Let the Music take you away

The memories made on the road are one of the best things about travelling. Reminiscing over photos is great, but smells and sounds can transport us to other places too.  Which music takes you back somewhere?

Click the name of the song for a listen!

Tarkan – Simarik

As soon as I hear this song it takes me to Oludeniz in Turkey. My first trip to Turkey, as a 17yr old, involved lots of nights out dancing and this song was played in every restaurant and every bar without exception.  You’d think I might not have heard it much outside Turkey, but then Holly Valance released an English version called “Kiss kiss”. Tarkan’s original was such a big hit that it has been remixed to excess and even today, over ten years later, Tarkan’s kissy noises still float out of Turkeys bars and nightclubs.

Lou Bega – Mambo No 5

This song takes me to Watamu in Kenya where, on the amazing beach, I spent the night dancing in the New Year and the Millennium. There was only one tape of music (yes a tape – remember those?) and it was on loop, so we had this song, as well as a few others, many many times as we welcomed in the new Millenium. Dancing on the sand however, with a glorious sky full of stars overhead (and having downed quite a substantial amount of booze) nobody cared about the looped tape.

Nelly – Hot in here

I am not a morning person. My drive to work in the Bahamas always had me laughing though because this song was unfailingly on the radio, even at 8am. I just found it so silly that this suggestive song about “getting hot and taking off all your clothes” was played as early in the day as the morning drive to work (when I’ve just put my clothes on). Put it this way, it’s rare that I feel as frisky as the song sounds when I’m on my way to work in the mornings.

Beres Hammond – They gonna talk

This song reminds me of a fantastic night out in Barbados. A bunch of my friends and I were all enjoying the normal night out things when we noticed the local turtle-watch charity had turned up to monitor and protect a nesting turtle just along the beach from the bar we were in. That was interesting in itself, but later the evening involved a lot of rum and some seriously mal-co-ordinated dancing. Always fun!

Jimmy Buffett – Margaritaville

I have specified Margaritaville so I can link to ‘a’ tune but in fact any Jimmy Buffett music takes me to Fort Lauderdale and the Bahamas. A friend in Florida was a big fan and shortly after being in Florida I worked on a yacht in the Bahamas, the owners of which were fans too, so I quickly got used to the songs being around me in that part of the world.

Canon in D – Pachelbel

This reminds me of the house I grew up in. More precisely, it reminds me of my Father’s delight when years ago, he was playing it and I asked what it was. He was such a fan of Classical music and was delighted to share it with me. So I guess it takes me home.

Are there any tunes or pieces of music that instantly transport you to a place? Which tunes and where do they remind you of?