Out On the Limb

As I was driving home from work yesterday, I started thinking about all the different musical “moods” I’ve had through my life. Mainly separated by life cycles and ages, my musical taste has molded throughout the years. With that, I’ve decided to culminate some of the top musical influences/favorites during different periods in my life. This four part saga will commence with “The Early Years” of my childhood – the pre high school ages. (Keep in mind that the final part is cumulative and will include those that, to me, are timeless)

As a young, white suburban raised young lady, the first slot will go to none other than TLC. What was it about their dirty, quirky, and sometimes serious hip-hop that had me hooked? Probably the infamous under-eye patch worn by Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes. Even though many of their words probably went well over my adolescent head (CrazySexyCool came out when I was seven), I still tried to sing along to the contra-alto notes that T-Boz hit. And of course, still know every word rapped in Waterfalls.

Favorite Tracks: Waterfalls, Creep, and Diggin’ On You

Unfortunately for me, I happened to grow up in a time of bubble-gum pop bands of gelled hair, wicked dance moves, and uplifting messages. So, which one suckered me into buying all their albums? That’s right. The Spice Girls. Yeah, yeah… Don’t judge me. They were one of the biggest pop culture icons of the 1990′s. And what wasn’t to love? There was a different flavor for everyone! As somewhat of a tom-boy, I clicked best with Sporty Spice, Melanie Chisholm – I even have her first solo album (which happened to feature an appearance by Left Eye). My dad even rented Spiceworld (the movie), and taped it so I could watch it over and over. We all have to admit that their image of female empowerment was great for young girls, even though their scantily clad wardrobe might hint otherwise. All I know is that I sang along with my microphone and tape recorder when nobody was looking. Heck, I even attempted to play Mama on the guitar when I first started learning.

Favorite Tracks: Too Much, 2 Become 1, and Naked

Moving on, and digging back into R&B, is the velvet vocal stylings of Brian McKnight. Talk about music to do the dirty to… although I was young in age, I knew exactly what the purpose of his ballads were – to help people get laid. At the height of my R&B phase, Mr. McKnight was definitely my top choice for a smooth beat and rich vocals. To culminate my middle school experience, I danced my first boy/girl slow dance to the sweet sound of Back at One… luckily it was McKnight’s rendition and not the country cover by Mark Wills. Oh, and even though I may not necessarily be into men now… there’s no denying that Brian McKnight was/is a sexy black man.

Favorite Tracks: Anytime, Cherish, and 6, 8, 12

This next artist was a difficult decision. She is someone that I still love dearly and will continue to support. However, to me, nothing will ever top her first album as it rests deep in my heart. Alanis Morissette is, by far, my favorite Canadian ever and Jagged Little Pill is probably in my top ten albums of all time. Throughout my life, every time I listened to that album I would discover something deeper, something I missed, or just couldn’t understand the previous time. With Alanis, there was no sugar coating anything. Her words were just that… taken straight from her journals, right out of her mind, with the hope that a melody could make them clear. I have all of her endeavors since then, but just can’t get as deep as I have with Jagged. Additionally, I absolutely love seeing her make cameos in TV and movies. Can you imagine a better God in Dogma? What about her recent endeavors on Weeds (which I have sadly missed since forgoing cable)? And even the crazy Canadian principal in Degrassi: The Next Generation‘s TV special with Kevin Smith? All in all, hands down love.

Favorite Tracks: Hand in My Pocket, You Learn, and Not the Doctor

Honorable Mentions: Jewel, Gloria Estefan, Celine Dion, Boyz II Men

This will conclude part 1 of the series. Next up, we’ll walk the halls of Centennial High School, marching band, and the advent of my days of illegal music downloading (which I no longer participate in, thank you very much). So, be prepared to put on your headphones and listen with me to my first mp3 player (a 64MB Yepp Y3-N30s) and the music that shaped my adolescence.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 11th, 2009 at 11:51 am and is filed under music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.