Ipod...LifePod?

I notice more and more folks brandishing Ipods on trains and LRT's nowadays, I think it'll just be a matter of time before I give in and get one, too.

To prepare, I've been doing a long term project to build up my mp3 collection, which entails converting my CD collections, searching and downloading them from the net, and last but not least getting them off the pasar malam. I find that I have been searching for songs which reminded me of each of the years of my life.

Surprisingly, there were none for the years when I was courting my wife, a fact which still irritates my wife to this day. Sometimes when I go "Oh, that song reminds me of 1986" in the car, she'll go, "Well, what song reminds you of us, dear?" and I'll be "err, err...".

So, theoretically, I can relive all the years of my life just by arranging my playlist chronologically:-

1980 - Do That To Me One More Time; Please Don't Go; YMCA

1984 - Beat It; Telephone; Karma Chameleon; All Night Long

1985 - Everybody Wants To Rule The World; Wild Boys; Cheri Cheri Lady

1986 - The Sun Always Shines On TV; There'll Be Sad Songs; Life is Life

and etc.

At the moment, there's about 600 songs in my project folder and still growing.

One of the biggies I'm still looking for is the Animalympics soundtrack, which was created by Graham Gouldman. But its out of circulation and an enthusiast's effort to convert an LP of it into mp3 hit legal issues.

Animalympics was a cartoon based on the Olympics created back in 1980, but some of the things from it still remain refreshingly relevant today. Take Rene's Song, sung in the movie about a goat, who, in his pursuit of Olympic glory, left behind everything:-

I've always run away
From things that tie me down
My life I love
But love's not for me

I see my goal ahead
With nothing in the way
If love should come
Then I'll run away

I've always been the type of man
Who's dedicated to his cause
And it's a lonely road I run
But I'll stay faithful to my course
There's only one direction

There comes a time when you must choose
About the path you're gonna take
And you must take it win or lose
And if you lose it's your mistake
There's only one direction

So when the race is won
And there's nothing left to do
Alone again but where are you
Alone again but where are you


I first heard this song back in 1986, and it still haunts me to this day.