"Jessica"
BBD- Poison
Janet Jackson- Control, and pretty much everything on the album of the same name.
Boyz II Men- End Of The Road
In middle school, it's free, and easy. I count Jessica as my first girlfriend, but if we're really being fair, 6th grade shouldn't even count. I mean, we didn't go out on any "real" dates, and looking back at it, I think we only dated because of convenience. She lived down the street from me, I had a crush on her 17 year old older sister, she had a crush on my older brother, so we called it even and settled for less. Jessica's older sister was into 90's r&b. I was, and still am...but I mean, she was REALLY into it. She thought she was Janet Jackson, so in turn, Jessica thought she was Janet Jackson. It's always funny to look back on how many times we listened to "The Pleasure Principle" without grasping the full Freudian concept of what it meant, but I know I was only like 11, so....anyway. Being that Janet Jackson was THE sex symbol of my pre-teen years, it would seem that dating a girl who thought she was JJ would be awesome. Well, when you're 11, you're not thinking about sex, nor things that symbolize sex. I became distant, and disinterested. Jessica broke up with me with Boyz II Men's "II" album playing in the background. We still speak to this day.
"Tracy"
Nirvana- Serve The Servants, Where Did You Sleep Last Night, Polly, About A Girl, Dumb
Jeff Buckley- Corpus Christi Carol
Liz Phair- Shatter, Gunshy
Lisa Loeb- Do You Sleep
Bush- Glycerine
Tracy had a twin sister (We'll call her "Stacy"), and was my first high school girlfriend. Not my first love, but my first real infatuation. I was in 9th grade, a little awkward, but good enough to make varsity soccer, and the freshman basketball team. She was a lot more awkward, but made the drill team. She didn't fit in though. She liked musicians that were dead, or at least musicians who had a dead career. We were in middle school together, and I remember when Cobain died, she came to school with a black armband. Back then, I just thought she was weird. One day I went to her house with some friends before soccer practice, and she put on In Utero. I had heard Nirvana before, of course...but this was the first time I listened to Nirvana. I mean REALLY listened. I was hooked from there. We started dating and I wrapped myself in her musical choices. I became a female alt rock junkie. Tracy is the one who taught me that when it comes to Liz Phair, you stick to Exile In Guyville, and that record ONLY (I still hold true to that...I tried to listen to Whip-Smart last year, and it was God awful.), and Lisa Loeb is fine...as long as it's pre-1998. Same for Alanis. The one "chick" rocker that she put on my plate (but I do have to give my sister credit for expanding my love for this artist...) was Ani DiFranco. I still listen to Ani to this day, and I still get people asking me why in the hell am I listening to Ani if I'm not a lesbian, and I think of Tracy and laugh. She went wrong when she started listening to Bush. I think it was just that she wanted something that sounded close enough to Nirvana, but our biggest fights were over Gavin Rossdale's blatant ripping off of Nirvana, which she was blind to. Tension ended our relationship...but I'll always blame that hack Gavin Rossdale. Marrying Gwen Stefani was the best thing he'll ever do. Tracy moved out of state, and again, we still speak. Last checked, she was a women's studies major, and she cried when Sleater-Kinney broke up. Which I expected. On both counts. Also, she hates Gavin Rossdale now.
"Erica"
Nas- Halftime, Nas Is Like
Beastie Boys- No Sleep Till Brooklyn, To All The Girls
De La Soul- A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturday
Slick Rick- I Own America (Part 1)
O.A.R.- Every Song O.A.R. Has Ever Made
Erica was the first girl that I dated that was truly...truly into hip-hop. We spent half of my senior year of high school hanging out after basketball practice debating our top 5 list of MCs. She couldn't see Ice Cube in anyone's top 5, and I ripped her for having Run (of Run D.M.C) in hers. But it was all in great fun. I don't think we spent much time in each other's presence where we weren't talking each other's ear off. She knew it all, she knew that Prince Paul was the mastermind producer of the 90's, she loved all Tribe Called Quest, but ONLY listened to Midnight Marauders, because it was just that good. This relationship was short though. I don't think there was any physical attraction. We just loved REAL hip-hop, and that was our bond. Late in the relationship, she wanted to "broaden her musical horizons", so she started listening to O.A.R. The readers of this blog know how I feel about O.A.R. I'm not saying that ended our relationship. But I sure as hell ain't saying that it didn't play a part. We don't talk anymore, and I wish we would. She would love Lupe Fiasco, probably roll her eyes at Kanye West, but enjoy him behind closed doors, and she would have been brokenhearted when Jay-Z stopped, but loved when he started again. If anyone sees her, say hello. Moving on....
"Jasmine"
Youth Asylum- Jasmin
Jane's Addiction- Then She Did...
The Clash- Lover's Rock, Clash City Rockers
New York Dolls- Don't Start Me Talkin', Trash
Aerosmith- Train Kept 'A Rollin
The Band- The Well, It Makes No Difference, Ophelia, Acadian Driftwood
Bruce Springsteen- Rosalita, Jungleland, Murder Incorporated
Talking Heads- Entire '77' Album
Kanye West- Through The Wire, Roses, Family Business, Never Let Me Down
Hootie/Blowfish- Let Her Cry
Jasmine (only name that was cleared to not be changed) was my first real heartbreak. We dated from the end of my senior year until midway through college. At the time, I was sure that I could marry the girl. We met at a pizza place, and I had always had a crush on her, so I picked a cheesy song on the jukebox, because it had her name in the title. She challenged me by then picking the Jane's Addiction song that spanned about 14 minutes and just felt like some kind of really odd trip. Before we had even said words to each other, we were challenging each other's musical tastes. But, my jukebox romance won me a date, and London Calling won me another. If I ever say that London Calling is the greatest album of all time, it was Jasmine's influence, although I really think it might be. She was as interesting as her musical tastes. She was a vegetarian that would sneak bites of my chicken and then giggle as if she had committed a grand crime. She couldn't play keyboard, but would always set it to the weirdest sound, and play it loud. She wore chuck taylors to weddings. She talked in her sleep, but made no noise when she laughed hard. Long story short, she was amazing. I remember early on when we were having one of our many music cred battles, and I played the New York Dolls card, showing off their first album, she fired back the next day by buying me a vinyl copy of their second album ("Too Much Too Soon"), with a note that simply stated 'You're welcome'. We shared more in common than music, but it helped. I remember the day we came across a rare recording of the song 'The Well' by the Band, and sat around listening to it over and over. She didn't like Elvis, but owned 3 45's of his. I turned her on to Jerry Lee Lewis, Rakim, and Bonnie Raitt. She turned me on to X, PiL, and My Morning Jacket. She declared "our song" to be Jungleland, because we both love(d) the line "The poets down here don't write nothin' at all"...it made us laugh, because we both fancied ourselves writers, but had no works completed to our name. We both saw, and loved the rise of Kanye West from 2002 to 2004 where he went from studio whiz kid to rap's savior. When his debut came out, I was in Texas, but she called me frantic, and excited. We broke up over a mixtape, and a note. She left me a note, and a tape which looped Let Her Cry, and some horrible Dave Matthews song in which there was like a flute solo or something. But, the last song was "Uh-Oh, Love Comes To Town" by Talking Heads. And of all things, that let me down easy. I won't go into why we broke up, but she is among the exes that I talk to now. She got married this summer. She didn't wear chucks to this wedding.
"Megan"
Fall Out Boy- G.I.N.A.S.F.S., Chicago Is So Two Years Ago, XO, Reinventing The Wheel To Run Myself Over
Cute Is What We Aim For- Curse Of Curves, The Fourth Drink Instinct
Cartel- Honestly
Nina Simone- Sinnerman
Stevie Wonder- Heaven Help Us All, Love's In Need Of Love Today
The Supremes- Any And All.
Hellogoodbye- Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn, Dear Jamie
Taking Back Sunday- Great Romances Of The 20th Century, One-Eighty By Summer, I'll Let You Live
Tegan And Sara- Clever Meals, Hype, I Bet It Stung, Wake Up Exhausted
Megan liked only 2 genres of music. Emo, and Soul. I found this odd, but mostly, she was interesting, and a good friend after a bad breakup. She prompted this blog, as she called earlier to tell me that Fall Out Boy's new album ("Folie à deux"...or "The Madness Of Two") is slated to come out on my birthday, and the new single ("I Don't Care") was released today. She refused to listen to anything but those two genres though, and it was only odd because they were so unlike each other. She is the reason that I consider Taking Back Sunday's first album a classic, and why I still cop to liking Fall Out Boy, openly, while others hid their love. She liked Panic At The Disco BEFORE the Beatlesesque crossover, and I respect that about her, because they truly were horrible then, but she saw the potential. I saw HelloGoodbye with her in 2006, and it was the most fun I've ever had at any concert ever. She introduced me to Paramore, and the force of nature that is Hayley Williams. When I couldn't find a good copy of the Fall Out Boy B-side G.I.N.A.S.F.S. last winter, she sent me one express mail. She's my age, 24, but her musical spirit is that of a 16 year old, and I admire that. She wasn't for me, and still lives in Arizona, and we, of course...are great friends.
So, there's an open, touching, and fun blog for you all. I'm not saying I pick relationships based off of music, but every one has a soundtrack.
Oh, and as for the new Fall Out Boy single...it'll have to grow on me. Aside from the chorus line of "I don't care what you think, as long as it's about me", the lyrics are a little bland. I'm off again, fellas.
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