Wanted: A new family theme song.

Back in the mid 90s my sister decided to return home from living and nannying in the Western Australian outback. I decided to take the drive home with her.

Back then there was a Mazda 121 two dar car. For those that don't know this car, think little.

There was no air conditioning in the car and certainly no CD player back then either - that was an optional extra for sure. But there were tapes.

Nothing can beat the tapes that my sister and I used to make for each other. We used to sit and wait for songs to come on the radio and record the song on tapes. They were never exact, sometimes you got the radio announcer at the end, or you missed a few beats at the start. Sometimes the quality may not have been perfect, but you did end up with a mixed compilation of your favourite songs. Also, you could add your own thoughts and words on too. I still have all the ones that never melted in the cars on hot days.

Driving home along the Nullabor from Perth to Melbourne we only had a few tapes and one of them was Garth Brooks. My sister ended up listening to country music with the Jackaroos on the station and that is what she had in the car.

We listened to that tape about 47 times in five days. One of the songs we played over and over was The Dance. It's a lovely song. Back then as we sang to the big blue skies we laughed as we sang it, mainly relating the words of the songs to bust ups with boyfriends or relationships that just never got up and running. You know, better to have tried and lost then to never tried at all types of stuff.

Then Lochie died.

The Dance was played at his funeral and I never played the song much more after that. When I heard it my heart went black and I bit the inside of my cheek to think about something else.

Then my sister's mother in law died of breast cancer this year and the song was played again.

Then my Dad died. We played it again.

The Dance is an amazing song. But it was once a song of beauty that reminded me of a road trip filled with adventure, fun and endless hours talking to my big sister.

Garth Brooks is not on YouTube. So here is someone else playing the song.



I don't want to hear it again.

We need a new family theme song. But theme songs are not plucked from a top 40 list. They come about over time and just get played more and more because everyone likes them.

I don't know what the next family theme song is going to be, but I am planning on it to be something fast, funny, danceable and with no tears.

Any suggestions.