Turn 'Em On, Turn 'Em On, Turn On Those Saaaaaaaad Songs

When I was a teenager, I delighted in purposeful despair. What teenaged girl doesn't? Oh, the angst. Oh, the heartbreak. Oh, the misery.

And nothing added fuel to the fire of my hormonally imposed wretchedness, than the perfect sad song, which, of course, I collected with a zeal previously reserved for unicorns and rainbows.

Yes, the ubiquitous mix tape. I remember holding a microphone (with a cord, no less)to the tape deck to create veritable masterpieces of melancholia. I still have some of them, but sadly, no longer the means to play them.

I still love a good sad song.

Though certainly, like any woman, I am subject to periodic bouts of dejection, I wouldn't say that by nature, I am a doleful person. Quite the contrary, in fact. I think that generally, I'm very positive and upbeat.

And yet...there is something about that funk...that woeful, whimsical, wistful longing, that sorrowful, searching, sublimation....that is undeniably appealing.

That's why we watch movies like "Terms of Endearment" and "The Notebook".

So anyway, recently, I ran across this song. And I can't get it out of my head. I'm not depressed, I swear. The opposite is true, in fact. Some personal issues have been resolved and I'm feeling more positive about things than I have in a long time.

But this song has grabbed me and pulled me in.

Maybe because it's been a very long time since I indulged that side of myself. As a teenaged girl, I did so with a dedication and a determination that was truly profound. As an adult, I tend to bury those feelings in favor of more productive mental and emotional pursuits. I just don't have time to be willfully weepy.



I'm not suicidal in the slightest. In fact, I harbor a profound abhorrence of death. And yet, this line...

"I find it kind of funny, I find it kind of sad, the dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had"

....just strikes me as deliciously dark.

I'm going to create a modern day version of the mix tape, for just this sort of music. I'm going to create a "Melancholia" playlist on my iPod. I've already got a good start, but I know that you all can help me create a real work of art.

What are your favorite sad songs?

Later I will share my list here. Because who can resist an invitation to despair?

Come hither and share, blogging bretheren.