Nothing unusual to report from this evening’s ride — so maybe I’ll report something usual.
When riding, I often get a song in my head — one that I can’t get out.
This evening, it was the harpsichord bridge from the Beatles’ “In My Life.” It’s just a short passage, and sounds out of place in the song. But it’s one of those things that sticks with you. Perhaps because it’s a rather short passage, it didn’t stick in my head for too long. Instead, it morphed into Pachelbel’s Canon, which seems to have roughly the same chord structure.
Normally, I’d get irritated when a song sticks in my head and I can’t shake it. But I can put up with Pachelbel. What really bugs me is when it’s a bad song. Then, you try to fight it, and it usually wins the fight. Luckily, I don’t get stuck with the really bad songs too often. Mostly, they’re ordinary pop music dreck.
This phenomenon has happened to me while golfing, too — and is particularly troublesome when I’m trying to line up a putt. You try to stand still over a three-footer when the Four Tops are singing, “Sugar Pie Honeybunch.” Some part of me will move in time with the beat, and then — here comes a bogey.
The trouble with the song in the head is that it never ends. If I get the song early in the ride, 15 miles later it’s still riffing along.
Oh, well. I guess I’ll just continue to live with it — and hope the next time I’m out, the song will be by Amy Winehouse, and not Wayne Newton.
Now this is funny. I woke up this morning to a news story about the new Led Zepplin tour sans Robert Plant. I have had Whole Lotta Love along with the unique guitar riff stuck in my head every since.
Having songs roll around in my head is common when riding. It can become annoying on a long bike tour.
The same thing happens to me. I think it’s the rhythm of the pedaling which connects to the rhythm of particular songs, and keeps them going in your head.
On a similar note – On post-UT game Sundays, I usually have the fight song or school song in my head. So I like to sing “Texas Fight” to annoy the A&M folks on the Sunday ride with me. The last 2 years they’ve had some real fun with me after Thanksgiving… 🙁
Fat Cyclist has an entry quite a while back about having “Birdhouse in Your Soul” by They might Be Giants in his head on a ride. I thought that was terrible.
Until I went for a ride and someone in an adjacent car was blaring “Little Bitty”, by Alan Jackson. Oh yes, that was in my head for the entire ride. Mountain biking while avoiding all the little bitty rocks and roots…