in an mmmbop it's gone...

"songs are life in 80 words or less." -Neil Diamond

i heard this quote from Neil Diamond on Jimmy Kimmel Live the other night and it stuck in my mind. suddenly, it made so much sense to me...this connection i have with music. this is the reason that it speaks to me the way it does, because essentially it's someone's life, someone's experience spoken with much more passion and eloquence than i could muster. you're probably thinking, "well duh, beckie, where did you think the inspiration for music came from?" and we can debate my naivety later. but, i think for me, it was one of those "aha" moments where something i already knew came alive. it gave me a feeling of solidarity, knowing that there is someone who has gone through or struggled with the things that i have gone through.

a couple days later, with the Neil quote still etched in my brain, i was listening to "mmmbop" by Hanson. i know that some might question where i'm going with this. question whether or not Hanson, mere teenagers when the song originally aired, could sing a song that could be described as either passionate or eloquent. afterall, the song sounds like a bunch of mumbling nonsense but, if you read the lyrics, it's actually a song about relationships. it's about knowing which relationships are real and important and realizing that they can be gone in the blink of an eye, or an "mmmbop."

it's these kinds of songs, the ones masked by their "get easily stuck in your head" tunes that catch my attention. i love that moment when you're singing along to some catchy song and it just clicks, and you say, "that's what they're talking about? oh, i like that."

so, i'll leave you with the lyrics to the song. (obviously due to length, this is not the complete song)

"mmmbop" by Hanson

you have so many relationships in this life
only one or two will last
you go through all the pain and strife
then you turn your back and they're gone so fast
and they're gone so fast
so hold on to the ones who really care
in the end they'll be the only ones there
and when you get old and start losing your hair
tell me who will still care
can you tell me who will still care?

plant a seed, plant a flower, plant a rose
you can plant any one of those
keep planting to find out which one grows
it's a secret no one knows
it's a secret no one knows

can you tell me who will still care?
you think you can but you don't know
which flower will grow

mmmbop, ba duba dop
ba du bop, ba duba dop
ba du bop, ba duba dop
ba du, yeah

oh yeah
in an mmmbop they're gone
in an mmmbop they're not there