New Wave lyrics as philosphy of life

[hexicon]

Hi,
As you may already know from some of my other posts, I'm working on a coming-of-age novel set in Seattle's New Wave teen dance clubs circa 1983-84. One of the themes is life imitating art, or,as the movie version of High Fidelity paraphrased Nick Hornby's novel, "Did I listen to pop music because I was depressed, or was I depressed because I listened to pop music?" (P.S. Great Nick Hornby essay in the NYT on Friday re: the importance of keeping up with music as one gets older.)

Anyway, something I do (more than I care to admit) is mentally re-play songs of my teen years during particular situations, either as a pseudo self-help mantra or where a different person might, say, quote from the bible. For example, using "Pull your head off the floor, come up screaming; cry out for everything you ever might have wanted!" from "In a Big Country" to rally myself out of a depression and move on.

I can't be alone in this little quirk. Anybody else do this and to what songs? I could use some additional examples for my book, to show how pop lyrics (in this case from this genre and time period) get integrated into our daily thought processes. Thanks!

[ExRat]

"I Might Like You Better If We Slept Together"
- Never Say Never, ROMEO VOID

[Jimbo]

Staying in the same place, just staying out the time.
Touching from a distance,
Further all the time.
"Transmission" - Joy Division

When you see the price they paid
I'm sure you'll come and join the masquerade
"Masquerade" - Berlin

Give me a fe

[tory]

I don't like crowds much (hence why I had to get out of the music business). However, living in the trendiest part of the city I often find myself stuck in the middle crowds of those who think themselves fashionable. To keep my spirits up I always recite

[PogoStick]

The early 80s version of King Crimson was only arguably New Wave (thanks to the involvement of Talking Heads guitarist Adrian Belew) and this never appeared in a song, only an the cover of their Discipline album, but it has stuck with me: "Discipline is n

[PogoStick]

The ending lyrics for Icehouse's "Not my kind" go through my mind sometimes when I'm feeling like I don't fit in:

"She's just another girl
He's just another boy or man
Not my kind".

For some reason, it's reassuring that the lyricist feels as "out

[KYYX4ever]

The beginning of the Psychedelic Furs "Love My Way" "there's an army on the dance floor it's a fashion with a gun my love" (i agree with tory )
and also:
The Cure's "Lovecats" : "hand in hand is the only way to land, always the right way 'round".
as

[skinnytie]

"New Lace Sleeves" by Elvis Costello:

"Good manners and bad breath get you nowhere"

[golfer]

Smalltalk stinks--Bauhaus

"There's No Idle Gossip In Braile" [;)]

[devildog]

When I get impatient about anything, these lyrics come to mind and calm me down:

"The waiting is hell but heaven is waiting." -"Heaven is Waiting" by the Danse Society.

[positivepoppicker]

"This girl's beauty is split into two
Her mind and her heart
She doesn't play any silly games
With peoples emotions"

Lotus Eaters - Stranger So Far

[ExRat]

"I'm A Nice Guy But I Don't Love You. I Just Wanna Sleep With You"
- "I Can't Make Love", Wall of Voodoo

[Ollie Stench]

2 songs that got me thru my high school years were "Because You're Young" by classix NOuveaux and "If Only" by Hazel O'Connor from the Breaking Glass soundtrack.

[romanticide]

"It wasn't like movies, in movies, they work it out ..."
- Combo Audio, "Romanticide"

[S.]

My yearbook quote from '85 still works-

"The past is the present, the future is mine."

-New Order