Day 3: A song that reminds you of one/both of your parents.
Also hard... but I think I got at least one.
This song reminds me of my dad because, well, he's mentioned in it. You see, my dad, he grew up with George Clinton. They were on the same label; my dad was in a group called The Supremes; George with The Parliaments. They always had this rivalry/acknowledgement thing going on where they would reference each other. This song contains a reference to my dad by George, and so I pick this :
Nate Dogg died way too young. I wasn't a huge fan, but he left his mark, and helped, along with Warren G., introduce a different style of hip-hop...sung hooks blended skillfully with sampled classic pop, courtesy of Michael McDonald.
Forties is too young to die. It's funny how forty looks so old when you are in your twenties, but rappers who hit forty are still giving it to us hard.
Now...Loleatta Holloway. How many parties and clubs have I been to where this song was NOT a staple? I mean, c'mon--even Marky Mark sampled it!
Black Box just straight ripped her off ahem...paid tribute as well:
I wouldn't be surprised if any of these songs enjoyed a renewed popularity due to their passing. Thank you, Nate, for your voice. Thank you, Loleatta, for giving us an iconic track to continue to blast at house parties, clubs, and festivals. (Thank you for coming to Newark and gracing our Lincoln Park Music Festival. Somewhere, there's footage of my Nekoboy, Peace, dancing for one of her performances, but I have yet to locate it...)
Wow. Tomorrow (to use a hackneyed--but true!--phrase) really isn't promised.
Elizabeth Taylor was bigger than life. Vivacious, savvy, and beautiful, she commanded respect in an age of classic films and earned her place among the stars who did things just as they liked..with no regard of what anyone thought.
Oddly enough, one of my favourite things she's done is a commercial. It's SO her...maybe that's why.
Rest in peace, Elizabeth. Maybe you can give Michael a hug for all of us.
