But music can be tricky. One person’s irritation is someone else's “that’s my jam!” Taste is completely, utterly subjective.
Take “Centerfield.” Overplayed? Sure. But every baseball team with a video board must play the video for the song -- not just the song -- before every game. There should be a rule for that.
Or “Jump Around.” Wisconsin Badger fans (myself included) will tell you it’s not just a song, it’s part of our lore – it’s become as much a part of the Camp Randall Stadium experience as the 5th Quarter.
Or “Seven Nation Army.” It IS a great song. An absolute classic. But, come to think of it, the best in-game version I ever heard was performed by the Cuba City (Wisconsin) High School pep band in 2005, so … yeah, um, wait, maybe it’s past its prime.
“Start Me Up” and “We Will Rock You” can and should be retired permanently -- not because they’re overplayed at sporting events, but because they’re overplayed EVERYWHERE. And, yeah, the master tapes/files for “Gangnam Style” should be deleted and/or shredded, burned to ashes, taken out back, and buried somewhere nobody will ever find them.
Let’s hope “Pump It Up” and “Blister in the Sun” – alternative/new wave touchstones that reached small audiences when released, but are somehow developing into big-arena sports anthems decades later – avoid the same fate.
Anyway, when I need to get fired up – REALLY fired up – there’s no substitute for this.
Rock on.