Music, Sunny Days, and An Altered State of Consciousness

I have this theory that any music that you like when you are in an “altered state of consciousness” will have a special place in your heart for the rest of your life. I think back to some of the songs that I liked that were played at college parties, and while these are good songs, I think that I love them a little too much. I mean, let’s face it, is Dark Side of the Moon really that great an album, or is it that most of us are stoned off our ass the first time we listened to it? I mean my father can sing all the words to most songs by The Steve Miller Band, but he can’t remember something that I told him 5 minutes ago.

But maybe it has nothing to do with the Booze or the pot. Maybe music has a way of bringing us back to special times in our lives. I remember a year ago, my company had a Christmas party, and one of the clubs we went to was a Salsa club. Later in the night, they played Bachata, which is good music, in moderation. It all sounds the same, the melodic bass undertones and the high pitched guitar accompanied by an extremely whiny guy singing about some chick who either will not give him some or has stopped giving him some.

Hearing this brought me back to the Dominican Republic, which has a special place in my heart. I started to just picture guys sitting outside El Colmado (the corner store), drinking beer, playing Dominos and blasting Bachata into all hours of the night. I yearned for San Cocho (Dominican Stew). I missed the torrential downpours that happened every day for 10 minutes only to be followed by sunshine. I longed for whatever it is that they do to pork down there that makes it so good. I wanted to feel the sense of community that they have down there. Down there, friendship is transitive, so if you are a friend of a friend of mine, then you are my friend, no questions asked. I think that I really missed the weather most of all. Last week, I was walking to the train, and it was cold and started to snow for just a second. I thought, boy, I would give my left testicle to be in Santo Domingo right now.

So why does music have this effect on us? I remember starting to read Uta Hagen’s Respect For Acting, and of course I didn’t finish it, because, well, that isn’t something that I do. I remember that she was talking about sense memory. She was saying if you want to feel hot, don’t remember a sunny day but something small that you remember on a sunny day, like if you were wearing flip-flops, remember the flip flops. Maybe music is the flip-flops of our lives that take us back to those sunny days.