Music of the Day, 14 January 2025

ain't no new news here

When I first started MotD, I didn’t have much of a plan.¹ Starting sometime in high school as best I can recall, if I wasn’t listening to music (or hearing someone else’s music playing), my mind would serve some up to me. Sometimes that was annoying;² most of the time I just rolled with it; and sometimes the musical choice would command my attention, usually because I’d start wondering what prompted a song choice. That randomness is what I wanted to capture.

I did have some loose expectations as to the artists and types of music that would feature prominently. Only a few of those have played out as expected so far, which is a little surprising. For example: I would have bet that today’s MotD musician would have appeared here much sooner … but today is his first appearance.

In retrospect, because John Mellencamp was tied so tightly to the Midwest that I longed to flee when young, it makes some sense that he hasn’t turned up earlier on the radio station in my mind. Even though I appreciate a lot of my small-town upbringing, there was much that rankled. And once I was out and living in a city, I didn’t want to be reminded of those roots.

“Crumblin’ Down” popped up today in a very different context than what I get from Mellencamp’s lyrics. Hearing it for the first time through headphones, I can make out most of the lyrics much better. The first verse makes it clear that his walls that are “tumblin’, crumblin’ down” allude to success/fame. My wall that was breached this morning is one I’ve battled for years; it crumbled in a massive reframing courtesy of a beautiful poem shared by a wonderful friend.

Given the timing of the song’s release, I should have seen the music video for “Crumblin’ Down” many times at my friend TEB’s place. Given that I still fidget à la Mellencamp³ in the opening shots, it’s surprising that I have no memory of it. That leads me to think I didn’t see it. Both the vid and the music are pure ‘80s, and I welcome it today.

I heard plenty of John Mellencamp’s music back in the day; and I was content with what the radio served up. I knew some of his songs had serious themes, but because of that small-town Midwestern tie, I resisted closer scrutiny. I regret that now.

Looking at the tracks on Uh-Huh—the 1983 album that includes “Crumblin’ Down”—I very likely would have enjoyed the full album. I’m thankful it isn’t too late to explore it and the rest of his copious discography.

1. still don’t, which should be obvious

2. such as when a teacher’s remark was close enough to a song lyric to earworm me

3. sans cigarette, though