30(+1) Day Song Challenge Day 3: “A Song That Reminds You of Summertime”
From Mamma Mia, La La Land, to High School Musical 2, we already internalized this romanticized idea of of The Summer Dream without actually experience it. It gives us this unrealistic expectation of what a summer should be. Coincidentally, the three movies I chose above were musical, one of my favorite film genre, that’s also known for its dramatic verbal and non-verbal acting. To them, summer is all about beaches, mojitos, and pretty sundresses. Teenagers with their summer flings, hopping on a convertible like they have zero care and all the time in the world. As if the summer is on the palm of their hands.
As for me, a born & bred Surabayans, believed that summer belongs in the dumpster. I practically live 24/7 in the summer with no 104 days of summer vacation. It’s just heat and humidity without the wild summer festival. But, I do love what the traditional summer associates to; the care-free, no-strings-attached, soulmate-like relationship. The one that tells you about two individual finding each other in a beautiful deserted tropical island. Being so far away from home, they only have so little time until they part for good. The thrills and instant connection feels right for the moment. The music, the night breeze, the texture of sands on their barefoot; they tried to absorb it all as much as they can. This is what Kokomo by The Beach Boys exudes and talks about.
Imagine a scenario, where you and lover could run away from all the bustle of reality, to a worldly paradise where the bar is always open and everyone radiates joy? Yes this wraps it off. Let’s jump to Verse 1:
Off the Florida Keys
There’s a place called Kokomo
That’s where you wanna go
To get away from it all
Bodies in the sand
Tropical drink melting in your hand
We’ll be falling in love
To the rhythm of a steel drum band
Down in Kokomo
You’d no longer have the control of your body once that first beat of percussion hits. Middle finger to your thumb, and you’ll start snapping the fingers as your shoulder does the shimmy. The worst crime of the decade would probably be The Beach Boys pulling us in to this dreamy, non-existent, place. Yes, Kokomo is not a real place. Next on to Verse 2, which I really like:
…
Afternoon delight
Cocktails and moonlit nights
That dreamy look in your eye
Give me a tropical contact high
Way down in Kokomo
That sounds like a perfect date to me.
On to the start of the outro:
Everybody knows a little place like Kokomo
Now if you wanna go to get away from it all
Go down to Kokomo
This is a pretty reassuring statement I really love. Even though Kokomo is a made up paradise from their own imagination, they didn’t say that we have to be there to amuse oneself. Kokomo is any place, any paradise you want to run away to. Implying, you could even create your own Kokomo. Grab your Pina Coladas with an extra of someone special, and Bermuda nor Bahama wouldn’t stand any chance.
