PLAYLIST FOR MY BIRTHDAY

Another year has come and gone, and alas, it seems that my age shall boost up but one more year. Friends I leave the dreary days of twenty-two behind me, in hopes of finding salvation in the twenty-third. Now I know a lot of you out there may not know me very well, and therefore may not care about my birthday. First of all, you guys are terrible. I'm awesome. You should totally care about my birthday. Second of all, I've arranged a playlist that should give you some of the highlights of my life, so that out of friendship can grow. And strengthen. And thrive. Love me? "Banana Phone," by Raffi: Raffi was my first rock concert as a toddler. Little babies were lighting up their bubble pipes, and just letting the cool jams of that bearded badass lull them into a post-afternoon nap. Baby want a baba? Naw, baby want some rock. "Uptown Girl," by Billy Joel: This is the first song I can truly remember loving. When I was a little kid, my dad would ride his stationary bike in the living room and play his old vinyls. He played the Beach boys and the Beatles, but this Billy Joel track is the one that stuck with me. It was the first embrace of music outside of a childish entity. "Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me," by The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Speaking of my dads old vinyls, I found this gem of a record in the collection. The musical awakened a love of kitsch and camp that would later be explored in the films of Russ Meyers. ? The next three songs are a shout out to my big brother who irrevocably influenced my music taste from all the nights I slept on his floor after I was too afraid to sleep alone. Convinced that the martians from Mars Attacks! wanted to kill me. "Ruby Soho," by Rancid "Juicy," by Notorious BIG "Peaches," by The Presidents of the United States of America "Back at One," by Brian McKnight: The first song I put on a "love" playlist for my first crush. "Kiss Me," by Six Pence None the Richer: The song I listened to on repeat when my crush told me she didn't want my playlist. Tears. Streaming. "Marquee Moon" by Television: Wait? Punk music doesn't suck? It's not just noise? CRAZY! Eyes opened. "1979," by RAC: The last song I downloaded. Dreamy cover of The Smashing Pumpkins all time great. This track is fit for the Drive soundtrack.