by Philipina A. Marcelo
I read one person’s blog just now. She is wondering about how she’s not in the “Obama train” like the multitude of ecstatic people all around the world jumping in to join Barack Obama in the journey of his life. She likened her I-don’t-get-it Obama experience with how she also didn’t get all the hype about Eagles’ “Hotel California” in the 70’s. I can’t help but smile about the blog… just because I love Hotel California (and no, I’m not that old either) – aside from “Build me up buttercup” (OK, I'll say it again I'm not that old, haha...), it’s my all-time song of choice in those frenzied karaoke parties, and I’m an Obama convert, too, since that moving Pennsylvania speech! No, I’m not an American, but I did find that speech moving anyhow. I guess that's just how the Obama appeal works.
Anyway, I was going to post the response below on the blog page I just saw, but I decided to post it here instead. Here goes…
Hotel California? Aawww...
Oh, boy… how could anybody miss that quietly blazing guitar that sings so much better than either Glenn Frey or Don Henley - the two awesome front men of Eagles, especially towards the end of the song??? The tempo is just great, too… it goes from creeping slow to jogging slow to fast notes – it’s like riding a roller coaster of emotions. The adrenalin spikes
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here and there as the tempo builds up was amazing since it doesn’t come with the deafening sound of drums and cymbals being punished with a pair of wooden sticks by some possessed drummer. In spite the fancy guitar chords plucking, the tone of the song is just so “doable” that anybody (including myself!) can actually sing it without too much effort! (Uh, a-hem, a-hem, do, re, mi...) And, by the time you finished navigating the last lyric stanza (OK, don't even get me started with the symbolisms in the lyrics), you are rewarded with that guitar jam to bang your head to just to celebrate your supposed vocal prowess… and that’s just heaven! Hotel California is not just a song – it’s an experience, and a totally awesome one at that!Come to think of it, that is just exactly what the “Obama mania” is like to me. You look at his flimsy no-noisy-drum-beats but nevertheless impressive academic and public service record, and you see a promise whose fulfillment is “doable”. He speaks, and he just captivates you, inspires you, and makes you want to be better than the good person that you already are – and it feels “doable”, just because you see him as the very embodiment of success from hard work and a big dream fulfilled. His person makes you want to look beyond “just colors” and humble beginnings, and focus on possibilities and fulfilling them instead. There is a refreshing quality in his youth and cool confidence, intellect, optimism, and tenacity to do well… especially after eight years of GWB. After seeing how he was able to mobilize so many people of various backgrounds, ages and religious beliefs to bring his campaign from anonymity to victory, proving to everyone that, yes, great things can be achieved when people set aside differences and work together towards the attainment of a common goal, you know that this is the guy you want to bet your bottom dollar on in these troubled times.
So, yeah… Obama?? Awwww! :)
I do love “Hotel California”, but right now, I’m listening to U2’s “In the Name of Love” as I await the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States of America – yeah, That One!
(photo: Philipina, second from left, pushing her lungs in a Christmas videoke party with UST Chem. E. karaokees singing... yeah, "Hotel California"! credit: G. Chao)
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