Favorite Movie Soundtracks

I'm in the mood for some good music this Monday because I re-watched Forrest Gump this weekend and it is one of my very favorite soundtracks of all time. I love all those rock-n-roll classics, the mood music...I could listen to those tracks all day long, I swear. "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Joy To The World" by Three Dog Night, "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd...I know all the words by heart and sing 'em out loud when no one's around because ears would be bleeding for sure. They do put me in a great mood, though. Especially when I'm driving. I tap out the beats on the wheel and it makes me a whole lot more pleasant in the car in heavy traffic. I tend to cuss out the other drivers who get on my last nerve.

Forrest also got me thinking about some other favorite soundtracks. Dirty Dancing is a soundtrack guaranteed to get me going and I own both the original 1987 album as well as the 20th anniversary compilation. I especially love "Cry To Me" by Solomon Burke, "Love Is Strange" by Mickey and Sylvia, "Be My Baby" by The Ronettes and "In The Still Of The Night" by The Five Satins. What a softie I am. :)

I am an 80's child and one of the penultimate 80's dance movies, aside from Dirty Dancing is Footloose. This 1984 soundtrack is one of my very favorite albums. Nothing gets me going like "Dancing In The Sheets" by Shalimar, the title song "Footloose" by Kenny Loggins and "Hurt So Good" by John Mellencamp. God, Kevin looks young on this cover, too. LOL

Now, lest you think I'm only about pop and rock, I do have my big dramatic soundtracks, the ones I listen to relax or to inspire me as I write. One favorite in this category is the Lord of the Rings trilogy. This one definitely inspires an epic battle or two as well as providing some haunting music to inspire those scenes of conflict and angst.

My final choice for today comes from a little known Tom Selleck, Bess Armstrong film called High Road To China. It is one of my most favorite romances of all time. I have worn out two VHS copies and a DVD watching this one. As well as scratched up the original album and lost a CD listening to the soundtrack. This one inspired my current WIP, a pilot story set along the Old Silk Road. I don't admit to this film very often because well, I think of this movie as my comforting favorite. I watch it whenever I am depressed, nervous, upset. It is my cure all, I guess. I never saw this in the theater, I found it in the video store completely by accident. How incredible is that?

What are some of your favorite movie soundtracks?

What is sexy?

As a writer of erotic romance, I often wonder what people find sexy. When they hear the word, people automatically start thinking about what they find attractive about a person. I get a lot of responses for eyes, hair, ass...But these aren't the things that I'm talking about. I want to know what else, besides a partner's physical characteristics, that makes someone think sexy thoughts.

Tell me, what puts you in a seductive frame of mind? Is it a particular odor? Do you walk through a leather store just to inhale that raw scent? Does the smell of vanilla spice in the air make you feel all warm and receptive? How about touch? Are you a sensualist, reveling in the feel of certain fabrics or sensations? Do you spend a little too much time in a hot shower because the way the water runs over your skin makes you feel alive? Or maybe you love to wear silk because it glides across your body all cool and soft.

Perhaps, it's a certain taste that works on you. Does the mere hint of chocolate and whipped cream on your tongue send you into overdrive? Or maybe strawberries and champagne? Peaches and cinnamon? Or maybe you go for something a little spicier on the palate. Like a hint of cayenne pepper.

What about places? In a story, setting is very important. It sets the scene, seduces the imagination. Are there certain places that get your senses revving? A candlelit balcony in Paris, a deserted beach on Bora Bora...Even a toasty bedroom on a snowy night can be sexy. Perhaps your garden at home, all shining in the light of a full moon, turns your head to more passionate ideas.

Sound is sexy as all get out. Laughter does it for many people. The smoky sounds of a throaty laugh or a deep masculine chuckle. A good seductive drumbeat that echoes the pulse turns a lot of people on. Or the sound of rain, the rumble of thunder, a wild storm that will keep you inside with your partner for the day or night. Or perhaps a certain song? One that you remember playing in the background the first time you slow-danced or made out.

Sexy to me is the sound of rain, the scent of cinnamon, the feel of suede, the taste of warm apples and a cozy room at an out-of-the-way inn. There are many more, but I only have a certain amount of space and I want to know about you. What says sexy for you?