Del Shannon "Runaway"
Jane Doe

What makes me relax and love life, music does all that a more for me. When I say music, I mean music from the 1960s. I remember an old song, from 1961, “Runaway,” by Del Shannon.

I remember this song because it reminds me of a girlfriend; my ex-girlfriend. I was in a bar, where this song was playing when I met her. My interest in the song spurred my interest in that girlfriend.

“Runaway” is an epic song. I’m 31, born almost a generation after the song was a hit. Still, it moves me, like few other songs.

Music nowadays is lousy. Lyrical meaning is lost. “Runaway” could not, would not, be a hit, today; nothing so emotionally clean could be a hit, today.

 Del Shannon put a lot of effort into making this a great song and album. It paid off. The album is a very enjoyable listen with a truly great mixture of songs: some classics and some less well known.

The track titled, “Runaway,” is unusual, in how it’s created. From what I can hear, it seems as though someone has taken an older recording of Del Shannon. As it is such an old recording, Del Shannon has re-rerecorded his vocals and have remained untouched with a noticeably lower recording quality (some hiss).

This pairing works well. It helps to break up the album, keeping it moving at a good pace. Of course I particularly liked the track “Runaway,” as I do not often hear it on work by similar male artists; Del Shannon performed it well and the music accompaniment was very good.

At certain points in some tracks, Del Shannon seems to struggle reaching certain notes, however this does not detract from the overall listening enjoyment. “The Renegades” also covered this song and released a video, which featured Claymation dinosaurs. A cop shows up at the end of the video to break things up. In the video, Del Shannon portrays the police officer.

Gotta love the oldies music. “Runaway,” the eponymously titled album and singer, is one of my favourite from when I was a child. I grew up in the 1990s and I remember cruising with my pop.

He'd be drinking beer and tossing the cans out the window. Now, I do the same with my children, but I don’t drink and drive or toss beer cans out the car window. They love my music.

You must know, some of the CDs I have listed below used to be my favourite albums. I still have them on vinyl, so you can tell how old some of them are and, indeed, how old I am too.

Music quality, arrangements and the song selection on CD is perfect. This is the best music, not the trash you hear today. Just listen Del Shannon and is recording some songs for a new album. Go Del! Go Del Shannon.

We all have our favourite songs; perhaps it was a childhood favourite or a track associated with a particular fond memory. Perhaps it was something that taught you about a different way of life, or a different way of looking at things; either way, it's a deeply personal choice, which no one should judge.

After hearing “Runaway,” for the first time, five years earlier, I finally got the chance to sing it in public at a karaoke bar in the London in 2011 and, I'm happy to say, got a standing ovation. Dreams do come true.