Reunion Playlist

I don’t generally write posts like this, but so much of my high school experience (and probably everyone’s) was shaped by music. So in honor of my high school reunion and all my fellow Toros from the Class of 1998, here’s a little playlist. Feel free to add, make dedications and serenade me on Saturday.

Caress Me Down – Sublime (best when danced to in Mamata’s living room)

Shorty Wanna Be a Thug, Wonder Why they Call You Bitch, Seven Deadly Criminals – TuPac (why did my crew of suburban white, Indian, Persian and Jewish friends LOVE this album so much?)

Bulls on Parade – Rage Against the Machine and Going the Distance – Cake (must be accompanied by a Dodge Caravan outfitted with camouflage-painted cardboard as in our junior year Model U.N. float for the Homecoming parade)

Firestarter – Prodigy (dancing in a circle)

Whatever our prom song was because clearly it worked for a LOT of people in my class. There at least a dozen married couples among the alumni of my class and another eight to ten if you include people who married fellow Toros from classes a few years older or younger. I obviously missed the boat on this one, but happily so.

The entirety of One Fierce Beer Coaster by Bloodhound Gang (preferably while in a school-rental van that accidentally rear ends someone in Tucson)

Ice Ice Baby – Vanilla Ice (but only in the yearbook room and with everyone singing along)

The entire soundtrack to Can’t Hardly Wait (This movie came out about two weeks after I graduated and it just really encapsulated whatever je ne sais quois the Class of 1998 embodied across America)

Whatever random songs guys in my class played in their garage bands. Sophomore year I totally hung out with dudes who had their own band. Unfortunately, my groupie years involved no play.

And finally as a little shout out to multi-class unity… Wu Tang Clan Ain’t Nothin to Fuck Wit (best danced to either in a black Infiniti G20 or in aforementioned living rooms)

So there you have it - a little musical trip down the quirky and slightly rocky memory lane that was my high school experience. Unlike my graduating class, it was relatively diverse and hopefully both the music and I will stand the test of time.