SUNDAY NIGHT FEVER

Dusty Springfield - I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself

Once again I’ve found myself awake at 4am watching videos of Dusty Springfield. This seems to be a regular occurrence in my life but it’s one that I enjoy. I often wonder what it is about the sixties and this woman that I love to such an extent: so much so that I have delayed writing a YouTune about it for a long time because I want to do it and her justice.

I think my passion for the sixties as a decade first sprung when I was a child and would religiously watch episodes of the 1960’s-set drama Heartbeat on a Sunday night. My boyfriend and I recently reminisced about how the theme tune would send shivers down our spines with the thought of having to start a whole new week at school again the next day. It is only now that I realise why I loved the show so much: it was the music. My parents had the CD soundtrack from Heartbeat and I would sneak it into my room to listen to hoping not to be caught because I felt like someone my age (probably about 10 at the time) shouldn’t be listening to that sort of music. It was old and my parents liked it…that wasn’t cool. Except now, (aged 22) I find myself frequently listening to nothing but the very music I would have heard on that album and I feel so attached to it.

My absolute admiration for and obsession with Dusty Springfield can be summed up with one song in particular. “I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself” presents a kind of power in conveying emotion that I have never witnessed before. Every word sounds like a heartbroken cry: the pain and feelings behind the lyrics of the song are echoed in each sound that Dusty makes.  You almost wouldn’t even need the words. As Marc Almond said “She could sing the phonebook and make it sound like a heart-rending, touching, lovelorn ballad.” The song has almost brought me to tears on many occasions, despite being in an upbeat mood when listening. That is how devastatingly touching it is.

I can’t bear that I will never see someone I adore so much perform live. To me, she’s the best representative for the importance of music’s longevity. I may have not even been born when she was first around and I was only 10 when she died but with a huge discography, she is still here. Things do go a little deeper and I can’t say everything I would like to because you and I would be getting far too personal about it. But I hope this will get you to listen to her and that perfect voice on undoubtedly one of the best songs of all time, even if it does make you cry.

Meagan Molloy
http://www.meaganmolloy.co.uk

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