Pretty much everyone’s heard the country classic Take This Job and Shove It by Johnny Paycheck (how amusing is that!). Now there’s a song with attitude…

What song with attitude do you particularly like, and who might you dedicate it to?

Most of my ex-boyfriends deserve one of these two songs, so I should definitely keep them in mind for my next ex-boyfriend (*evil grin*): That Ain’t Love by REO Speedwagon, and Since U Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson.

I never thought that I would admire & respect someone I didn’t actually know to the point that they could influence my musical explorations. I mean, books? Sure, if someone I respect but don’t personally know recommends a book, I’ll check it out. Restaurants? Ditto. But music? Music is so individual; what one person adores, another may think is drek.

What piece of music have you listened to just because someone you respect or admire – but don’t actually know in person – recommended it?

Strictly on the basis that I think Spider Robinson (Hugo- and Nebula-award winning SF writer) is a godling, I got a copy of Running Jumping Standing Still by Spider John Koerner. It’s an interesting, jaunty little piece of music – not something I’m utterly in love with, but very easy to listen to!

Hopefully my Irish gaelic doesn’t suck too badly. Of course, tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day! That means green beer, and where there are Irish and beer, there’s music!

What’s your favorite drinking song, Irish or otherwise?

It may be a cliche, but I love Finnegan’s Wake. (Though I’m perhaps a quarter Irish, if that, I’ll be terribly disappointed if my friends don’t throw me a rowdy Irish wake.) Okay, I admit it…I also love Denis Leary’s Traditional Irish Folk Song. *snicker*

And here’s a bit of Irish wisdom…

If Irish coffee has alcohol in it, why doesn’t Irish stew? …Because stew, by definition, is made up of leftovers and the Irish never have alcohol left over, silly!

Everyone just loved their class song from their graduation, right? Tell me all about it.

What song was your graduating class song, and why did you like it or hate it?

I tested out of high school so I was lucky enough to miss that graduation. My junior high graduating class song was that misbegotten inanity of a Muppets song, The Rainbow Connection. Yes, truly sad, in a horrific way. It’s probably un-American, but I have never appreciated the Muppets.

Every now and then, a song that has largely (or entirely) nonsensical lyrics will sweep in and grab your attention like a boa constrictor wrapping around a warm little rat. The original one must have been Louie Louie (the official rock song of the state of Washington…makes you wonder what the legislators were smoking that day!).

What song with mostly or completely nonsensical lyrics do you like anyway (or because the lyrics don’t make sense!)?

I used to like The Lion Sleeps Tonight, until I heard it done to death in The Lion King movie, and by a certain ex-boyfriend of mine who often sang it for karaoke. But a song that I must have heard eight thousand times that still makes me smile and happily bounce along with is Blue by Eiffel 65.

We’ve all heard muzak – that ersatz “music” played in waiting rooms, grocery stores, and elevators. It seems as though musical artists like Celine Dion, Michael Bolton, and Bryan Adams were born to record songs that are destined for muzak. But what about those artists who weren’t?

What song (or the music of a specific artist) would you be horribly amused by hearing done into muzak?

I think I’d wind up falling down in a fit of hysterical giggles if I heard Lita Ford or Joan Jett as muzak. Especially I Hate Myself For Loving You by Joan Jett. I’m already giggling, just thinking about it.

At least in the Northern Hemisphere, we’re smack-dab in the middle of winter. The first day of spring is over a month away, and I’ve heard more than a few people grumbling about being sick of winter.

What song reminds you of winter, and why?

I was raised listening to Anne Murray, since she was probably my mother’s favorite musical artist. So the song that always brings to mind winter for me is Snowbird. It’s a very upbeat tune, despite the sad lyrics…a lovely contrast, and reminds me of how everything in winter can seem cold & dreary & dead, but out of nowhere there will be a bright & sunny day that doesn’t seem wintery at all.

Luckily for me, I have a Number One Internet Fanboy who comes to my rescue when I can’t figure out a terrific question for this meme. (I could have sworn I had about 800 ideas for questions when I decided to do a meme!)

Name three (or more!) people and the custom ringtones you’ve either set for them on your phone, or would if you could.

I’m going to be an over-achiever in my answer:
Geoffrey – In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel
Lyse – Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett
Karel – Don’t Don’t Tell Me No by Sophie B. Hawkins
Brenda – Haven’t We Been Here Before by Styx
Elder demonspawn – Annie’s Song by John Denver (obviously!)
Younger demonspawn – Anxiety by Pat Benatar (of course!)
Molly – The Mummers’ Dance by Loreena McKennitt or Black Leather Band by Bedlam Bards
Mari – anything by Heather Alexander
Any ex – Since You’ve Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson

It’s only the middle of the week, and I’m more than ready for the weekend. Between one thing and another, there’s been little sleep in my life lately. But at least it gave me an idea for this week’s question…

What is your favorite style of music (and/or your favorite song) to listen to while relaxing or drifting off to sleep?

I’ve always been a big fan of David & Steve Gordon’s Sacred Earth Drums and Sacred Spirit Drums. The first cassette tape I owned of their music, almost a decade ago, eventually wore out from overuse!

VH-1 has been running a show about the “40 Worst Metal Moments” that featured such painful bits as the heavy-metal recordings of Michael Bolton, Pat Boone, and Celine Dion. Terribly traumatic stuff. So I wondered…

If you could have any musical artist or band record in another genre entirely, what artist/band and what genre? For over-achievers, what song?

I’d love to hear Josh Grobin record some heavy metal! Or Metallica doing some Irish drinking songs, in classic Irish-pub style with acoustic instruments only. That would be just darling.