The Piña Colada Song

Sometimes words are just not enough to properly convey a story. But with the addition of a melody and a Casio drumbeat, you get what I like to call the "story song." Let’s face it: simply telling a story about taking out a personal ad with the intention of cheating on your wife, only to find out that she's the one that answers the ad, would never have had the same pizazz without the reggae-esque track and a chorus that features a rum-based, island cocktail. Think of all the trouble Rupert Holmes could have saved if he had just asked his wife if she loved piña coladas, getting caught in the rain, hating yoga and making love at midnight in the dunes of the cape. But I guess it's the journey, not the destination.

While I admit that "The Piña Colada Song" (1979) is not the finest "story song" example, it sure does get the point across. Not to mention it’s a guilty pleasure as satisfying as binge-watching "Dating Naked" (2014 -- present) or eating the insides of Oreos.

The story song heyday seems to have been in the '70s and '80s. Deep and intricate tales were weaved into the verses of Cher's“Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves” (1971), “The Last Time I Saw Richard” by Joni Mitchell (1971), “At Seventeen” (1975) and “Society’s Child” (1995) by Janis Ian and Bobbie Gentry’s “Ode to Billie Joe” (1967). There seem to be recurring themes of sex, murder and just generally not feeling too great about things. But I guess that’s often what makes a good story.

This past summer during a camping trip, my family recreated a rather rousing rendition of “Cats in the Cradle” (1974) -- with my proud cowboy-hat-wearing uncle on guitar, me on ukulele and my dad on a Spanish cajón. The rest of my family sang along and our voices filled the campground, inspiring fellow campers who I’m sure were very enthusiastic about our merry music-making.

Maybe today our attention spans are shorter and can no longer entertain five-minute songs. Perhaps we can’t handle the emotional roller-coaster of trying to figure out whether Billie Joe actually jumped off the Tallahatchee Bridge or not. Story songs are already like operas for the ADD generation, compressing tales of comedic misunderstanding on the level of “The Marriage of Figaro” (1786) and “Madame Butterfly" (1903) scale tragedies within the span of a few minutes. That’s a lot for anyone to handle.

Sometimes it is freeing to not get caught up on metaphors and to hear someone make it alright for you to express your truth and say just how s****y it felt to be an ugly duckling at seventeen years old. Or how Rick Nelson learned that you “can’t please everyone, so you’ve got to please yourself” when he overcame getting booed off stage at Madison Square Garden.

Songs that strive to tell a complex story and actually succeed are one of the most beautiful and sought after mysteries in my mind. The product is something profound that can be visited again and again to pick up that word that you didn't catch the first time or the unlikely dissonance that catches you somewhere between your chest and your heart.

Some contemporaries have explored this art form (boldly done by Sun Kil Moon in this year's song, “Dogs," for example) but I will still reflect on the golden era of story songs as a time that resonated with the liberty to express a long-winded tale through music. But don’t take my word for it. I’m still trying to figure out just who shot whom at the Copacabana (my money’s on Rico).