The Makeout Playlist: Everybody here wants you
MANILA, Philippines - We need a foolproof make-out playlist,” my editor told me. I looked up from the work I was doing, looked around the room, and took note of the fact that only the two of us were in it. I pointed to him, then myself, then back, then again, rapidly, with a quizzical and somewhat apprehensive look on my face.
“Not for you and me, you idiot,” he said, “for the section! Also,” he added, “you weren’t doing any work. You were reading Fantastic Four #587.” My greatest fear had come true: Johnny Storm had been overwhelmed by a horde of monsters from the Negative Zone. Also, editors apparently do have the power to read their columnists’ minds!
“I wish,” he said, pushing down the screen of the laptop that I had been typing these words on, until he could no longer see it. “Now make that playlist.”
“I like to make out to the Transformers soundtrack,” I told him. “Not the Michael Bay-formers, the original cartoon one, the good one.” Then I started singing The Touch while making hip-thrusting motions.
“I think you’d better crowd-source this one!” he yelled as he ran out of the room.
I went on Twitter and Facebook and asked for suggestions. I turned my back for like 30 minutes and I got over 70 answers. Seriously, you guys are the best. My only regret is that I had to trim the list down to a manageable size. So here it is, a mix of new and tried-and-true (with some parenthetical comments from the suggesters):
Afghan Whigs—66
Al Green—Let’s Stay Together
Bob Marley and the Wailers—Stir It Up
Bryan Ferry—Slave to Love
Broken Social Scene—Lover’s Spit
D’Angelo—Brown Sugar
Foals—Spanish Sahara
Garbage—Queer
Handsome Boy Modeling School feat. Cat Power—I’ve Been Thinking
The Isley Brothers & Mos Def—Beauty In The Dark (Groove With You)
Janet Jackson—Anytime, Anyplace
Jeff Buckley—Everybody Here Wants You*
Kid Loco—She Woolf Daydreaming
Lovage—The whole of “Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By”
Magnet—Lay Lady Lay
Massive Attack—Protection
Miles Davis - Flamenco Sketches
N.E.R.D.—She Wants To Move
Oasis—Champagne Supernova (“Over seven minutes!”)
The Pretenders—Brass in Pocket
R Kelly—Tracks 1, 2, 4 and 12 on his “12 Play” album (“Although I think track 4 (‘Seems Like You’re Ready’) will pretty much do it.”)
Sade—The Sweetest Taboo
Sarah Vaughan—Stormy Weather
Sino Sikat—Turning My Safety Off
Spoon—The Ghost of You Lingers (“Tried and tested.”)
The Sundays—Wild Horses
Turbo Goth—I’m Your Girl
The Twilight Singers—Sublime
*This Jeff Buckley song was the favorite, with at least three people suggesting it straight off the bat.
* * *
Thanks to Alice Sarmiento, Andrea Ocier, Anna Cassandra Melendez, Bernice Roldan, Bonsai Fojas, Bru Sim, Cris Ramos Jr, Denise Mallabo, Doreen Jose, Frank Cimatu, Grace Velasco, Jason Caballa, Joyce Año, Kristine Lim Spoor, Lally Buendia, Lester Hallig, Lizzy Timbreza, Marian Joy Hernandez, Meryll Chavez, Miguel Tayag, Paolo Cruz, Pye Ponce, Zach Lucero and everyone who answered!
Happy making out!
