When I was Captain Larby’s original college roommate, my musical tastes tried his patience. To his credit, he kept his critiques to himself. He seemed to be okay with hearing The Doors several times a day, every day. He put up with Green Day, The Cranberries, The Police, and even the Aladdin soundtrack. It was only years later that he let it slip how my incessant playing of a Best of Frank Sinatra CD nearly drove him crazy. I was probably a bit more vocal at the time about how I didn’t really want Phish to be the soundtrack of my life.
While he bit his tongue, he set out on a mission to convert me, or at least get me to play something he would also enjoy. There was old 70s David Bowie, there was jazz and funk, there was Pink Floyd, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (my favorite among Larby’s conversion music. But sometime in the winter of 1996, something happened that not only got us on the same page, but our whole floor, the whole dorm, and the entire campus. The Score by Fugees.
That was just about all we played for months. We memorized lyrics and acted out the two thugs in the Chinese retaurant skit. We ate The Score, we drank The Score, we breathed The Score, we lived The Score, and we debated its significance in the hip-hop canon. It became the soundtrack for our freshman year and it had the power to bridge the summer break and last into the beginning of our sophomore year. We couldn’t wait for more material from Fugees.
That was nine years ago. Sometime around 1998 or 1999, we all resigned ourselves to the fact that we were unlikely to be treated to another Fugees record ever again. We just wanted more Fugees to make us feel young. To make us feel like we did when we were 19. It was like a time machine. In fact, I didn’t actually purchase The Score until about a year or year and a half ago. It still called out to me from the record store. It is a link to a shared past that I’ll never get back again, but I’ll never forget either.
Today is a glorious day. Today, I read that Fugees are back together and 2006 will bring their long-awaited follow-up album. Captain Larby understands where I’m coming from. Matty Ballgame, Dr. Doop, DJ Cornbread, Sean K., Sarko G., and The Monkey might even have an inkling. Dr. Little, if you’re out there, you definitely hear me.
