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Da na na na na na

I was born 28 years ago on this day! And in the way time works, that day was also a Saturday. I'd like to thank my mom and dad, especially my mom!

In celebration I present my Top 10 Favorite Birthday Songs:

10. Neil Diamond - Desiree (I know that in no way is this song about a birthday. It's really about Neil losing his virginity: "The time was right / The night was long". But the second verse begins, "Then came the 4th of June.")

9. 50 Cent -In Da Club (Okay, also not technically a birthday song. But since this was released, how can we get through a birthday without mentioning shorties, Bacardi, and not giving a fuck?)

8. Lesley Gore - It's My Party (Speaking of not giving a fuck: "I'll cry if I want to".)

7. Alice In Wonderland Soundtrack - The Unbirthday Song (A classic! I had this on a vinyl album of Disney's best movie songs and always asked my mom for unbirthday presents after listening to it).

6. Blur - Birthday (Droning Brit-pop for your friends that hate birthdays. "I don't like these days / They make me feel so small.")

5. Pet Shop Boys - Birthday Boy (This is an epic track from their last release, Release. I can't quite figure it out. It may be about Jesus; it might be about being gay. Hard to say.)

4. Stevie Wonder - Happy Birthday (Actually about declaring Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday a national holiday. How can you not love that, Arizona?!)

3. Ronnie Milsap - Happy Happy Birthday Baby (Not one of my favorite Milsap songs, but still a great downer of a birthday tune. The narrator writes to wish his ex a happy birthday, even though she broke his heart.)

2. The Beatles - Birthday (Somehow this song has become an acceptable alternative to the actual Happy Birthday, despite the most likely untruthful line: "It's my birthday too, yeah!")

1. No Doubt - Six Feet Under ( First of all I love any song that cops The Cars' sound. And that chous: "Today is my birthday / And I get one every year / And some day... / Hard to believe / But I'll be buried six feet underground". It's the best 23 word summation of adult birthday thoughts ever put to music.)

Comments

Carmamma said…
Well Happy Birthday! One of my favorite birthday songs has always been Concrete Blonde's "Happy Birthday" and the Waitresses's "Happy Birthday"--- The Concrete Blonde song is suppose to be a downer, but it's always the first b-day song I'm playing when the clocks hits May 18th.
Paul V. Allen said…
Thank you!

I don't know either of those two songs. I'll have to seek them out in 51 weeks...

And happy late birthday to you!

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