Sue’s Extraordinary Playlist

The other day at work a colleague was telling me that she used to work in a music store.  She recounted how she and her coworkers would talk excitedly about the future of music and how the day would come when you could come to the store and choose songs from different artists to put on a CD to purchase. 

Back in the 80s, the concept of having an album with your favorite handpicked songs was akin to having a hover board as seen in Back to the Future.  The closest we could come to that dream was buying K-Tel records with names like Hot Tracks, Right On, and Hit Machine.  These albums had some great songs from the Billboard Top 10, but they would be mixed with a variety of other ‘hit’ songs, none of which my friends and I had ever heard.

I had my fair share of trying to make my own mix tape.  I’d listen to Rich Michaels and the other DJs on WVIC out of Lansing.  I’d sit beside my tape deck, my index fingers hovering above the play and record buttons in anticipation of the song that I wanted to capture.  The trick was to not trigger too soon and get Rich Michael’s voice announcement, but still catch the first few notes of the song.  The best DJs did not continue to talk over the pickup. 

From there, my friends and I would use a dual cassette player to make a copies of our homemade mix tapes, or perhaps share just one particular song that one of us was able to capture.  Let me tell you, sound quality of a song that was recorded onto a cassette from a radio show, and then dubbed onto a second cassette left a bit to be desired.

Now we call them playlists and Wow!  Am I living next door to the Jetsons?  Cuz this is awesome. 

I started out labeling my lists with creative, and what I thought were identifying titles.  The ‘Marty Big Hair’ playlist naturally has Van Halen, Poison, Bon Jovi, and Aerosmith.  The aptly titled ‘Oh, the Shame’ has a dirty secret SMALL collection of country songs that I like.  Whether by short memory or convenience, my labels have become simpler, so all I need to say is, ‘Alexa, play the soundtrack of my childhood’ to hear great hits like I’m Not Your Stepping Stones by The Monkees, Eleanor Rigby by the Beatles, or Kind of a Drag by The Buckinghams.   And as I did in 1984, I still have a playlist for ballads, break-up songs, and, of course a dance party.

MOH and I have been watching the TV show Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.  Do you know it?  It’s a rare show that both of us will choose first off the DVR list, but surprisingly (in MOH’s case) we do.  It’s a fun show with a ridiculous premise in which our protagonist, Zoey, can hear the thoughts and feelings of those around her through great songs (think Help! By The Beatles, Wake Me Up Before You Go Go by Wham, and Sucker by Jonas Brothers) and expertly timed choreography.  Side note: You can catch up from the beginning of this NBC show on Hulu or Peacock TV.

I don’t envy Zoey’s extraordinary ‘super power’ as she calls it, but I’d like to have one of my own.  Mine would be the ability to comprise a playlist of specific artists who will never sing their song again.  My extraordinary list would include my mom and dad singing the harmonizing duet Play a Simple Melody, my four year old son singing C is for Cookie from Sesame Street, Grace Collins, secretary to our HS principal and Stockbridge Presbyterian Church choir member, singing O Holy Night on Christmas Eve, MOH singing When I’m With You in my ear while we danced our first dance as a married couple to Sheriff at our wedding, and… oh so many more.  Until the day when I just wake up one morning with this ability, I’ll continue to keep those songs safe in my memory where they currently reside.