Songs for Spike, Part VI

Here are songs 22-27:

22. Shadows of the Night by Pat Benatar. Spike, Pat Benatar is probably one of the strongest females in rock music. She was a female solo artist at a time when female artists were just pretty girls, not tough rock chicks. Pat Benatar was the first tough rock chick. She didn't compromise herself. A very, very good role model.

I chose this song becasue it reminded me of a trip I took to Florida with your Grandpa Harvey many years ago. We stayed with family friends and the kids put on a "show" for the adults, and I danced around Jody Perris' bedroom to this song. It reminds me of a really happy time.

We're running with the shadows of the night
So baby take my hand, you'll be all right
Surrender all your dreams to me tonight
They'll come true in the end

23. Shining Star by Earth, Wind and Fire. A terrific anthem for you, baby girl.

When you wish upon a star
Dreams will take you very far, yeah
When you wish upon a dream
Life ain't always what it seems, oh yeah

Once you see your light so clear
In the sky so very dear

You're a shining star, no matter who you are
Shining bright to see what you can truly be

24. Sometimes It's A Bitch, by Stevie Nicks. (For the video of this song, click here.)

This song was actually written by Jon Bon Jovi for Stevie Nicks, and is about the ups and downs of her life. More life lessons here, kid.

Well I've run through rainbows and castles of candy
I cried a river of tears from the pain
I try to dance with what life has to hand me
My partner's been pleasure...my partner's been pain

There are days when I swear I could fly like an eagle
And dark desperate hours that nobody sees
My arms stretched triumphant on top of the mountain
My head in my hands...down on my knees

Sometimes it's a bitch...sometimes it's a breeze
Sometimes love's blind...and sometimes it sees
Sometimes it's roses...and, sometimes it's weeds
Sometimes it's a bitch...sometimes it's a breeze

25. Spike by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Click here for an earlier post about the origin of Spike's nickname.

26. Thank God I'm A Country Boy by John Denver. This song is on here for one reason only: it is the song played during the seventh-inning stretch at Camden Yards in Baltimore. (You need to know these things, Spike.) I have no idea why that tradition started, but it's a favorite childhood memory of mine. You should have seen the look on your daddy's face when that song came on the first time I took him to an Orioles' game. (I always think it's a commentary on how Marylanders are rednecks, but I try to block that out. :-))

Click here to see John Denver singing this song.

27. Think About It by Stevie Nicks. There is one verse from this song that I love:

Step into the velvet of the morning
Let yourself lay back within your dreams
Take on the situation but not the torment
Now you know its not as bad as it seems

When I was undergoing fertility treatments, I had to give myself two injections each night. It was really difficult, because the future was all so uncertain--and the shots hurt, too! I played this song most nights while I gave myself the shots and tried to keep my emotions out of it so I wouldn't make myself crazy. "Take on the situation but not the torment." That song gave me great strength. And now we're waiting for you to make your debut!