Moving in Stereo

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My boys like to send me newer music, in an effort to broaden my horizons, I guess.

They’re also looking for me to agree with their choices, and from time to time, I will ask them to recommend stuff. That’s how I came up with a few Taylor Swift songs.

I also recall watching a Dire Straits show with my Dad, and was thrilled when he mentioned that Mark Knopfler was a supremely talented guitarist.

Yet, in an effort to be where my feet are, I drove back from my Mom’s thinking about nothing other than the songs that played for me - courtesy of the list provided by my cell phone.

I marveled at the unbelievable voice of Pat Benatar as she did ‘Promises in the Dark’ from the early 80’s. Her voice is like a musical instrument.

The song gave way to ‘Moving in Stereo’ off the debut album from The Cars.

That record was a straight up masterpiece and it transported me back in time to the summer between 7th and 8th grade. I was at the high school baseball field and I talked about it with a couple of classmates.

‘Moving in Stereo’ was the song we were listening to.

Music can do that for certain - it’s the closest thing we have to time travel. I saw the faces of the kids I was talking to: Sam and Tony - two long forgotten classmates.

We are linked through that memory.

Next up was ‘Ride Like the Wind’ from Christopher Cross. I recalled every word. Sang along. Thought about  a college classmate who saw Christopher Cross at a summer picnic.

Cross played and sang for a couple dozen people.

And then:

Whitney Houston, ‘I Have Nothing.’

I was in my driveway before the song ended, and I kept thinking:

“This might just be the greatest vocal performance ever captured in a studio.”

It was impossible not to feel loss as I considered Whitney’s sad story.

I imagined her listening to the playback of that performance. 

How does she go from such a high to such an end?

I headed into the house…

…was a great 20-minute drive.

“Life’s the same, I’m moving in stereo. Life’s the same, except for my shoes. Life’s the same, I’m shaking like tremolo. Life’s the same. It’s all inside of you.”

It’s all inside of you.

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