Anna's Popular Music in America Blog

 This week I decided to listen to "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder. This song is an absolute classic so I was super excited when we talked about it in class. The first time I listened I listened to the song in its entirety-I listened to the beat, the bassline and melody. I loved how the trumpet parts finish the phrases.  The second time I listened through the song I paid more attention to the lyrics and even read along with them. This is one of those songs that I had never paid close attention to the verses' lyrics previously. This time I noticed that the verses really made references to different superstitions that people hold. For example, Wonder says, "...broke the looking glass, seven years of bad luck". This line is really interesting because many people are superstitious about mirrors-especially breaking them. The bridge to the chorus says, "When you believe in things that you don't understand then you suffer". This line also highlights supers...

 This week I chose to write about Eagles' "Hotel California". This song is very popular for many reasons. The song is a highlight of the 70s. This song has powerful lyrics and a memorable melody.  The lyrics in this song are very interesting. On the surface, this song seems like it is simply about a good trip to California, however, the lyrics portray nearly the opposite--with darker meanings. There are a few lines that are most powerful for this opposite meaning.  "You can check in any time you like but you can never leave" is one of them. Another powerful line portraying that California might not be the dream everyone envisions is when the line, "This could be heaven or this could be hell". Rest assured, this phrasing was intentional. Another impactful line in the song is when it says, "Some dance to remember, some dance to forget". In the case of this song, "dancing" may actually refer to drinking. The final most impactful line i...