I've noticed a trend. When I drive to volleyball, listening to pop music (Better Than Ezra, say) I play much better than when my drive includes listening to Everclear, AC/DC, or even some of the folkie stuff my sister leaves in my car when she visits.

So I was determined to pick the most POP-influenced stuff in my CD collection last week. I ended up with Ace of Base and Erasure. I mean, I don't own any Britney Spears or whatever the kids are listening to, today, so I had to harken back to my college years to find anything remotely pop-py. And I realized a few things.

1. As much as I admire Vince Clark's songwriting and keyboards, and as good as (Andy Bell?)'s voice is, Erasure is tough to listen to. I mean really tough. The stylism of this music just didn't stand the test of time. But I'll bet these could be hits all over again, if redone with more modern orchestration/keyboard patches and styles.
2. I like Ace of Base better than I did when I bought this disc on cut-out for $1.99.
3. Ace of Base is a reggae band! Seriously. Just listen to that regular keyboard keeping the beat. Listen to the use of snare drums. Listen, as it's reggae with white-soul vocals.

And now I like Ace of Base even more! (But I'm still not a very good volleyball player.)