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Jul 22, 2022Liked by Scott Frampton

Omg listened to this the other day and talked about the plexiglass bikini!

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Jul 22, 2022·edited Jul 22, 2022Liked by Scott Frampton

What a great version of this classic track. One of the things I love about this column - in addition to all the song background of course - is the focus on different takes of these tracks that have been embedded in my head where I know every nuance. My memory is horrible, but for some reason music often sticks in it like a recording, especially with songs I grew up on, and I don't usually like remixes or alternate takes. It's part of the challenge of seeing my favorite indie bands live today - they so often don't live up to my expectations. So I'm always pleasantly surprised when I hear an "alternate take" that is as good as (or better than) the original. You keep selecting ones that are. As always, thanks for the continuing education.

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Loved them! Have a picture from high school with their poster on my wall. 😊

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On nostalgia (and not nostalgia). A song that I used to use as a ringtone for an old gf came on this morning and I was immediately shook a little. I wonder whether it is possible to really evaluate a song (or other piece of art, etc. - I won't use the m-me word) after one has connected it closely with a person or personal event. Re: not nostalgia - I belong to my high school classes (Columbia High School '86) fb page (I know, I know). Someone said that our high school experience compared to their kids was like a family. Which some people naturally ate up. I initially passed but then I thought - I couldn't wait to leave high school and go and create a new thing in college, much as I couldn't wait to leave my family and create my own. Ah, the joy of reframing.

Both Words and Destination Unknown are good songs. I think Spring Session M is likely the best album that is an anagram of the band's name.

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This sentence brings me so much joy: I think Spring Session M is likely the best album that is an anagram of the band's name.

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thanks for reading and commenting!

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Adam, I believe that none of us can fully separate our personal experiences form an evaluation of a song (or other art), and that that's okay. I see music as wholly subjective (and to paraphrase Princess Bride, anyone who tells you differently is selling something.) For me, the anti-nostalgia is trying to feel the feels of the song but also recognize my high school anxieties when they pop up. Like you said, reframing. I don't think one can do that with your ring tone example. In a period of grief, I listened to A Love Supreme a LOT. It was the right music, spiritual and huge, for that time, but I'm having trouble listening to it now.

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On a more (slightly) more comical note, law school was a mess for me. My legal writing class was assigned to write a memo on a fake incident of whether someone was harassing someone else by playing the Stones' Dead Roses over and over. No going back to that song for me. (I'm sure we all have those to some degree - a la Dennis Potter (RIP))

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