Music Review // Andy Frasco & The U.N. "Swinging for the Fences" ft. G. Love & Eric Krasno

 

For those who may not immediately recognize it, the phrase "Swinging for the Fences" is a reference to a baseball player while at bat seemingly trying to hit a homerun.  As someone who is a huge fan of both baseball and music, this song really speaks to me because I feel like there should definitely be more songs out there about baseball.  Even if it's just a song about how much a particular team or player means to someone, I'd be into it, but as Andy Franco & The U.N. show here, there are also a lot of baseball phrases which can have double meanings with life.

This fuzzy guitar-driven pop rock song that just feels so catchy and easily relatable opens with the line (and repeats it as a chorus) "It feels so good / To be living in a dream / That I could be your man / But am I even in your league?"   The idea of being in someone's league and baseball having leagues is just so obvious, but there are probably people out there who don't understand that getting to second base while in a relationship is also a reference to the greatest game ever played.

I've had this conversation with myself and with my dad but I think one of the problems in baseball on the whole right now is that players try to swing for the fences far too often.  While a homerun does equal a run, the idea of just making contact with the ball, putting it into play and getting on base also on the whole will keep the runners running, which ultimately scores runs as well.   There is also something in here about how swinging for the fences feels selfish while hitting to get on base is more of a team effort and in a relationship you're part of a team.

As we draw ever closer to MLB Opening Day (I've already been to three baseball games this year, which isn't bad considering I live in a cold state) this song can help you think about love and your life, whether you understand the baseball metaphors or not.   For me, on a personal level, I love that it's about baseball but the magic in it is that it can still appeal to anyone who has ever been in a relationship.