Here's The Confession

Okay, y'all, I am a bit freaked out on two counts, both musical. Here's what I know:

1) I do like some 80s music after all. In fact, I like a lot of it.

2) Lorraine and I sang two of the same songs for church in years past. It's true. Amy Grant's El Shaddai and Father's Eyes. Given that I found this out purely by chance while cruising old comments, I bet if we actually compared notes, there could even be more.

These are the things one discovers whilst passing time alone in a night club way past closing time on a Sunday night.

I am a child of the 80s. I'm pretty sure that was a mistake. I think I was supposed to be a child of the 60s. I may have missed out on Free Love and fringe, but I stole the music. I believe I've mentioned that I worship at the church of Joni Mitchell. The 60s was a cool decade. Woodstock, the Black Panthers, free love, natural hair, acoustic guitars. Dr. King. Flowy tunics that flattered everyone. Down with pretense. Make love, not war. Revolution. They made a difference, man. Far out.

Those days, however, were not mine, but my mother's. The 60s were her heyday, she of the GoGo boots, embroidered vests and protest buttons.

I may have come into being in the 60s, but I came of age in the 80s. Big bangs varnished with Aqua Net. Jheri curls. Side ponytails. Clown make up. Jeans desecrated with tapered ankles, pleats and acid wash finish. Shoulder pads. Leg warmers with Flashdance sweatshirts. Reagan. What a hellish legacy to leave for a generation. And it's all immortalized in our yearbooks -- bad hair, bad make up, bad fashion, bad politics, and bad music.

Or so I thought.

Fast forward: summer, 2007. Sunday night it was me, my dogs, and a some Black Dog Ale. I'm cruising around the Internets, and decide to check out that totally rockin' hot spot, Here's the 80s. This was new for me. As you know, the proprieters are the hilariously irreverent and bitter Lorraine & JP. Although I am thoroughly addicted to both their blogs I have not been a regular patron at the club. Here's the 80s? I thought. Are you kidding? I finally got my bangs to lay down and merge with the rest of my hair. My pants no longer come up to my ribcage. No way. I have been shed of the 80s since belting out Auld Lang Syne on New Year's Eve, 1989.

Or so I thought.

Here's the confession: I do too like 80s music. It's true. I'd forgotten how much of it I actually did like. Granted, a lot of it I missed, because I was doing the Contemporary Christian Music thing at the time (thus the aforementioned church solos I have in common with Lorraine), but you can't go through a decade and not hear this stuff. Plus, after I left the cornfields of my youth for the firing ranges and red clay of Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I added secular music to my list of allowable indulgences. I still had over half the decade to go, at that point.
Leaving smalltown Ohio brought other music to my experience. Thus my affinity for old school rap and groups like DeBarge. (Don't judge.) Purple Rain? Are you kidding? Prince was a god.

So anyway, I was sucked through a vortex of black lace and big hair last Sunday night. I was sucked back into the 80s. I was there for hours. Alone, inebriated, on a Sunday night. Guys, you'll see plenty of my comments scattered around the place. In fact, I made myself stop after a while, realizing that they were taking on an "I love you, man!" quality, most likely due to the freely flowing beer. Sling wasn't there to serve up anything more interesting, so I made do with Black Dog Ale.

I'd forgotten about Huey Lewis and the News. Then Dire Straits made me think about my first boyfriend ever. He was great. To this day, I can't hear Sultans of Swing without thinking of him. Damn, that boy could kiss. I credit him with my high kissing standards of today. (Also, to this day, Dan Fogelberg's Auld Lang Syne will make me get misty behind that guy.) Culture Club, Cyndy Lauper, the Commodores, Linda Ronstadt, Aretha, Foreigner, Beastie Boys, The Pointer Sisters, Journey ... yeah. I was liking some 80s music y'all. I even found a bit of old school -- LL Cool J, MC Lyte, Oran Juice Jones, Young MC, Run DMC ... hell yeah. Even the Fat Boys were there. (Trust that Kurtis Blow, Whodini and UTFO will be on the request line soon.)

So now you know. Shoot, now I know. Here's to the 80s. *clink*