Another Kind of Writing.

I've been thinking about songs a lot lately with the recent, sad deaths of some of the music industry's most iconic figures. Particularly with the passing of Glenn Frey from one of my favourite bands - The Eagles. Probably their most iconic song is Hotel California. A long, rambling song which has been dissected adnauseam over the years to unearth its "true" meaning.

Depending on who or what you read or watch on the tele it's anything from a coming of age song to something out of the Twilight Zone.

Whatever the meaning behind it, it's clearly an enigma. This brings to mind two other songs which also happen to be long and rambling and the focus of intense debate amongst punters and musuc scholars alike about their meaning.

American Pie by Don McLean

And Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.

As far as I'm concerned these are three of the greatest songs in existence and I'm not sure knowing their true meaning matters. Different songs speak to different people in different ways. A bit like books I guess.....

Anyone got a theory about the genesis of any of these songs? Do you have to know the meaning of lyrics to enjoy a song? Are there any other songs you like that have nonsensical lyrics but you like anyway?

Soundtrack For A Book

Do you ever find the books that you read have a soundtrack in your head? 

It doesn't happen for me with every book, but sometimes the author mentions a certain band or song a few times and I start humming it in my mind even when I'm not reading. Or I'm listening to a new song or album when I read the book and the two become linked in my mind.  

It happens to me when I write books as well. I always make a playlist for a new book I'm writing, but the song that comes to embody that book sometimes surprises me. 

When I wrote my rom-com Cover Story, I played the soundtrack to The Blues Brothers over and over. And over. The tone really suited the story, but the main track I played was their version of The Peter Gunn Theme. To me, this is Tobi Fletcher as she's searching for the culprit of the gnomicides - determined and a bit ridiculous. Here, let me show you:

There were two romance themes. The first was Muse's version of Can't Take My Eyes Off You. Any version of this song would have worked, but this version has an irreverence (wait for the chorus) sitting right beside the sensual romance of it. (In fact, I even had my heroine's sister tell her that the hero couldn't take his eyes off her!)

The second romance theme was Pearl Jam's version of Soldier of Love. This song is so perfect about how Simon feels about Tobi:

I also played a bit of ABBA for the perky tone and sense of fun. If you've read the book, you'll know one of the characters, Jazlyn, plays ABBA pretty much all day, so the soundtrack made its way onto the page. (I have a feeling Michelle Douglas will appreciate this one being here!)

Another song that has the sense of fun is Queen's Crazy Little Thing Called Love. I played this one a lot too.

What I'd love to know is: when you're reading a book, do you ever associate a song with what you're reading? Maybe something the author actually wrote on the page, or perhaps a song that just seemed perfect for the story? Or is there a song that you've always thought would make a great book? And besides these questions, I'd love to hear what you think of Cover Story's playlist! :)