FMM: Sounds of Summer

Needless to say, today's Friday Magic Madness is a tribute to Donna Summer.

Her discography is so rich with beautiful and iconic songs, and I'm sure that everyone who knows her will have a list of favorites. Even though I wasn't alive yet during her career heyday, I'm familiar with a lot of her songs. This is largely because of Dad's cassette tape collection. He had a lot of cassettes of Donna Summer, and I remember listening to them as a young boy.

My appreciation of her songs as a boy and as a young man was different. As I grew older and started listening and understanding the lyrics, I realized that there was more to her songs than a catchy beat. There's a narrative - something a lot of today's songs don't have.

And among her songs with narratives, here are my 3 top favorites:

1. McArthur's Park


I can almost imagine the scenes playing out as I listen to this song. Cake left out in the rain, icing flowing down, the sadness of not being able to make the same cake again... it's such a melancholic tale. Set against disco music to boot.

2. Love to Love you baby


Compared to her other songs, this one seems so serene and otherworldly. Actually, it feels like a song on LSD. Harhar. And while I liked this song before, I loved it more after Beyonce referenced it in "Naughty Girl."

3. This time I know it's for real


This is one of her more "modern" songs as it was released in the 90s. While it's not the usual all-out-dancing kind of ditty, it still has that happy energy and feel good vibe. I remember having a CD of this song and listening it over and over again whenever I reviewed for an exam. (Don't ask me why, I just did.)

Of course, there are a lot more songs that could've made it to the list: "Enough is enough," (insert Aldeguer Sisters here), Hot Stuff, She Works Hard for the Money, and so forth.

Donna Summer might have left this world, but she sure left a lot of songs that will keep her alive in our memories.