we first found each other. The rest of the song pretty much fits the title, so it's not exactly romantic, which is the only reason we didn't have it play for the first dance at our wedding. It's definitely a weird one to have as our song, but that's exactly what it is.

 

I have a song like that. For years it's been my favorite song of all time and I've been claiming for about 5 years that it'll be the song I dance to at my wedding. It's "Keeper of the Stars" by Tracy Byrd.

There's really only one song that evokes any kind of big memory for me. And that's "Let Me Go" by 3 Doors Down. A couple of years ago my best friend, a pretty young lady who I still hold a really strong connection with, was home from college for a weekend. Something came up with her parents and they couldn't take her back to school, so I offered to. I had just bought that CD and we were both hooked on the song. Listened to it the entire 2 hour trip back to her school. We had one of the best conversations I've ever had just telling each other how we were scared of what was in the future and just kind of laying all our feelings out on the table. I think we both knew that from that day, things were never going to be the same between us just because we wouldn't be seeing each other nearly as much as we used to. She lives in Florida now working for Disney and I'm still here in Pennsylvania. We probably only talk once every other week anymore. She's got a new boyfriend down there and while I still consider her my best friend because no one knows me the way she does, it's really not the same.

That song is nice because it makes me think of her and smile. And at the same time, it makes me want to cry because I'd love to go back to that time when things were so much easier in our lives and we always had that constant of having each other just a 10-minute car ride away if things were going badly.

 

Don't You Forget About Me - Simple Minds: The song choice for the Class of 86 sucked. But now, when I hear that song on the oldies station, I'm flooded with memories of high school.

Not Fade Away --> Fire On The Mountain - The Grateful Dead: Reminds me of my hippie days, hitting Dead shows and Rainbow Family Gatherings. I was also doing a lot of hiking, camping and canoeing back then. I'd think nothing of heading into the woods with two weeks at a time. I miss the freedom to do that.

One For My Baby (And One More For the Road) - Sinatra: After grad school, I tended bar. I played this song at last call. Aside from the second-hand smoke, I miss it that job and that bar.

Blue Sky - The Allman Brothers Band: Mrs. Wretch had never really listened to the Allmans. One day, when we were dating, this was playing in my car. I told her it made me think of her, because she's my blue sky, she's my sunny day. From that moment on, it's been "our song."

 

I've always associated "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Tears For Fears with our Washington trip.

 

I guess one for me is Billy Joel's "Piano Man" (I know). Kind of cheesy, right? But for some reason it was sort of the unofficial song of my senior class in college (and this was 2005, mind you-what does that say about my class?), and it was played at the end of virtually every party. And just so you really have the idea, my college was very white, to say the least, so Piano Man usually came after songs like "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me."

Of course it became annoying, but it did evolve into a tradition that you almost felt obligated to adhere to-it was sacrilege if it wasn't the last song played. I specifically remember it when it was played (the last song, of course) at our last big class function the last weekend everyone was there. Everyone swayed in communal circles, and needless to say, the room was a bit misty. Anyways, any time I hear that song, I still think of college, specifically that one time. In fact, for a while after I graduated, I couldn't even listen to the song (granted, part of it was because I had heard it so many damn times) without getting misty at least inside. I guess I try not to be so sentimental, but I still am when I hear the song.

 

'The Message' by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious 5
'Cause it's money.

 

I don't have a story with that song, but I'm also a big fan of "Let Me Go." In general, I find their music somewhat relaxing.

 

'Let Me Go' by the Rolling Stones is also money.