The following was written by my friend Amy as an editorial for our monthly Jam Club newsletter. I think it is wonderful and wanted to share it with you.

SIGNAL SONGS

If you have not as yet heard of the concept of signal songs, I present it to you as a means of understanding yourself and as a way to tap the power of music.

When we go headlong over our chosen path/s, we are at times haunted by a song. I say song because the words are easier to interpret in our lives' contexts, but melody can bring us powerful messages. The House of the Rising Sun was a signal song for me as I left my first husband and later, my first vocation. Its messages were:

It is possible to leave. My reputation is affected by who I love. My future is going to be difficult. I must face the consequences of who I befriend and love. The melody also delivered subtle understandings.

The significance of a Signal Song tends not to be so crystallized as the outline above. I had no idea the "House" was touching my psyche at first. A song will resonate for you as long as you are struggling/reveling with the messages it brings to you. I can still sing the "House", but I do not resonate with it now.

I tend to trust a song to be a signal song if it's not part of the music I'm playing with others. However the haunting nature of the song is the best clue.

No wonder the war chant, the hymn and the lullaby are Universal.