The Dark Romance of M...

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Master and Servant ~ Depeche Mode

My Dear Friend Nikki warned me that I'd better include this tune and I was happy to oblige. It titillated me back when I first discovered it as an innocent teen and still manages to stir up the naughty-sauce of my psyche. The key to this song's meaning lies in the lyrics, "Domination's the name of the game/in bed or in life, they're both just the same/Except in one you're fulfilled at the end of the day." Word.

Magic ~ Olivia Newton-John

I loved this song when I first heard it back in 1980 and over 30 years later I keep going back to it for its sheer romance. Because what could be more romantic than knowing you'll always be caught when you fall, always be supported, and even guided if necessary, by one who loves you and sticks with you to the bitter end, and believes you capable of any feat, no matter how impossible? To me, that kind of love really is magical. It's the kind of love parents feel for their children, lovers feel for their mates, and even, I honestly think, the kind of love that God feels for us all. (I know that last bit isn't the kind of thing some folks may expect from me, of all people, but hey - I contain multitudes, OK?)

Magnificent ~ U2

Dudes - when I first heard this song, I thought I'd die from the swell of emotion that overtook me. With its pulsing bass line, a guitar riff that alternates between melancholic yearning and triumphant jubilation, that driving snare, and prayer-like lyrics, it's a gorgeous, sweeping, soul-magnifying love song that pushes you along to a conclusion filled with glorious promise. I realize my feelings for it won't be shared by everybody and y'all can just keep that yourselves - for me, this song is sacred. Yes, sacred. (And, according to the Wikipedia article, which I've linked to the song's title, others agree, using words like hymn and anthem to describe it.) (So there.)

The Dark Romance of B...

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Boom Boom (Let's Go Back to My Room) ~ Paul Lekakis

Many, many, (many) moons ago, I had a thing for a dude* who told me, straight up, that all he wanted from me was a bit of fun, nothing too serious. It devastated me but I appreciated that he didn't mess me around, just laid out his intentions and anything that happened after that was based on a conscious, clear-eyed decision on my part. That's how I view this raucous, raunchy tune in all its fist-pumping glory - no pretensions of love or romance, just an invitation to a bit of the old boom-boom. God love ya, Paul Lekakis - and you ain't exactly hard on the eyes, neither.

*Edit: Just in case there's any confusion - the dude in question was not the singer of this song; I just meant to say that this song reminds me of that situation.

 

Because the Night ~ Patti Smith Group

A song so gut-wrenching, so soul-inflaming, and so true that U2 wishes they'd written it, I quiver when I hear it. Dayum, Patti Smith (and Bruce Springsteen, who co-wrote it). Da-yum. (And let's not forget the 10,000 Maniacs Unplugged version, where Natalie Merchant's voice gives that spine-tingling catch as she sings, "...take me now..." toward the end of the tune...yowsa).

Blade in the Back ~ U.N.K.L.E. (featuring Gavin Clark)

Y'all, I am guessing this song's about betrayal, and I have to guess at its meaning, as I can't really make out the lyrics, nor can I find them online (if one o' y'all got 'em, I'd be much obliged to learn what they are). I include it because that growling, grinding riff really revs my motor. Woof.