Week One Hundred and Fifteen: My So-Called Life - Buffalo Tom - "Sodajerk" - Soundtrack

Back in 1994, when the very first episode of My So-Called Life was released, it was truly a life-altering experience for me. I was in complete awe that someone was able to so purely capture my feelings regarding life and love at a time in my development that so closely mirrored the lead character's same developmental phase.

I actually finally learned how to program a VCR to record a show from the television just so that I would never have to miss an episode of this program. I eventually got rid of all those boot-legged copies and purchased the DVD set on eBay. I'll include the front and back cover below:

Surprisingly, Wikipedia actually has a fairly decent description of this show; so I will include it below:

"My So-Called Life is an American teen drama television series created by Winnie Holzman and produced by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. It originally aired on ABC from August 25, 1994, to January 26, 1995 and was distributed by The Bedford Falls Company with ABC Productions. Set at the fictional Liberty High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, it follows the emotional travails of several teenagers who are all in the social circle of main character Angela Chase, played by Claire Danes. The critically acclaimed but short-lived show ended in a cliffhanger with the expectation that it would be picked up for an additional season, but it was officially canceled on May 15, 1995.

The show was praised for its portrayal of adolescence and the commentary of its astute central character, Angela. My So-Called Life was named the second Best School Show of All Time by AOL TV. It placed No. 33 on Entertainment Weekly's 'New Classics TV' list of shows from 1983 to 2008, and then, in 2012, at No. 9 in that magazine's '25 Best Cult TV Shows from the Past 25 Years,' with the praise,

'It was the first teen drama that didn't feel like an after-school special. No one ever learned a very important lesson or uttered the phrase 'I love you, Dad.' Angela acted like a real 15-year-old, with all the crying jags and Buffalo Tom concerts that implies. What's even more impressive is that anyone who watched the show back in the '90s, when angst and Manic Panic felt totally of the moment, can now enjoy it on a very different level. Suddenly, Angela's parents are relatable.'"

Since they mentioned Buffalo Tom in the above write-up, I am going to include the song, "Sodajerk", for you today (which is the one on the soundtrack). Another Buffalo Tom song that ended up in an episode (but not on the soundtrack) is "Late at Night"; someone on YouTube added this track to some scenes from the episode, and you'll be treated to that one too!

Sadly, I found the official soundtrack for the show to be rather disappointing, but there was one other track on it that I really liked called "Drop a Bomb" by Madder Rose; so I will include that one for you, as well. Lastly, the opening tune for every episode was so epic that I'll include that for you also...

Watch an eyeball 

Take a free fall 

At the mention of a name 

In its socket 

And like a rocket 

Rises just the same 

But could my eyelids 

Cover what I did 

The shuttin' of the door 

And could these ceilings 

Contain my feelings 

Me down on the floor 

Jerked my fountain 

Ice cream mountains 

I suppose I'm just too late 

Form a line here 

I think I'll die here 

These people nauseate me 

But if my patience 

Were a spaceship 

High up in orbit 

Then I would rise here 

Hypnotized here 

Risen from where I sit 

A solid angle 

My legs do dangle 

Off the counter's edge 

Soft words spoken 

Promises broken 

Close my eyes instead 

But could my eyelids 

Cover what I did 

The shuttin' of the door 

And could these ceilings 

Contain my feelings 

Me down on the floor 

Me down on the floor 

Me down on the floor 

Me down on the floor