from the "blast from the past" department, what song should come wafting over from the next cubicle today but Dan Fogelberg's "Same Old Lang Syne" - a song i haven't heard in at least 12 years. growing up in a Fogelberg-intensive household left me permanently damaged. i still can't think about Tucson, Arizona without making the association to Dan and his proto-James Taylor balladeering. over the years i must have heard the song in question hundreds of times. but it was only after reading the lyrics today that i realized how insipid they are. it's like the musical equivalent of a third-rate Lifetime movie. or a cross between the Pina Colada Song (can you name the artist?) and Jackson Browne's "The Load Out". and despite the title, it's not really much of a holiday song so i'm not sure why it was being played in between "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and some crap Mariah Carey seasonal schlock.
but perhaps the most horrifying thing about my brief foray back into the realm of Fogelberg was the discovery that this song has produced a work of fanfiction which for some reason is the property of MGM Studios.
Posted by jamie at December 21, 2004 10:52 AMWhat I want to know is how many Lifetime movies did you look at as possible links before settling on this one (co-starring Sheriff Harry S. Truman from "Twin Peaks," no less).
Posted by: mas at December 21, 2004 11:38 AMDan Fogelberg-intensive home....hmmmmmm.....explains a lot.
...AND it's actually "Escape (the Pina Colada Song)" by Rupert Holmes, beeeeyotch.
Posted by: Dave Nelson at December 21, 2004 12:41 PMi blame the alan parsons project and dan folgerberg overload for my intense love of cheese rock to this day. i almost got misty eyed just reading this entry.
Posted by: crispin at December 21, 2004 12:58 PMWho's Dan Fogelberg?
Posted by: jake at December 21, 2004 02:04 PMThat song makes me cry also, as does "Leader of the Band." I have even considered getting the album. I don't find it banal at all: "I stole behind her in the frozen foods"? Genius! My neighbors listened to Dan Fogelberg constantly, along with the Doobie Brothers and Journey. Somewhere stored within me are all the lyrics to these albums. They were also into Pat Metheny and Chick Corea, which I'm fuzzy about. I loved going over to their house and rocking out in the basement. The oldest sibling ended up going on tour with Chuck Mangione! That was my first concert and I still have the t-shirt. Later he became mildly famous, his christmas music gets played on CD 101.9 radio station, and they actually relived the story of "Leader of the Band" because the dad is this saint who taught us elementary school kids to play and the son is on tv and stuff. And for this reason, I feel I have every right to cry at Dan Fogelberg! Yay!
Posted by: Kathy at December 22, 2004 10:50 AMOh yeah and the thing most people don't realize about the Pina Colada song is that it's actually about a couple who are bored in the relationship and want to cheat by finding someone else through the personal ads, and end up matching themselves to the person they're already with, thereby realizing they were meant to be together. I think it lays important cultural groundwork for "Eternal Sunshine," and is a vital part of the Pop Canon.
Posted by: Kathy at December 22, 2004 10:56 AMWhat I don't get is how you missed hearing it for 12 years. Where were you every Xmas, under a fucking rock?!
You know, he's probably a good marketer b/c he called the random song "Same Old Lang Syne," added an Old Lang Syne guitar rift at the end, and had himself a holiday song.
Sorry, not a guitar rift, a little sax rift...
Posted by: Claire at December 22, 2004 02:49 PMI grew up in a Folgeberg-friendly environment. That's why I cringe when I hear the line, "His blood runs through my instrument."
Posted by: David at December 22, 2004 04:23 PMBest song ever.
Posted by: Big D at December 28, 2004 05:53 PM