Not Guilty!

The more I think about it, the less guilty I feel about any of the music on my IPod.

That’s because one of my lifelong credos has been “There Is No Bad Music.”

There is rock and roll that makes your body shake. There is blues that makes you feel pain. There is classical music that creates vivid visual images. There is pop that makes you giddy.

I have been to rock concerts that were religious experiences.

I have been to orchestral performances that brought tears to my eyes.

I have been to churches where the choirs had stronger messages than the ministers.

I have danced to polka.

I have sung along to barbershop quartets.

I have belted out show tunes in my shower.

Music reminds me of the best times in my life. It also reminds me of the worst times in my life. There are songs I won’t listen to ever again, because of how I’m afraid they’ll make me feel. There are songs I listen to often because I know how they’ll make me feel.

There are few things that can bring thousands of people together as one.

I have heard 100,000 people sing along to one song. I have sung at the top of my lungs with 99,999 people I didn’t know.

My high school class of 90 people never was closer than when we all sang hymn 576 in the Episcopal Hymnal.

If REO Speedwagon reminds me of one of the most favorite summers of my life, if Duran Duran conjures up an image of a girl I saw but never met, if Salt ‘n’ Pepa take me back to the prom... well... I accept it.

I hold my head high... and the volume too.