Thirty years of noisy hallways, listening to the sound of your own voice talking about English, and paying attention to student presentations and discussion will do that to you.
Every once in a while, however, I hear a song or two that I like enough to download onto my iPhone and play in those rare moments when I'm in the mood to hear music that I choose. (Don't you get annoyed flicking around on the radio to find something? And no, I won't invest in Sirius. Why pay for something I rarely use?) I kind of go in spurts, listening to the same sort of songs or artists for a time, and then I don't listen to much of anything at all. And I'm all over the timeline as well, from the 1960s to today. What can I say? I'm very specific--yet ambivalent--when it comes to music.
Here then are the
Songs I Currently Love (Maybe Not Love, But Like A Lot At The Right Time)
1. Blinding Lights--The Weeknd: This song could be about bass fishing for all I know. I don't listen to its lyrics, nor do I try to. I like its techno edge and its peppy tempo.
2. You're All I Need To Get By--Aretha Franklin: I heard this in a commercial and immediately thought, "Why don't I have this on my phone?" The original of this was by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. It's good, but there's something about Aretha...you know.
3. Lose Yourself--Eminem: I do listen to these lyrics. They're wonderful, and the song has such a raw energy and driving beat. It's very energizing.
4. Stay With Me--Sam Smith: This is a lovely and sentimental love song with a great deal of that blue-eyed soul. What a voice!
5. Born To Run--Bruce Springsteen: A true American blue-collar poet. This is an anthem. Cleveland's most popular rock station used to play this at 5 o'clock on the dot every Friday to start the weekend. I play it whenever I feel lots of joy.
6. One Headlight--The Wallflowers: This is just a darned good song. Julie from Thinking About mentioned it a while ago in Comments, and I immediately downloaded it. Every so often it wanders back into my playlist, where it has been lately.
What about you? What songs are you listening to lately, and what do you think about my playlist?
Great playlist! I really liked Blinding Lights and One Headlight but it made me laugh when I listened to them because I have always enjoyed these songs but had no idea what the lyrics or titles were. So when I saw your list, I thought they were songs I had never heard of but actually they were old favorites! I am so bad with lyrics!
ReplyDeleteLately, I have enjoyed Circles by Post Malone and Dance Monkey by Tones and I.
Thanks for sharing your list!
Ellen D--I'm the same way. I see a title or artist, and I think, "I've never heard of that." Then I find out that I've heard it plenty. Circles is an example of that. I like that also; not enough to download it, but when it comes on the radio, I don't flick to another station.
DeleteDance Monkey was new to me. Catchy.
Ugh, if I don’t comment quickly, my post gets eaten for some reason, so I will keep it quick. I recently ordered a CD, Elements, which is an old Windham Hill record that is piano music, kind of new age, and helped calm me down this morning as I was trying to settle down about the election.
ReplyDeleteJ--It's the sidebar loading. If you wait, once it loads, your issue will disappear. I have no idea why it's such a problem. I have no third-party stuff on there that is holding it all up. Sorry!
DeleteI used to listen to a lot of Clannad--Irish new age stuff--that was very calming. I heard their music in a movie once and tracked them down. Now, music isn't that calming for me. I'll go give Windham Hill a listen.
Whew, OK, waited for the sidebar before replying. I didn’t have time yesterday to get the artist in there. Windham Hill is the production company, the artists are Ira Stein and Russel Walder, and the music is piano and oboe. Not quite spa music, but not too far off.
DeleteAND, I meant to thank you for the mention regarding One Headlight. Still love that song. The whole album actually. I need to get a CD player of some sort for my bedroom/office. I used to be able to play CDs from my work computer, with external speakers, but they sent me a new computer and of course it doesn’t have a CD player. Just like newer cars don’t have CD players. Disgusting. Maybe for Christmas I will ask for one?
DeleteJ--Thanks for the clarification on the CD. And I agree that I miss having a CD player on board my computer and car. I have good CDs, like The Wallflowers, and I'm not going to pay for a download of stuff I already have. Good idea asking for a standalone for Christmas. I may also.
DeleteWay back in my youth, my first car had a rag top that did not lock, just snapped on, so it didn't take long for someone to steal the tape deck/stereo from my car. I couldn't justify replacing it, so I had a little battery operated boom box that I took in the car with me. Perhaps you could do that? Somehow it seems kind of funny for an adult in our age range...but you could ask for a CD player for your car that would be installed...both of our cars are old enough that they still have them. One more reason to not buy a new car! (The main reason being, they are paid for and I like them.)
DeleteI went to Amazon and asked for one for my office/bedroom that not only has a CD player, it also has a tape deck! So I could listen to the old mix tapes I have from when Ted and I were dating! Thanks Amazon! Between Christmas and my December birthday, I'm guessing I will get it...and if not, I'll just buy it for myself. :-)
I have several Windham hill discs, and I think one of them is Elements. I do not listen to as much music as I used to because I now have hearing aids and that seems to make a lot of stuff with a heavy beat to it too heavy. I think I need to get the things in for a tune-up.
ReplyDeleteFolk music and classical music. Anything after about 1965, I lose the lyrics.
Mary--Anything after about 1995, I lose the lyrics, and I don't have hearing aids. Actually, it's not all artists, but I find that some of the most recent really don't enunciate much. Ariana Grande is the worst. I have not the first inkling what the heck she's saying.
DeleteIt seems to be at least in part due to the sound mix. Singer(s) not miked closely.
DeleteThis River by J. J. Grey
ReplyDeleteStrengthen What Remains by Tedeschi Trucks Band
Layla by Derek and the Dominoes
Brain Damage by Pink Floyd
Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd
and about a million other songs. Different songs for different moods.
Dee--Pink Floyd is so good! And Layla is a song for the ages.
DeleteLike you, I have a ton of songs for many moods, but these were the ones I'm currently fond of/playing a lot now.
I listen to music on SiriusXM. Lately I've been all about Margaritaville. It's Jimmy Buffet for the win.
ReplyDeleteAlly Bean--Margaritaville is a whole mood, isn't it? I hope it's keeping you relaxed.
DeleteI wish I could say great playlist Nance, but I'm the worst with music. Of course there are songs I love but unless it's from back in the 70's or 80's I couldn't tell you the name of any songs or who sings them lol, with the exception of Eminem, unmistakable! Overall I am not a music person either. My husband is a drummer and all of my kids are musicians too - I got music-ed out. Of course working at a high school all those years didn't help either. For me these days, silence is golden!
ReplyDeleteMartha--As I said, I get the Silence Is Golden thing. And, my music is all over the timeline. I have very little current stuff, too. I grew up with a sister six years older than me, so I also was imprinted with a lot of 70s music: Carly Simon, Seals & Crofts, James Taylor, etc. And the 80s were my own decade full of great music.
DeleteQuirky Fact: My pattern of listening to music is the same as yours and my husband was like your husband.
ReplyDeleteJean--But I do know our taste in music is very different.
DeleteNance
ReplyDeleteI don't know if my last comment go thorough. This is embarrassing but I am listening to DISNEY music as election returns come in......
Let It GO, Circle of Life., Belong
kathy b--No, it didn't. For some reason, my sidebar takes a long time to load. If you wait for it before you type or hit publish, your comment will go on as normal.
DeleteAnyway, music taste is as individual as taste in wine and art. Don't be embarrassed.
Music is such a highly individual taste, i think. There are selective songs i enjoy in all genres and generations. Instrumentation and performers influence my choices. My mood can sometimes dictate what i want to hear. Other times the music itself may create my mood. Sometimes I want only instrumental tunes, no lyrics to interfere. A favored form that spoke to my soul has been jazz, so not surprisingly i connected with my husband whose avocation was as a professional jazz musician. I am familiar with most of the artists you name though not the specific songs. I find it interesting to think about why we each like the music we choose and what it is that resonates deep in our souls.
ReplyDeleteJoared--All true. That's why the list I gave was what I was playing right now. It will undoubtedly change for the reasons you stated.
DeleteI have a CD player in my car. That's about the only time I listen to music. Right now my CD holder in the on star box is Sting, Righteous Bros., George Strait, soundtrack of Butch Cassidy & Sundance Kid, and Susan Boyle. Every once in a while, I'll change it all out to others.
ReplyDeleteAnni--Oh, I do like Sting. His voice is so distinctive. And the Righteous Bros. "Unchained Melody" is my husband's all time favourite song, bar none.
DeleteI wish my car had a CD changer. I have a lot of great CDs, too.
Oh dear - even if I'm not actively listening to music, I'm always singing/playing something in my head.
ReplyDeleteI have so many faves. Sometimes it depends on the day.
Bridget--It does depend on the day. I skip around my music a lot, but the above list is one I seem to be playing most lately.
DeleteI'm not really a music person either - mainly because when I'm home I like it to be quiet, and when I'm in my car I'm always listening to an audiobook (it's the only thing that soothes the savage Bug - if I play music I just get more amped up & road ragey).
ReplyDeleteWhen I do listen to music, I like, I guess, a more folk type of sound? Indigo Girls, Patty Griffin, Jonatha Brooke, Eliza Gilkyson. I also like Lucinda Williams, Sheryl Crow, Joan Osborne, and Bruce Springsteen. I probably like newer stuff too, but I think the last time I actually purchased any music was 10 years or more ago.
P.S. I think your page loading culprit is either the quote at the bottom or the copyright notice. I watched to see when the "reply" button was "available" & it happened once those loaded. My other friend with this problem had a link to a discontinued app at the bottom of his blog & once he removed that it started loading normally.
DeleteBug--Thanks for the troubleshooting help. I'll see what happens if I lose those.
DeleteI buy songs by the single, and they're not usually new ones. I only buy albums if they're ones I have on vinyl and I find I miss them (we don't have a way to play our vinyl and really don't plan to do anything about that).
I don't like anything that sounds like country music, which irritates the hell out of me. Some folky stuff treads on that line pretty hard.
I'm a boomer who likes Eminem's Lose Yourself. Such a powerful song. Lately I keep listening to "One Last Time" from the musical Hamilton. Also powerful stuff.
ReplyDeleteMinerva--I recently heard that song (I haven't seen Hamilton) and I was struck by it myself. It has such modern context.
DeleteMy kids (sons, 35 and 32) laugh about me liking Lose Yourself. I'm not sure if it's because it's so old or because it's so Not Me.
I love your playlist! I'm the opposite of you, I have music going throughout the house before I even have my first cup of coffee. I go through moods of playlists; I use pandora and choose a specific artist/genre. Last week it was Van Morrison (and the like) and this week it's been John Mayer. (and the like) Music makes me so happy and I need all the happy I can get.
ReplyDeleteBBSuz--I used to use Pandora all the time, but I found it started repeating too much. Maybe it was because I used the freebie version.
DeleteI found myself playing lots of music today. The weather here in NEO is gorgeous--upper 60s, clear skies, warm sunshine, and I'm feeling positive and hopeful. That means peppy music. The cats are barely tolerating it (and me).
Music is admittedly tough for me. It was such an integral part of my life with Smokey. I moved the turntable, receiver, and all our albums into my bedroom. I simply had no desire to listen without him. Every album had a history for us. I still enjoy music in the car but certain songs can gut me.
ReplyDeleteI've been reading a sort of political blog called Press Run for months now and the author always includes a relatively new song with commentary. I appreciate that section as much as his other commentary because in just a matter of minutes, he's made me listen to new music--excellent music--and made me retreat from everything else.
We went to a Lindsay Buckingham and Christine McVie concert several years back. Jakob Dylan opened for them and did One Headlight. I had already been a fan of his and that song but it was a special treat to hear it live.
I was not a fan of Eminem's in the beginning but Lose Yourself is very compelling. I was really glad he performed it at the last Oscars event.
Shirley--I completely understand the association of music with Smokey. My dad has been gone 20 years, and my mother won't listen to most music anymore because it makes her grief brand-new.
DeleteNew music, new memories. Press Run may help with that. I don't know. I haven't experienced a loss such as yours, so I don't know. I'm sorry, Shirley. I hope you don't lose the music in your life if you still want some there.
XO
Thank you. It's always challenging to be honest on such topics (and even to know if I should comment at all because I don't want to bring anyone else down) and it's hard to express the complexity of what I actually feel. I'm fine. I really am. I am not wallowing in grief (although I do understand what you're saying about your mom's grief being brand new when she listened to most music). Again, it's complex. Playing albums was "our thing" when we decompressed in the evenings. I don't see it ever being "my thing" alone. I've been to a concert with a friend since Smokey passed--we had purchased the tickets to the show months earlier--and it went pretty well. Other tickets I ended up passing on to friends and that was also the right thing to do. Like most things in life, you kind of figure it out as you go. Some things go as expected and some things surprise you.
Delete