She moves like she don't care

The year is 1999. Blondie has reunited and released an album with 14 songs that make you say "yeah, that's nice but did I really need to wait 15 years for this?" and one song that makes you answer "yes, absolutely."

Maria

As much as I love their original stuff, this song is hands-down the best Blondie song. For me, it is tied inextricably to its time of release. It was my senior year of high school and I was still living in Washington at the time. And, while I love the Northwest, there are definitely times when the constant gray gets to you a little bit. That year in particular was a neverending string of cold and cloudy days.

So it was very nice that I took a week-long trip at the end of January to Georgia, where it was unseasonably warm (even for the South). I got to spend most of the time basking underneath 75-degree cloudless skies. And it was right when this song really took off so it was on the radio approximately once every 14 minutes - and it was the perfect soundtrack.

Even on this day, almost exactly eight years later, I still can't listen to it without finding myself back in that place - happy, comfortable, relaxed, and excited about everything around me. I can even feel the sun on my face...