Puzzle

Back in June I posted a video for a version of my favorite new song at the time. Then in September I posted about how I had 4 different versions of the song.  I can now sadly say I have a fifth version of K’naan’s Wavin Flag. It’s the one he performed at the FIFA World Cup Kick-Off Celebration Concert. It mixes both the regular version and the World Cup of the song and even brings in will I am from the Black Eyed Peas (he’s on one of the other versions I have and the Peas were performers at the concert too).

I once read somewhere (I want to say in Nick Hornby’s book Songbook, but I’m not positive) that songs are like puzzles we’re trying to solve. There’s a mystery in the songs and we’re all trying to solve it. Some songs are more of a mystery for some people than others.

I’d like to figure out the puzzle in Wavin Flag. I’m not sure why it’s held my fascination for so long. I get the feeling its because K’naan is a lot like Natasha Bedingfield. He’s got good beats, his music has some depth in it, he started out more popular internationally than in the US, and he’s a social activist. Then I think you can add on top of that the fact that I found the song as a World Cup song and I love soccer more than almost everything than God and my Barney.

Those are the reasons I can come up with for my fascination. And Wavin Flag isn’t the only song I have a fascination with. It’s just the most recent one. And I like its puzzle.