Guilty pleasures

Recently, Brooke and I had one of those wondrous nights of relaxation. The TV was off, Luke was in bed, a steady stream of rain was softly pelting against the windows. It was a perfect night for....all right, to combat those with the dirty minds, it was a perfect night for music.

We played a variation of our favorite songs all night and as the night progressed we ended up compiling a list of our top-5 favorite songs that we're too embarrassed to admit to others. As you can imagine there were some dandies shared with one another and we both agreed to share them with the blogging world as a joint, cathartic effort. Unfortunately, Brooke's list is too inappropriate to release to the masses at this time (that's putting it mildly), so I'm left alone to share a list of guilty-pleasure music. Without further ado, you'll find my list below (in descending order) and I encourage any of you to share your own favorite embarrassing songs.

5. "Una Noche" (98 Degrees) - This song came out my junior or senior year of high school. Besides its lively beat, it had a special meaning to me. You see, the lyrics offer a ultimatum of sort to a special someone, which is exactly what I wanted to offer to my own special someone, whom I'd had a crush on since 9th grade (friends and family, you know who she was). Not only did it apply directly to my life at the time, but how can a 17-year old resist a foreign woman speaking provocatively in Spanish? The song wasn't inspirational enough as I never offered that ultimatum, but it still remains one I heartily enjoy.

4. "Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely" (Backstreet Boys) - I used to sing this one with a friend (McKay Probert was his name). We even tried our best to emulate "the Boys" music video efforts. Forget the fact that this particular song ashamedly played the role of male unifier, it actually has a decent sound to it. Haunting/depressing is a fitting description of its tune, which is quite compatible with the song's main content: The sting of loneliness.

3. "The Thong Song" (Sisco) - I have absolutely no defense for this song and I deserve any condemning remarks that come my way. All I will say is that I've always been a sucker for the dramatic violin mixed with a compelling hip-hop beat (which this song had). In no way am I promoting the use of skimpy underwear. Well, except on you, Brooke :).

2. "I Will Always Love You" (Whitney Houston) - I admit as a youngster I'd wait until the house was empty to play this song so as not to disappoint my testosterone-driven brothers. Years older and hopefully more confident, I can fully admit Whitney has one amazing voice. Her last rendition of the chorus is powerful even for a guy trained well in the arts of emotional containment.

1. "Total Eclipse of the Heart" (Bonnie Tyler) - This one took me the longest to confess. For as long as Brooke and I have been married, I've sought out deceptive ways for her to play this song. I'd pretend that I wanted to hear it to make fun of its cheesy lyrics, or I'd tell her I heard it played mockingly on a sports-radio show and I wanted to make sure it was the right one. I honestly can't figure out why I like it so much. Maybe it's the overly dramatic tone, or maybe it's the way Bonnie gives it a masculine edge with her crackling voice near the end. In any event, it sure has a way of stirring up some unwanted emotion in this guy. I pray everyday my affinity for this song is in no way subconsciously tied to the lyrics.