Guns N’ Roses “Welcome to the Jungle” takes me back to the first day of the ground section in EOD school in 1991 at Indian Head Maryland. EOD school was joint service, all branches attended the same school. Back then, the AF guys went through a 2 week prelim course at Lackland. All services went to Eglin AFB and the final portion was finished up at Indian Head Maryland. The Army guys went to BB stacker school prior to EOD school so if they failed out they knew their job. Navy guys went to dive school in Panama City first.

At that time EOD school was all about memorizing loads of info and putting it into practice, no real physical requirements although I did take (and pass) the Army PT test and would participate in a run on Fridays that the Navy guys did. The training consisted of lectures all day, mandatory study hall for enlisted Sunday through Thursday night and then testing. Tests were all practical, taking everything learned and applying it. Tests were timed adding to the stress. It was a highly stressful school and they reminded us that if we failed out we would be bus drivers or cooks (two jobs the AF needed bodies for at the time). Plus, if instructors did not like you they would fail you out of the school. I saw an Army instructor do it to a guy (who was Army). The guy was real smart and did well but for some reason they did not like him. They always gave him the hardest practical tests during training. With the final tests being practical, all the instructor needed to do was to say you violated a safety and that was an instant fail on the test. If you failed you went before a board that would decide if you could proceed on. That is how I failed the one time I did - the instructor said I passed my hand in front of a fuse. I did not but he said I did and that failed me.

If I recall, Eglin was 14 weeks and Indian Head 12 weeks (or vice versa). I spent some extra time at Eglin due to washing out of one phase of training but eventually I the move to Maryland. It was a shock, it was an old base, totally different than Eglin. Ground ordnance was the first section at Indian Head and the first day when we showed up for class the instructors had “Welcome to the Jungle” playing. It was a great way to get us introduced.

I passed and was glad to leave that place. The Army instructor from the first day at ground made sure he pinned on my EOD badge at graduation. He took a couple good hits but I was just glad to graduate, do not recall even feeling those two pins pierce my skin. I must say though, I really liked Maryland (I was there in the summer). We would regularly go to Waldorf Maryland, into Virginia and into D.C. I wish I hade more time and money when there to see that entire area.

Anyway, every time I hear that song I can see the Army instructors face as that song played. There are numerous songs with events attached to them, from grade school and throughout life. I am sure everyone else has the same associations.

Afternoon Delight takes me back to riding in an old pickup truck on our way to a fishing stream. The single cab held my boss,my wife and me. That’s all I remember about that day. I still really like that song 45 years later.

Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band and a nurse I just met a couple hours before. (1978)

The Rolling Stones "Miss You" and the Summer of 1978 on the Seaside Heights Boardwalk drinking beer and shooting pool in one of the dive bars.

Being only 14 at the time made it especially memorable. They served everyone back then and I've always looked much older than my age...

"I'll Always Be the Man in Love With You" - George Strait

My girlfriend of 3 or 4 months and I played hookie from work and she came over to my house to spend the day. In bed. That song came on the radio. I sang it to her. Dropped the big "L Word" on her when it was over. She heartily reciprocated. That was a good day...

Guns & Rose's Welcome To The Jungle. Panama OJC 1989/1990. The 34th anniversary of the invasion was just a few days ago. I wasn't thete for the invasion, but for the work up leading up to it. Lots of guarding the fuel farm, patrols through the jungle, OPs on PDF stations, ...... That song still takes me back, it was our "theme song"

The first time I ever heard Magic carpet Ride by Steppenwolf I was in a distant land, long, long ago. I was escorting a convoy up highway 1 toward Con Tien Fire Base. The convoy was three ONTOS, a bunch of trucks, 3 or 4, (it's been awhile), On a road that had been burned out to about 50 yards vegetation free on each side. I was second in line then the trucks then the last Ontos. I had my personal radio tuned to Armed Forces Radio and on came Magic Carpet Ride, first time ever. At the same time that song started my guy riding drag called "incoming" and we took a bunch of RPG's from the vegetation line, he, that last guy, lit 'em up with 7.62, I turned hard right and fell out of line far enough for the trucks to get by me and opened up on gun flashes while the lead Pig (conversational name for an Ontos), and the trucks hauled ass. Our covering fire lasted as long as the song and we moved out at a brisk pace and caught up. No living creatures were injured in this action but it and the song have stuck in my mind. 7.62's outbound, RPGs incoming, smoking as they miss and Rock and Roll, what's not to like. 4 minutes lodged in memory.

Welcome to the jungle makes me think about being in elementary school lunch room. I would blast it on my headphones for probably a month straight at lunch. Most times I hear it I visualize in my mind that lunchroom. There are a few others that remind me of different periods in life and I sometimes get a sense of nostalgia when I hear. That one song and association is definitely the strongest.

On a local AM radio station Friday afternoon call in show, dedicating the song Eve of Destruction to the opposing football team.

Play Count Basie at a nursing home and see what happens

I have a friend who was an airforce EOD tech right about that same era. You may know him if there was only one school.

Several songs bring back distinct memories. Mostly around erotic episodes of my teen life. “Jeremy” by Pearl jam was playing when I cashed in v card as an example. “At last” by Etta James
( cliche I know but whatever) played first song at my wedding. Always makes me smile when I hear it.

“Pour some sugar on me” Def Leppard & “In the still of the night” WhiteSnake always remind me of high school (graduated in 88)

“In the air tonight” absolutely takes me back to the Miami Vice episode where it was played with Crockett and Tubbs in his “Daytona Spyder”-really a replica Ferrari on a Corvette frame)

Many many songs attach to emotional events in our lives.

Some songs remind us of bad times too, I turn the channel when James Taylor comes on the radio, because it reminds me of after I found out my first wife cheated on me and went to a Taylor concert with the guy. I liked his songs before then but don’t like them now. It’s not Taylor’s fault, and I know that, but emotionally I don’t want to hear it.

Someone to Watch Over me, a girl I was dating who was a stunning beauty, played Piano in the lobby of the Hotel I had a condo in, she would play it every time I walked into the lobby bar from the residences, she gave Lady Ella a run for her money when she sang it.

Taxi by Harry Chapin. Caught a cab in the rain in Atlanta. All about relationships that did not quite work out.

Seasons In The Sun puts me right back into 1973 in the back seat of our old Chevy Suburban with mom driving down the street near our old house with my oldest sister in the front passenger seat. Odd memory, but it's as clear as if it happened yesterday.

Many songs, too many to count, have this effect on me. Smells too. There's a lady here in town who wears the same perfume that "the one that got away" wore. I walked by her once in the grocery store and...whoosh...I was right back there with the girl of my dreams.

Funny how memories work.

America- Ventura Highway. A friend of mine brought my future wife over to my house to hang out for a while. She insisted I put on the America album. That is officially "our" song. We play it without fail every anniversary.

I worked at Hastings, a now defunct movie rental/sales, CD and book chain in college on and after 9/11. I met my wife working there at the same time. I was always in charge of picking out what music to play on the store speakers during my shift and we had to pick from a tray of current recent releases (but I usually slid in a vintage used CD or two as well). Every time I hear any of the songs on U2 - All that You Can't Leave Behind, John Mayer - Room for Squares, Jack Johnson - Brushfire Fairytales, Jay-Z - The Blueprint (released on 9/11/01) and a handful of others I go back to that time.

When my mom was going through her last week of her life in September we had hospice play Bing Crosby - Merry Christmas album on repeat nonstop as that was her favorite, coincidently it brought me back 30-35 years as well to being a kid with her preparing for Christmas every year.

As far as "Welcome to the Jungle", GnR, Poison, Motley Crue, Def Leppard...being a tween/teen at the town fair Midway.

The first time I ever heard The Willie nelson album Stardust was on a Thursday at 6:25.

My regular stylist at the hair cutting school was not there ,that day .

I was hot,sweaty and tired that day in mid June in eastern Iowa.

Cynthia approached me and told me that it was her last month there and she had time available.

She said she liked swimming and asked if I'd like to go with her, I said sure,

We left the lake at 5:45 and we're on her coach listening to Willie , naked on her couch.



Sometimes I Wonder.


1974, Waterloo,IA
Rare Earth concert
Song: Get Ready

Stupid ass sister
Thought it would be a great idea for me to get high as a kite up in the cheap c
Seats.


I didn't toke up but the contact got me wicked toasted.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bendable,

The entire Bon Jovi "Slippery When Wet" album, and Van Hagar's "Why Can't This Be Love." I guess because a friend of mine played it to literal death.

I graduated high school in 1988 and those make me think of the summers just before and after. I'd lost a bunch of weight, bought new clothes, a Toyota Celica-Supra, and was doing really well in sports. It was a magical time. I still remember the feeling of being young and actually believing that I always would be.