What's a song that really expresses or imparts a skill or important truth to internalize

Cha Cha Slide

Without this song, American white people would be utterly clueless about how to dance.

Losing My Religion - REM

Everybody hurts - REM

Mad world - tears for fears

Everyone wants to rule the world - tears for fears

Where the streets have no name - u2

Hurt - Johnny Cash

Imagine - John Lennon

Zombie - the cranberries

Lightning crashes - Live

Don’t go chasing waterfalls

Whip It by Devo, it teaches perseverance in the face of your obstacles.

I Can’t Drive 55, Sammy Hagar. Hurry the hell up people, I’ve got places to be.

“How to save a life” by The Fray is literally intervention instructions.

Pity the Dead by Bad Religion?

That was in poor taste, so I'll try again - Tell her about it by Billy Joel. Males tend to live too much in their head...

I could probably write several essays on this. I like music and think about the lyrics.

There's a song by Bat Boy that I've been thinking about a lot. Snyder Avenue, on Fun Machine

""" [...] And it's kind of like a movie but in movies no one ever falls asleep

And I know you're going crazy and I know you're going broke, and you're sitting here laughing like that's some kind of joke, but I'm not laughing

And I want you to be careful, and I want you to be smart, I don't want you to romanticize falling the fuck apart

[...] """

It's an incredibly sweet little song on a great pop punk album.

But I've been thinking about this a lot since hearing it. I think I've known people who just, well, do that. Romanticize falling the fuck apart. Being a mess. Not having any shit together at all. Don't make any progress and maybe no effort on changing or improving. It's not great.

But maybe that's not the only read.

I had someone in my friend group a couple months ago who pretty much straight out said critical analysis is stupid and pointless. That looking for any meaning beyond the shallowest accounting of the plot is a waste. They said it's just made up. I'm like my dude it's all made up. It's fiction. They seemed to have this idea that you were supposed to find the right answer in the text, rather than create and defend something you find interesting. So now I think about that when I think about meaning in text, sometimes.

Anyway.

Tequila

My name. Smother Love by Crass. Your lover is not an object to possess.

Lick it before you stick it - Denise Lasalle

I've heard people say this about "Here Comes A Thought" from Steven Universe.

Personally? "Let It Happen" by Tame Impala. The lesson being, just fuckin' go for it. Don't fall for the toolbox fallacy: oh I need X and Y and Z before I even begin trying to [blank]. Unless [blank] is practicing medicine or juggling chainsaws, no, you're probably okay to start doing whatever. Failure is a prerequisite to most things. You have to suck at something before you can be good at it. The right time to plant a tree is ten years ago.

The Barenaked Ladies' "Next Time" is the same idea, but expressed with typical dry and bitter comedy. Tame Impala's take is more likely to get your ass out of your seat - literally and figuratively.

if I had a hammer. it turned me into a master carpenter. Or would if I could handle listening to the whole thing.

Safety Dance by Men Without Hats feels a bit like low-hanging fruit, but I think it fits quite well. Whether it is dancing or really any sort of expression, you ought to do it if you desire to regardless of how others may feel. And if your friends constantly constrain themselves based on the judgements (or fear of judgement) of others, that isn't going make them new friends either. I wish I danced more when I was a kid. But I dance now.

The Notorious B.I.G. - Ten Crack Commandments