Annie On My Mind (Soundtrack)

It's a bit surprising that in nearly 30 years, Annie On My Mind has never been committed to film, to my knowledge. I mean, its place as an all-time classic LGBT novel is virtually unanimous. How cool would it be if they made a movie version of it soon? I would flail so crazy.

I concede that, should a real film version of Annie be crafted, the proper way to bring it to life would be to stay true to Nancy Garden's original. Have them listening to Baroque and Classical, have Annie singing latin opera. It has a timeless dignity to it, befitting such a truly timeless love story.

But I don't know... it could be really great imbued with modern sensibilities, too. Timelessness is admirable, but there's nothing wrong with living in the immediate present, either.

So here's my imaginary soundtrack for the hypothetical film. I'm decently proud of it, to be honest.

Annie On My Mind (Soundtrack, 2011)


1. Candlelight -- Imogen Heap
2. Super Bass -- Nicki Minaj
3. Again & Again -- The Bird & The Bee
4. The Best Day -- Taylor Swift
5. On The Radio -- Regina Spektor
6. In McDonalds -- Burial
7. We Are Broken -- Paramore
8. Fearless -- Pink Floyd
9. Thrasher -- Juniper Tar
10. Endorphin -- Burial
11. Brick By Boring Brick -- Paramore
12. All The Way to Heaven -- Melissa Etheridge
13. Misguided Ghosts -- Paramore
14. Fearless -- Taylor Swift


I can see pretty much the whole film in my head, but I won't bore you with extensive detail. Tried to make the music fun and sentimental, true to the original.

(Warning: spoilers in this paragraph) I imagine the quirky, happy-go-luck tracks (Again & Again, On The Radio, Pink Floyd) accompanying Liza & Annie's various sessions of whimsical make-believe. Candlelight is perfect for their romantic dinner at the french restaurant, and their ferry ride amidst the lights. Burial's atmospheric IDM music is ripe for scenes where the emotion is so powerful that it overcomes words, 'In McDonalds' for good times and 'Endorphin' for the ill-fated run in with Ms. Baxter. 'We Are Broken' seems to fit the heartbreak when they first are forced to understand that some people see their love as deplorable, while 'Misguided Ghosts' fits perfectly for when they're sort of coming to terms with the fact that it's sad but the hate doesn't have to impede their lives. I see Taylor Swift's Fearless as the song that plays at the resolution, when Annie and Liza are reunited, and into the credits.

I want my non-existent imaginary movie to show that Annie On My Mind is a classic, endearing love story for anyone with a romantic soul. Up there with The Notebook and Titanic. I filled the soundtrack up with the music I know and love the best, but I was cautious to emphasize the sentimentality and romance instead of leaning on melancholic ballads, since the whole point of Annie was to show a happy, pure-hearted alternative to the grim perspective of The Well of Loneliness and its ilk. I wanted the soundtrack to hit on all of the classic love-story themes, but to do it in a manner that had character and was fitting for such a unique and genuine novel. I didn't want to reuse any of the songs you've heard in a thousand movies, but to still epitomize the quintessential romance themes.

^^ Threw this up here again because it's just such a perfect cover. It's like they're huddled together in their own little world, lost in pure happiness but also with a bit of foreboding, because of what the world might think of them. I want the imaginary soundtrack cover to be an exact recreation of this, but with the imaginary actors from the imaginary film.

Dream Remix Album

Lord help me, I've slipped into whimsical reverie again. Too much reading! Reading is bad for you, it enhances the imagination...

I'm really into dance remixes right now. Starting to get a grasp on the different types of remixes and my favorite remix artists, so I compiled my ultimate collection of dream remixes. Special emphasis on songs and artists that don't get the great remixes they deserve. Oooh how I wish this album existed!

The Perfect Remix Album

1. Super Bass (Passion Pit Remix) -- Nicki Minajs
2. Whiplash (Skrillex Club Remix) -- Selena Gomez & The Scene
3. Face of Love (Freddie Le Grand Extended Club Remix) -- Miranda Cosgrove
4. Dancing Crazy (Zedd Remix) -- Miranda Cosgrove
5. Bam (Afrojack Remix) -- Miranda Cosgrove
6. Sayonara (Noisia Remix) -- Miranda Cosgrove
7. Shake It Up (Chew Fu Remix) -- Selena Gomez & The Scene
8. Dancing Crazy (Richard Vission Extended Club Remix) -- Miranda Cosgrove
9. Love You Like a Love Song (Dave Aude' Extended Dub) -- Selena Gomez & The Scene
10. If I Die Young (Armand Van Helden Remix) -- The Band Perry
11. Beautiful Mess (Burial Fix) -- Miranda Cosgrove

I doubt voguing tripped out 2-step/dubstep/garage underground hero Burial would remix a Nickelodeon track (does he even do remixes at all?) but if there's just one track I'd like to hear, it'd be that one. Miri's vocal run that opens Beautiful Mess would be absolutely perfect fodder for a heady Burial track.

Annie On My Mind

Simply the finest romance I have ever encountered. Just finished rereading it and it was yet imbued with as much unspeakable magic as ever prior. No, I'm not much of a literati. But I can without question count this as my favorite book, behind the last few Harry Potter novels.

I probably cried the first time I read it, I think I vaguely remember that. And yet this time... it seemed so much darker than before, somehow. Even though I knew what to expect. I think ignorance was easier to swallow then. Today I've lost touch... with how anyone could be so blind... how an otherwise decent person could be so cruel, so truly evil as to hate love. Sounds freaking naive, doesn't it? Stupid even, for me to say something so childish? Well... I suppose this is "Zenlike Immaturity," after all. ;)

To describe the beauty of "Annie..." would be difficult with words, for its strength exists on the spiritual, or at least the romantic, level. It aptly captures the indescribable wonder of youth, and the purity of love. On the technical front, it's an impressive and inarguably important piece of Young Adult literature. It is unflinching and unafraid, yet never falters from its message that samesex love is not invariably a walkway into sorrow. It remains true to life without resorting to ugliness. Alcohol and cigarettes and sex, these subjects are presented without the slightest negative connotation. Surprising and admirable for a book that's often taught in schools, it treads not by the letter of the law but by its spirit, supporting love and morality without preaching vain adherence to the outdated taboos that riddle scholastic materials.

You might wonder, being a relatively heterosexual male as I am, why most of the couples I favor are gay, be they women or men. It's really pretty simple when you think about it, though. Sentimentality is everything to me. In fiction, lesbian couples and male gay couples are most often portrayed as being more sentimental, more romantic, more ethereal in their love. Occasionally I come across heterosexual romances that are not stifled by stock masculine stoicism. But not often.

I emailed Nancy Garden once. If you are a fan of her or the book, you really ought to drop her a line. The response she gave me was beautiful, saying that I would meet an Annie to my Liza someday. I can't say I'm sure it's true, but life has already gifted me so much more than I ever dreamed possible, especially in my youth, that I can't honestly say I'd mind if I never do. If the best life can give me is good friends and happy times, that is so much more than enough. So much more... than I ever thought I'd receive.

Pop 5: Danceable Summer

1. Shake It Up -- Selena Gomez
2. Trouble For Me -- Britney Spears
3. Love You Like a Love Song -- Selena Gomez
4. Super Bass -- Nicki Minaj
5. Whiplash -- Selena Gomez
6. Oops! ...I Did It Again -- Britney Spears
7. Rolling In The Deep -- Adele
8. Boys (Co-Ed Remix) -- Britney Spears
9. Jumpin', Jumpin' -- Destiny's Child
10. Say My Name -- Destiny's Child
11. Independent Women, Part 1 -- Destiny's Child
12. Again and Again -- The Bird and the Bee
13. If I Die Young -- The Band Perry
14. All of the Lights -- Kanye West

Is it time for a new one already? YUS. Not the most premeditaed pop compi I've ever made, but decently well thought out still. Had kind of a thing for Destiny's Child lately thanks to frequent play at work. Also discovered that Selena Gomez is a pretty great artist. She's prolific like Miri, and while Selena's music isn't on quite that high of a level, it's a lot more modern-styled than Miri's so it's easy enough for me to enjoy.

As far as Britney goes, I remember her from my own youth (e.g. "Oops I Did It Again,") but what I didn't know is that since then she's done a lot of electronic dance pop that's quite up my alley. Figure I ought to familiarize myself since I'll be seeing her live soon.

And.... that pretty much covers it. Named it Danceable Summer in honor of the fact that it's been over a year since the second edition of my pop collections series came out, "Adequate Pop: Summer Fun Edition."

New Horizons in Children's Television

I'm a proud Nickelodeon fan. Over the years, Nick and The Disney Channel have both had their share of decent shows. But over the last half-decade or so, what Nick brought to the table has been so transcendental that my friends and I have come to sort of shun Disney. iCarly, Victorious, and Avatar The Last Airbender are three of the finest programs ever to grace television, and Disney has never authored even one series that can compete.

But Nick has been running on empty for some time now. Airbender is long gone, and for an entire year iCarly has been subjected to mammoth two or three month gaps separating new episodes. Now even Victorious's progression has slowed to a crawl. I've been so desperate for new light-hearted television that I began checking out what Disney has to offer. And to my surprise, it's really good.

The convenient thing about Disney Channel is, they play their decent material pretty much all the time. 2am, 11am, 10pm, you're liable to catch Disney's best show. This is a huge breath of fresh air compared to Nickelodeon, whose best material maddeningly runs strictly in a 5 or so hour block during the afternoon & evening. Nickelodeon's time is segmented by a lengthy "Nick Jr." toddler block in the morning and a lengthy "Nick @ Nite" syndicated sitcom block at night. And during the brief period where Nick runs their A-material, you're just as liable to run into Big Time Rush or Supah Ninjas as you are to stumble upon iCarly or Victorious.

Disney's shows aren't as well-written or legitimate as Nick's greatest work, but they're funny and genuinely better than everything on Nick's unfortunately prominent list of b-material. Shake It Up, ANT Farm, Good Luck Charlie, Wizards of Waverly Place, My Baby Sitter's a Vampire, Hannah Montana reruns.... even Phineas & Ferb is alright, almost everything Disney has is pretty decent, and they air new episodes in a timely manner. By far my early favorite is the hip dance-themed show Shake It Up. Sort of ironic because it's the show Kelley once tricked me into thinking she loved. I think she might secretly dig it. ;)

Avatar: The Last Airbender's Homage to Dragon Ball Z.

Delusional though I may perhaps be, I've long believed that the show's final fight between Aang and Fire Lord Ozai, was partially inspired by Dragon Ball Z's final fight between Goku and Freezer.

The red, fire-scorched desert scenery is very reminiscent to the dying Planet Namek. The finale of the fight contains even stronger shadows of Z. In particular, there is this one moment, when the defeated Ozai lies at Aang's feet, which I definitively believe is an intentional homage.

If I were to take one specific frame in Z that this is the closest to a direct source for the homage, it wold be this.

However, there are several scenes which feature the disgusted Goku turning his back on the defeated Freezer, as both Goku and Aang struggle with the question of what to do about an irredeemable wretched creature, not wanting to kill... but being left with no option.

Now check out the scenery...

Pop 4: Accelerated Horizons

No reason not to strike while the iron is hot! I have already completed the fourth installment in my series of pop collections predominantly based on great songs I hear at work. This one is named Accelerated Horizons, for two reasons. First because it's by far the shortest gap between new issues, and second because I kind of pushed myself a little bit to get into some artists that I think I ought to.

Pop 4: Accelerated Horizons

1. Whip My Hair -- Willow
2. 21st Century Girl -- Willow
3. Tonight I'm Fucking You -- Enrique Eglasias
4. Fuck You -- Cee-Lo Green
5. Till The World Ends -- Britney Spears feat. Ke$ha & Nicki Minaj
6. Piece of Me -- Britney Spears
7. S&M -- Rihanna
8. What's My Name -- Rihanna & Drake
9. Thriller -- Michael Jackson
10. Billie Jean -- Michael Jackson
11. Beat It -- Michael Jackson
12. Who Says -- Selena Gomez
13. Never Say Never -- Justin Bieber
14. Grenade -- Bruno Mars
15. I'm Coming Home -- Diddy feat. Skyler Grey

Aside: That version of Till The World Ends with Britney, Ke$ha & Nicki Minaj is really something. All three of them are good artists, and it's the best remix I've heard since Ke$ha's Blow Cirkut Remix. For the record, my ideal pop team up would be a remix of We R Who We R with Ke$ha, Miranda Cosgrove, & Katy Perry!