I mentioned last week that there are certain songs that put my heart right in the seat of Doc Brown’s DeLorean and take me right back to that time period from my past. The song paints a picture in my minds eye, and I’m able to step through the frame and dance along in time.

But this week, I had almost the exact opposite experience. I get to that experience at the end of this post. If you are short on time (or patience), just skip to the end and check that out.

What comes to mind when you hear those first few plucks of the guitar from Simon and Garfunkel? If you can’t bring it to the top of your mind right now, just click the video below to give the first few bars a listen.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Does it take you to a specific time/place? Do you immediately recall a particular movie where this song was predominately or subtly featured?

For several years, I would always remember the song as the background music in Roy Munson’s alternative rent payment aftermath from the movie Kingpin.

Roy spends the scene kneeling in prostration to the porcelain god, losing his lunch, over and over again. His landlady offers a few colorful plaudits of his sexual prowess, while finishing the obligatory post-coital cigarette and redressing herself. In an understatement of understatements, she is not an attractive woman.

Somewhat surprisingly, I don’t quite feel comfortable linking to the scene from here… But you have YouTube, right? You can find it if you so desire. I won’t tell anyone.

As Roy retches and gags (along with the audience), the opening lyric is clearly and hauntingly audible:

Hello darkness, my old friend. I’ve come to talk to you again…

We smile at the play on words, and shudder at the thought of being in such a position ourselves.

It wasn’t until 2008 that I learned that the scene was actually a parody of the 1967 film, The Graduate, with Dustin Hoffman. While I always remembered Hoffman as Hook and/or Rain Man, I had a vague understanding that he was kind of a big deal back in the day before these roles.

When you watch The Graduate, you quickly notice the tone that it sets with its soundtrack. The Sound of Silence plays in the opening credits, during a fantasy montage in the middle, and in the iconic and ironic final scene on the bus.

I won’t spoil the film for you, but seriously, it’s considered one of the top 100 films of all-time. Number 17, to be exact, according to the 2007 revision. Get on that, will ya?

But let’s get back to that song.

If we, as a society, had to decide on the most appropriate song for the contemplation of choices and consequences, The Sound of Silence would surely be in that conversation.

Exhibit A would be the raw, emotionally-rich, and moving performance by Paul Simon during the 10th Anniversary of the September 11th attacks in NYC. For me, personally, it captured my feelings of pain, regret, sadness, and sympathy in a way that no other act of remembrance did that day. My post from that day remains (as of this date) the highest visited article on my website. I would guess that it has more to do with that song than my prose.

Exhibit B comes from yet another film. In Zak Snyder’s adaptation of Watchmen in 2009, the song plays through The Comedian’s funeral. The camera pans across the faces of almost every important character in the film. No dialogue is spoken, and none is needed. The song does the heavy emotional lifting, so the actors don’t have carry it all by themselves.

As Art Garfunkel put it in the introduction to what might be the definitive version of the song (in my opinion):

There are times when I’m singing one of Paul’s songs, that I feel that the song is uh, very personal and probably shouldn’t be sung by anyone other than the writer. But, there are other songs that… go beyond one person.

Do you agree?

Click here to view the embedded video.

But instead of just letting this song be soaked with melancholy, contemplation, and regret, with little hope for redemption, let me leave you with the reason I felt compelled to write this article in the first place:

This 8 1/2 minute short film features a rework of the song by einsauszwei. Like the Watchmen sequence, there is no dialogue, at least not audibly. It will make sense right away. Seriously, give up 8 1/2 more minutes of your life and check this out. I will even put forth a money-back guarantee that you will be glad that you did.

Without further ado:

Click here to view the embedded video.

It’s a beautiful film, in so many senses of the word. And it’s helping to redefine my experience of The Sound of Silence.

If the silence is indeed deafening, perhaps that is still a good thing.

Adieu.

Have you ever had a Saturday schedule so empty and lame that you wondered if you could possibly squeeze two naps into it just to spice things up a little bit?

I found myself starring right down the barrel of one such Saturday just this past weekend. I get to have my children stay with me every other Saturday and Sunday. This was not my weekend. A quick scroll through Facebook revealed that my friends were all either out of town or otherwise engaged. Fun was being had, but not by me.

When I came across a status update from Foxy Shazam, I immediately remembered that that night was the CD release party for the band’s new album, The Church of Rock & Roll. This was the same band that I had previously set out to see live, only to be chagrined by the concert selling out before I could purchase my tickets.

A couple of quick Google searches let me know: A) that there were still tickets available, and B) that a trip to the band’s hometown of Cincinnati would take about four hours. With a couple of texts, I was able to procure a couch to sleep on after the show, and convince myself that it was an idea of real merit, if not brilliance.

Before I could even talk my myself out of it, I was cruising down the interstate on a pilgrimage to the Church of Rock & Roll.

The live experience was everything that I could have hoped for. While I expected to be (by far) the oldest and least hip person at the venue, I pleasantly discovered that I was neither. There was a huge mix of Foxy faithful in the crowd, and I quickly felt right at home among my fellow parishioners.

This was no church, at least not in the sense that a church has a steeple, pews, a pulpit, and stained glass. But it was a church in the sense that there was a throng of people expecting to be changed, a charismatic leader to be listened to, rapturous music, and folks collecting money to help with the good works being done.

By the time they played this song, I couldn’t be sure if I was really in a church or a concert hall:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Because of the lighting, none of my pictures really turned out. However, this spectacular failure did yield one fascinatingly appropriate image.

The guys put on a categorically amazing show. Sky (with his crazy long beard), stood on top of his keyboard, stomping the keys right along with the song. Daisy spent a good 30 seconds balancing his bass, upside-down, on his fingertips, in the middle of another song. The horn player, Alex, when he wasn’t swinging it around wildly, managed to toss his trumpet at least 20 feet up into the air… and catch it in time to blast a high C, right on the beat.

But it was Eric Nally, as I expected, who ruled the show.

There were the standard head bangs and stage dives, and even a bit of miming an archer with his arrows. While I can’t recall all of his antics that night, I am sure that he gave a few displays of his mic trick, and even told some crazy half-relevent stories to segue between songs. But the most memorable moment happened when he solicited the crowd for a cigarette, was subsequently showered with a few dozen of them, further requested a lighter, took five of the cigarettes, lit them, sucked in a couple of puffs, then proceeded to eat them. All of them. While still lit. Filters and all.

If you can’t believe that, perhaps this YouTube video from an earlier show might act as Exhibit A:

Click here to view the embedded video.

You even get a glimpse of Sky on the keyboards with that one.

By the end of the night, I no longer wondered if I had made the right choice in coming.

This was an experience that I hadn’t had since college.

It was a rebirth into a scene that I had once been fully fluent in.

While much of my former life is still smoldering in ash… I believe that a phoenix may rise just yet.

It was now official… I had been baptized into the Church of Rock & Roll. And oh, how sweet it is to be saved…

I realize that I am in something of a heightened emotional state right now, and my moods have been more dramatic in some usually innocuous situations. Whether I’m driving in my car, in a social setting with music pumping in, or working with a little Spotify in the background, a soundtrack has been developing in my heart and mind over the past month or so. I’m confident that these songs will become a part of my personal history, working in the future to hearken me back to right now.

Without further ado, I’d like to give you a peek into my soul, and share with you my music of this moment:

One of my top bands, Foxy Shazam, offered a recommendation for a zombie-filled music video on Halloween (Disclaimer- the video is a strong PG-13). As far as I can tell, Our Vinyl Vows is a California band that no one (other than Foxy) has never heard of before. They seem to be a typical post-punk, guitar-driven, three-chord band, bitching to whomever will listen, about whatever seems to be wrong with the world. But after listening to their only studio album (You, Me, and Einstein) for a couple of months, the common thread seems to be a prolonged dealing with breakups and heartbreaks.

To hear this guy sing, you would think that he’s never had a healthy relationship in his life. While it seemed a little odd to have song after song of danceable break-up music, I had to give the singer props for being honest about his (remarkably consistent) emotional state. Here’s a taste of his lyrical melancholy:

Home is where you make it
but I didn’t make it fast enough
You always talked about it
but I never thought you’d leave
Oh how dare you call it home
you made a mess of things
and now you’re on your way
like that’s the only solution
Pack up and go but
leave all your baggage behind

~ From: Just The Tip ~

For a band that nobody has ever heard of, they do have a nice little music video (geez, I sound SO condescending) for the appropriately titled ballad for the dumped: “Gone”.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Kind of fun for a break-up song, right? It’s appropriateness for my own life didn’t quite hit me until after being dumped myself, but I did have some fun dancing to song with my kids over the last few weeks.

Speaking of fun, that’s my other top band right now. Seriously, their name is Fun. Their website is www.ournameisfun.com. You may have actually heard of this group, what with their recent immortalization on Glee and all. But if you haven’t, please familiarize yourself and give them a listen.

Fun. is coming out with a new album in February, but they’ve already released a few tracks through YouTube. This track particularly rings true to me right now (other than the whole preoccupation with death thing).

Click here to view the embedded video.

I’ll put one foot, in front of the other one.
I don’t need a new love,
just a better place to die.

Yeah, it sounds dark and all, but not defeated. That’s the part that I really connect with. Keep walking, keep moving. It’s not time for something new, but something new will be found someday. I need to hear that. I need to believe that. And so I do.

Finally, a new sound in my playlist is from a band named Grouplove. This was a radio song that just happened to hit me in just the right place at just the right time. I’ve been wrestling with my self-esteem and manhood as of late, and the opening of this track traveled straight through my eardrums into my core-being.

I am a man, man, man, man
Up, up in the air
And I run around, round, round, round
this down town and act like I don’t care.
So when you see me flying by the planet’s moon,
You don’t need to explain if everything’s changed
Just know I’m just like you.

Just a few bars later, I get treated to this lovely bit of poetry:

And suddenly a light appears inside my brain
And I think of my ways,
I think of my days
and know that I have changed.

When I explain my divorce to people, they sympathize with me, but only to a certain extent. Really, to say that I have changed is an understatement of significant magnitude. The person that I am today is widely different from the one whom my wife fell in love with over a decade ago. Can I really blame my wife for anything? I’m the one who went from Christian minister to secular humanist. It’s on me. I get it. But it still hurts to let go…

The video for this song may be the most haunting that I’ve experienced in years.

Click here to view the embedded video.

His death sentence was seemingly stayed, only to be a delay of the inevitable. Wishful thinking leads him to a frolic in the fields and a late night in a tent (grouplove, indeed). But death came nonetheless.

Can I draw any conclusions from this?

Nope. It’s a music video. It’s somebody else’s story. It’s somebody else’s truth. It doesn’t have to me mine.

And so it isn’t.

Bonus:

Click here to view the embedded video.

I have no reason for liking this other than the fact that I always wanted to be a drummer and his skills are of the mad variety.

Long live music.

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you are a basketball fan, you may recognize that song from the pre-game introductions of your favorite team. I believe that it was begun by the Chicago Bulls, but I know that my Phoenix Suns used it back in the Charles Barkley days. My friend Matt still thinks of Alan Parsons every time that he reads or hears my full name. Good times.

When I first heard about TAPP, I was jazzed to think about this other “Parsons” that was out there. I wondered if/how we were related, and if I had some long-dormant musical ability that was given to all Parsons through genetics. After further review, I can conclude that that is not the case.

Still, this curiosity sent me on a search. I remember looking through my metro Phoenix phone book and flipping to the ‘P’s. I was stunned at the number of Parsons that were right there in my hometown. I wondered if I had unknowingly bumped into one of them at the AM/PM minimart, Golfland, Pizza Mart?Could it be that it was a Parsons that I had witnessed taking Sub-Zero all the way through to Shang Tsung at the nickel arcade?

My mind was swimming with all of the hypothetical things that Parsons could be doing out there.

Oddly, I took some comfort in the fact that there were no other “Zac Parsons”s listed in Phoenix. In fact, I concluded that I must be the only “Zac Parsons” in the world! Zac wasn’t a hugely popular name, and I definitely had never heard of anyone spelling it the same way that my parents had chosen to spell mine.

When I discovered that the bassist of the English band E.M.F. spelled his name “Zac”, I was actually pretty proud. Here was another musician with some part of my name. Again, if you can’t quite place E.M.F., let me offer this (with some help from THE Tom Jones:

Click here to view the embedded video.

I followed the band for a while, mostly because of the Unbelievable song, but also for Zac.

Sadly, Zac died unexpectedly in 2002 at the age of 31, which happens to be my age now. When I saw news of his death I was reminded again of the “unique” spelling of our name.

By this point, I was able to use this new technology known as “The Internet” to search for information about other Zacs. To my great surprise, there were a TON of us!

Today, we’ve got Zac Efron to remind the world that Zacs can be beautiful.

There’s also Zac Brown, who keeping the musical prowess (and beard-growing ability) of Zacs at an impressively high level.

Click here to view the embedded video.

There’s even a “Captain Zac“. It’s some guy who happens to be the first American to sail solo around the world.

You probably know where this is going now…

Despite my instance that I was definitely the only Zac Parsons in the world, I’ve learned that there are at least a half dozen “Zac Parsons”s in North America alone. In fact, one of them owned this domain before me.

So, as a service to anyone who pokes around here looking for another Zac Parsons, I’d like to start profiling different people with the name “Zac Parsons” who I run across. I’ll connect with them, and post as much as is appropriate here on the website.

If you happen to know a Zac Parsons, please have them email me at zac@zacparsons.com. I’m sure this won’t get confusing at all.

Let the Zac Parsons Project commence!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here is the link. Enjoy!

I do not have the body of a runner. I barely have the body of an athlete. When I see video of myself in physical activity, I wince like most of us do when we hear our voice on a recording and think “Is that really what I am like?”. But, for whatever reason, in every stage of my life, I have run. \ Today, I ran to the beat of this song, by Panic! at the Disco:

Click here to view the embedded video.

The drum beat has fantastic cadence for my running stride. I love letting the image of the video run through my mind as I run through the streets. The Sgt. Pepperish outfits are a throwback to the 60′s, and the song dances back and forth with talk of the past and the future. Even the title asks some clever questions:  ”At what point would 9:00 ever be considered the afternoon?”  and “Is the afternoon the end of your daily rhythm, or the beginning?”

In researching for this article, I discovered the band has since split up since writing and recording this song. The remaining members (the drummer and the front-man), just released a new single entitled “New Perspective“.  The song doesn’t grab me right away, but the title and some of the lyrics seem to indicate a view towards the future and what could be, juxtaposed with what was.

We’ve all heard the phrase “time marches on”, and it certainly does. I sometimes wonder if growth and maturity are inevitable based on the ticking of a clock and the movement that must take place in the midst of the march. In many cases, time does drag or push us into the future, whether we wish it to or not. And that seems to be the difference: our wishes and intentional movement. There is a future to be entered into, and it can be our choice of how and where we enter.

I have this picture in my mind myself walking through life in between a set of parentheses. If I start to feel sorry for myself and sit down to pout, the parentheses keep moving. Eventually the lagging one is upon me and dragging me through the dirt, forward through life. It’s when my focus is on the leading one when I am most content and at peace with life.

Hope abounds.

Optimism rains from the sky.

Energy fills my heart and mind, and my body runs toward the future. I think that this is part of the reason why most children are happy as a default setting in their lives. With less to look back on, there is the future waiting to be entered into. I also think this is why the phenomenon of a mid-life crisis is so rampant, and so legitimate. After getting “over the hill”, many of us want to scramble back to the top and enjoy the view. Or even to climb back down to a part of the trail where the peak is still ahead on the horizon.

Time is marching on. It’s my responsibility to stay on my feet. Right now, I’m running.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/eu_britain_boyle

She ended up finishing second in the “Britain’s Got Talent” competition, to a youth dance troupe with (not shockingly) a lot of talent.  Susan was considered the favorite going in, but did not win the final vote like so many thought that she would.  You can watch both of their performances below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Susan seems to be a bit more cautious at the beginning.  There is a sense that the pressure of the spotlight has effected her some.  I’m glad that she is resting up in a hospital bed now, getting a much needed rest, before finding out what the next step of the journey is for her.

It seems there are very few people who can thrive under the pressure of the spotlight on them at all times, and not crack in some way.  Tom Cruise jumps makes presumptuous comments on postpartum depression and jumps on couches.  Brad Pitt has an affair.  Mel Gibson goes on a alcohol fueled rant against Jews.  I’ve even noticed this pattern on my own blog with my recent thoughts on Jonathan Brandis and Jon Gosselin.  Is this a result of the pressure of media scrutiny?  Is it an unfortunate side effect of success?  Or is is just what happens to each of us in our lives, just in varying degrees?

I’m going to lean towards the idea that it happens to all of us, just in varying degrees.  I have to wonder what I would do in such situations, and if I would even want such attention that I sometimes long for.  Last night, after working on editing a video for three hours, I closed my window without saving the project, and lost everything.  I felt like I could cry.  But, undeterred, I resiliently started over, not wanting the last three hours to have been in vain.  About 2 hours into this, I did it again.  Five hours gone, nothing to show for it, but a sad face and a desire to break something.  If there was a cameraman in my face, I’m sure that I would have not been able to appear “professional” for him or her.  I even snapped at my own mother, whom I asked for help, because she asked me the “wrong” question.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about why we (or myself) like certain people and not others.  Is it because of what they do, or who they are?  For good or bad, it seems to be both.  Susan Boyle, whoever you or whatever you do… enjoy your rest.

Wow!   It seems very clear now that Susan’s dream has been a dream for quite a long time.  So she got knocked down a few times and things didn’t take off for her right away.  She kept hold of her dream and kept developing her skills.  The idea that “anything is possible” is poweful and important to cultivate in everyone, young and old.  But,  it should be remembered that large scale success can and often does take time, especially when developing specific skills are involved.

This really made me think about my own life and the personal changes that I have been going through lately.  Sometimes, things change so fast, you can look at yourself in the morning, and not even recognize who you are.  When I look in the mirror, I don’t see who I was, but I don’t quite see the man that I want to be either.  It’s a strange sort of in between place that I’m in now, wondering whether to turn back to some of my former habits or to keep growing and developing my new ones.  I believe that healthy self esteem is the essential starting point for self-directed growth and personal development.  But is there a point in that growth and development where you can lose your identity?

Surely Susan had some times in her life and sputtering career where she doubted and took some time wandering on different paths.  It’s very encouraging to me to see how she never gave up on what she was so clearly passionate about.  It’s a great gift to be able to change our mind.  It’s also great to see the potential of a long held hope come to blossom at last.  Cheers again to Susan for her to get out there with her frumpy dress and keep her dream alive.  May we all be as successful as her someday!  What perseverance!

As I watched this clip for the fourth time today, I still got goosebumps.  I even welled up a bit and may have dropped a few tears.  There is something so universally beautiful about this.  The humble confidence in her comment: “I’m gonna make that audience rock!”  The ache in my heart about her never being kissed in her 47 years.  Her regained composure after momentarily blanking out at Simon’s question.  The crescendo of approval and applause that bubbled forth from the audience.  I loved all of it.

She mentioned how she always wanted to perform in front of a large audience.  Perhaps we have heard others say this, and we have labeled them as self-centered or egotistical.  But with Susan, I feel a tremendous sense of healthy pride that she is good enough and able to do such a thing.  It is what she has rehearsed in her mind over and over again, creating an extremely vivid picture for her.  One that is full of emotion.

It’s fantastic (to use her word) to vicariously experience her triumph over a judgemental world (and audience).  Al Bandura talks about how we go through our successes to quickly and too lightly.  Here’s to hoping that she spends plenty of time reveling in the joy that she gives to others with her performance and her personality.