I am the only 54-year-old man who tears up when he hears "Dark Blue" by Jack's Mannequin

By any measure, I am not the intended or expected demographic for "Dark Blue," a song by the American rock band Jack's Mannequin.

When the song was released in 2005, I was a father of four with a fifth child on the way. It was understandably much more popular with 15-year-old girls at the time than with 36-year-old suburban dads.

Yet it's a tune that resonated with me then and still does today. And the reason is my daughter Elissa, who was 11 years old when "Dark Blue" came out.

I don't think Elissa got into bands like Jack's Mannequin until she was a little older, but at 11, she was clearly already on the path to teenagerhood. Her interests and attitudes were changing, and being our oldest, she was the first kid with whom we navigated that tumultuous period of adolescence.

One thing I remember from those days is that every time Elissa said or did something that was more "older kid" than "younger kid," my heart would hurt a little. You know your child is going to change and that she is inevitably going to experience the universal (and sometimes painful) process of maturation, but part of you clings to the time when she was young and innocent and strongly attached to you.

You want your child to grow and become independent, of course, but those sentimental links to early childhood are strong in parents. It's so hard to let go, even when you know you should.

I remember Elissa playing "Dark Blue" in the car when she was a young teen. Listening to the chorus of the song made me realize – painfully, abruptly – that the little toddler I used to dote upon was gone forever. The angsty, somewhat melodramatic teenage lyrics were a world apart from the songs with which she used to sing along as a 4-year-old watching "Barney."

Dark blue, dark blue, have you
Ever been alone in a crowded room?
Well, I'm here with you, I said
The world could be burning and burning down

Your children have to go through the same heartbreaks and trials you did if they're going to grow into well-adjusted adults, but you sometimes wish it didn't have to be that way.

It should be noted that Elissa got through her teenage years pretty well, all things considered, and is now one of the smartest, funniest, most passionate 30-year-olds you'll ever meet. Her siblings also grew up successfully with relatively few scars, visible or otherwise.

But when I hear "Dark Blue," my mind still goes back to the time when I was the father of little ones who hadn't yet experienced heartbreak. And I admittedly get a little misty.

It's a strange mix of sadness, sentimentality and pride in what they've each become. All wrapped up in a 20-year-old song.

Do the iPod Shuffle with me again

A few months ago we played a game here on the blog where everyone would grab their iPods, play them in "shuffle" mode, and report back the first five songs that came up. Song-by-song commentary is more than welcome. I'll start, but you are highly encouraged to give us your list in the comments below or on Facebook, if you happen to be accessing this post from there.

Scott's iPod Shuffle Results - 5/9/12

(1) "Keeping the Faith" - Billy Joel:  This is from 1983, I think, when Billy was in his 50s/60s mode and tried to resurrect the music of that era all by himself (well, with help from The Stray Cats, I guess). I've always thought Billy Joel has been unfairly maligned as a soft rock/schmaltz artist because some of his hits - like "Just the Way You Are" - have a lounge singer feel to them. In reality, he's an amazing musician whose music has spanned everything from doo wop to hard rock. Not my favorite Billy Joel tune, but a worthy representative.

(2) "Roxanne" (Live) - The Police:  Sting wrote this song in Paris circa 1977 about a fictional French prostitute. It ends up being a much nicer song than the subject matter would suggest. I just counted and found that I have eight different versions of this tune on my iPod. This one was recorded at a concert in Atlanta in the early 80s, but my favorite was when Sting sang it with just a guitar and Branford Marsalis on soprano saxophone at Live Aid in 1985.

(3) "Dark Blue" - Jack's Mannequin:  The only non-80s song on my list. Interesting. My daughters were really into this tune when it came out six or seven years ago. It reminds me of summer 2008, when I took Elissa and her friend Jackie to see The Warped Tour in Cleveland. Warped Tour is a collection of bands that tours the country every summer. In my day, we would have classified these sorts of bands as "punk," I guess, but there's really a mix of ska, alternative, and genres I can't even identify. It was hilarious being one of the only people older than 25 there. I was also was of the few non-tattooed attendees. I may as well have been wearing sandals with black socks.

(4) "Hip to Be Square" - Huey Lews & The News:  Terry and I saw Huey and his band live in concert in 1990. It was really loud. You wouldn't expect a Huey Lewis concert to be loud. But it was. There's a great tenor sax solo in this song. I wish there were more tenor sax solos in popular music these days.

(5) "Mandolin Rain" - Bruce Hornsby & The Range:  This isn't the song that most people associate with Bruce Hornsby (that would be "The Way It Is"), but I think it's the best of his popular songs. Great piano, great chorus. If I could sing, this is one of the songs you would hear me warbling up on stage at some karaoke bar.