Ever since I was a teenager, I have had a love affair with bubblegum music. Back in high school, when everyone else was discovering Queen, Bowie, and Led Zeppelin, I had my dial set to the local AM station that played sunny beach music and one-hit wonders like The Night Chicago Died - "Nanananananana." I was young for my age, and a bit naive (I thought Happy Days was a documentary) so the songs did not need to be deep. I was also awkward and shy with the opposite sex, so innocent tunes with delicate lyrics about true love were my comfort zone. Though my taste in music has grown, I still have a soft spot for pop and regularly set my radio on the local FM Hot 100 station. Believe it or not, there is some good stuff out there. However, there's a part of me that hears the music through the ears of that 15-year-old girl holed up in her bedroom playing and replaying her Carpenters' albums. For her sake, I have a little something to say to a few of the top artists this week.
