The Power of Music

I think one of the most powerful forms of memory is music.  Think about it…You’re driving along and a certain song comes on, you then are transported back to a particular time in your life or you’re flooded with memories about a person.  It’s something that everyone can relate to, I feel.

Here’s a few for me…

I Melt With You by Modern English: I’m waiting for my first love to pick me up for his senior prom in 1993.  The lyrics “and it was always just mesh and lace…” pull me back to sitting on my bed, in my prom dress, listening to XL106.7.

Leaving on a Jet Plane by Peter, Paul, and Mary: Singing along with my Mom in our family room.  That song makes me choke up every single time I hear it.

Forever and Ever Amen by Randy Travis: Listening to K92 FM with my Dad and him saying ‘your man is playing’ any time this song came on and me vowing that this will play at my wedding someday (which it did).

Crazy by Patsy Cline: My husband and I dancing to this song at the Go Lounge in Orlando on one of our first dates.  I played it on the jukebox and he slowed dance with me, even though no one else was dancing.  It became the song we played for our first dance at our wedding.

She Sells Sanctuary by The Cult:  This song was dedicated to me by an…a…it’s complicated. But anyway, every time I hear it (or any song by The Cult for that matter), I relive the whole relationship.

Ribbons Undone by Tori Amos: For my daughter.  Every lyric to that song is for her, and I cannot help but get emotional when I listen to it.

There’s also musical artists that could easily be featured in my “Soundtrack to My Life”:

Tori Amos, U2, Sting, Rush, The Cure, Concrete Blonde, Fleetwood Mac, Jimi Hendrix…the list is just about endless.

So, it doesn’t surprise me that the inspiration for my novel series comes straight from music.  From the titles of the books to the chapters, each one is a song that portrays a feeling or a theme that underscores the novel.  Sometimes it’s just a line, sometimes it is every word.  There’s even a few instrumental songs because of the feelings that they give while I listen to it.  My vision for the series is that each book has a playlist, that when the reader reads them, the songs helps to tell the story.  Sets the mood, so to speak.

In the next few posts I will share a few that were the foundation of my series and the inspiration behind it.

Grab your Sony DiscMan and enjoy!