The Calvin List: Music of 2007

It's New Year's Eve!!! It's party time! It's time to.... well.. sit on my couch, watch football (Go Ducks!) and EAT crappy food (before my "eat healthier" new years resolution kicks in tomorrow). And what am I doing for my big celebration tonight? Watch movies with Little Calvin. Tonight he's allowed to "try" to stay up until midnight, the only night of the year he can go anywhere near that idea. And since I let him pick the movies that will keep us up until the ball drops, he has picked "Surf's Up" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark".. My have I trained him well!!!

But the point of my post today isn't about our partying tonight (or lack thereof). Nope. On the last day of the year, I try to come up with my "lists". You know, just like everyone else does.. The Best this of 2007, the Best that of 2007.. blah blah blah. But my lists are a bit different. Here's why:

Sure, alot of good music has come out this year. But just because it came out this year, doesn't make it memorable in my mind. What I try to pick are the songs that meant the most to me this year. You know how music works.. You'll listen to the radio and suddenly hear a song that will flash you back to some point in your life. For instance "Land of Confusion" by Genesis... It has nothing to do with running in its lyrics, but every time I hear it... EVERY TIME, I flash back to the cross country state championships my freshman year in high school. I can suddenly remember the event as if it were yesterday. Those are the songs I am talking about.

So for me... which songs will remind me of 2007.. Will immediately flash me back to this point in time? It doesn't matter if the song came out this year or not... It just depends on what mental meaning my brain gives it. So that said... here is my music list (in no particular order) for the year and a little of why the song made the list.

Presenting...

The Calvin List: Music of 2007

Dance Tonight - Paul McCartney
The catchy drum beat that starts this song off, the simple tune and the happy-go-lucky lyrics have allowed me to use this song for several things this past year. Just a good old-fashioned fun song. As an added bonus, both Mackenzie Crook (Ragetti from the Pirates of the Caribbean films) and Natalie Portman star in the video...

Hey Now! - Oasis
I have no idea how I missed this song back in 1995. For some reason when I heard it this last year, I immediately loved it and it has been a top played song on my ipod ever since.

Instant Karma - U2
I just can't have an annual list without a U2 song on it, and since the band didn't release much this year, this will have to do. But considering they played this song at their last Portland show and this is the first real recoding of it that I could get without having to pull audio from a YouTube file.. I was excited to get it.

Lay Your Hands On Me -Bon Jovi
Definitely NOT a song from 2007!!! I stumbled across it listening to someone else's networked itunes collection at the office one afternoon and was immediately hooked. This became my unofficial theme song for my whole Volleyball film project, being cranked out of my car speakers at high volume levels on my way to and from each game, and I'd listen to it's opening drum section whenever I need some inspiration for some quick edits. As my filming schedule became exhausting.. this was my pick-me-up song. I think this song more than any will remind me of 2007.

Little Wonders - Rob Thomas
Used as the theme for Disney's "Meet The Robinsons" I was intrigued by the song, both as it served as the background for a tribute to Walt Disney in the film, and as it has a very "U2's the Edge" guitar sound that I love.

Wake Up Call - Maroon 5
This song will forever remind of my poor daughter's concert struggles of 2007. Last June, Amanda's favorite singer, Kelly Clarkson, announced she'd be coming to Portland for a concert. Knowing how cool this would be for her, I immediately bought her and I tickets, and even rearranged a business trip so I could take her to the show. This was her big birthday present for her 13th birthday. In early July, I had to break the news to her that the show had been canceled and she was devastated to say the least. To make it up to her, another favorite band announced a Portland show: Maroon 5, to which we purchased tickets.. this time floor tickets a few rows from the stage. We bought the new album, listened to it everywhere we went and counted down the weeks to November 1st. It about broke my heart when I got the dreaded e-mail announcing that shows cancellation, knowing I would have to tell her. We're still waiting to find her that birthday present concert... Come on Bon Jovi... play a Portland show.. Make a 13 year old happy!!! But heartbreak aside, the song is still a fun one to listen to and still manages to get played more than most.

Rockstar - Nickelback
Yup... I'll get mocked for this one incessantly at work now... but what can I say... It's a guilty pleasure.

Shambala - Three Dog Night
The oldest song on my list, I have to say I had never heard this little gem prior to hearing it on a episode of my favorite show: Lost. The show seemed particularly heavy for awhile this last season, then along came a really fun more light hearted episode where Hurley finds an old VW van in the jungle and solicits help to restart the thing. It was a total break from the heaviness, a lot of fun to watch and is actually one of my favorite episodes from last season (Although nothing will be quite like watching the end of the season finale for the first time.. I thought my head would explode when I caught on to what was really happening) This song served as a background for key parts of the episode, was purchased from the iTunes store, all of 2 minutes after the episode aired, and is one of my most listened to titles of the year.

Stronger - Kanye West
Rap is not my typical style, but this one was hard to ignore. At first the song comes across as a sporting anthem. Which explains why the song seemed to be on almost every team in our league's warm up mix. I don't think most people actually listened to the lyrics past the introduction to realize the song has absolutely nothing to do with sports. Yes, it is about "extra-curricular activities".. just not those that the schools would want to promote. So it always cracked me up to hear it blaring out the loud speakers in each gym.

The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani
Another guilty pleasure of the year. I first heard the song while trying to find a radio station while driving through the Notre Dame campus in Indiana. Upon arriving at my hotel, I immediately downloaded it, and after returning home introduced it to my 13 year old daughter. Needless to say.. now I get to hear it repeated over and over and as such will be a constant reminder of all things 2007.

So there's the list... the songs that will immediately flash me back to 2007 when I hear them 10 years from now. And with 2008 looking like some tripped out flashback with new albums by U2, Duran Duran, REM, Van Halen and possibly Led Zeppelin.. 2008's list could be really interesting!

Happy New Year!