Confucius say: don’t discuss religion or politics in a sauna.

When I was losing my religion, the song of the same name by R.E.M. meant a lot to me. It seemed to describe where I was coming from.

Do you know what I mean, man?

Anyway, it turned out that Michael Stipe was really not speaking about religion. But the song itself remains wonderful partly because it can have such a malleable meaning for the listener. It can be anything you want it to be.

In the song it undoubtedly helps that the music is so magically hooky. But the music hangs on the lyric. And whether they be crystal clear, opaque, or trite….it doesn’t matter which…it ain’t a song without the words. It wouldn’t have the potential to become so engraved upon our memories.

Every song needs, at the very least, some “do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do”!