Last night I was sitting in my backyard, reading and listening to music while enjoying the perfect Minnesota evening. There was a bit of a chill in the air so I had to wear a hoodie and the air was full of fall smells – leaves, a bit of dampness, and bonfires. All of this in the city too.
As I tweeted last night, “I love when a song just captures my thoughts perfectly” and I must have done something to please the ipod gods, since it kept playing the most perfect songs to reflect the moment and me.
This lead me to think – what would I put on a playlist to reflect or represent me? Not necessarily about a specific moment or situation, but me. Who I am. What makes me happy. What explains a bit about what goes on in my often overactive imagination. What I think about myself and what I think others think about me.
Fast-forward to this morning and I’ve decided to have a go at creating this playlist. I’m going to use Spotify to house it for now, and at some point I may publish it for others to listen to.
I think this is going to be an interesting exercise for me. I often say that my life can be described by a series of song lyrics, so it’s about time I put together the music to do just that. Plus, it’ll make me do some thinking and reflect upon various things. As I’ve said before, if you stop thinking, challenging, reflecting or learning you’ve stopped living. Asking yourself and others difficult questions isn’t a bad thing – it’s a part of the journey we are all on.
Has anyone else tried doing this? Anyone want to play along at home?
I hope everyone (in the States at least) is enjoying this holiday weekend. Enjoy.
Ok, so maybe that isn’t much of a confession to those that know me.
One thing that Glee does – and does well in my opinion – is cover songs. I am not overly for or against people covering songs. I will even admit that sometimes I like the cover of a song better than the original. One example is “Creep” by Brandi Carlile. It rules. And is better than the original. Trust me. Other examples are the gazillion covers of “Hallelujah”.
Other covers are just awful or there are some songs that should just be left to the original artist and not remixed, resampled, or redone (I’m looking at you Black Eyed Peas for “I’ve Had the Time of My Life”).
In my opinion, if you’re going to cover a song, especially a hit, you need to bring something different to it, mix it up, make it your own. Anyone can re-do the original exactly, in fact it happens all of the time at bars across the country under the name “karaoke”. However, there is also a fine line between making a cover your own and totally ruining a song – respect must be paid (again, Black Eyed Peas, take note).
While Glee has tried to do original songs, their staples are covers of a wide vareity of songs. I’ve had the discussion/debate with folks about which versions are better or which covers they should or could have done differently. I will also be honest, for some of the songs, I hadn’t heard the original prior to hearing it on Glee (I would say which songs, but I’m sure it would cause me to be judged). What can I say, I don’t listen to the radio often so my exposure to new music is somewhat limited.
One of these songs is “Sing”. I don’t think I’ve seen the episode it was in since I have band rehearsal on Tuesdays this spring, but heard it at the concert in June, on Spotify, and in the “Glee 3D Movie Extravaganza Live Experience Concert Thing Movie!” (did they really need as many adjectives in the title as they had?)
I honestly thought this was a song from the episode where they did original songs, I had no clue it was a song by My Chemical Romance. I like the Glee version better – but am wondering what others think. I also like the lyrics from the chorus of this song. But that’s a subject for another post on another day. 🙂
So here’s your chance to weigh in on who rocked it better:
As I’ve mentioned before, I love music. I love listening to it, I love playing it, I love being taken over by a melody, a chord, or lyrics. There are a few songs, however, that remind me of very specific things – a time, a location, a feeling. No matter where you are, or what you’re doing, a certain group of notes can trigger a response, a memory, and recollection of time gone by.
This song will forever remind me of my KAIROS retreat the spring of my junior year of high school. For those that don’t know, I went to a Catholic High School, and KAIROS was a 4 day retreat that students could go on their junior or senior year. I won’t got into details about the retreat, but it was an experience that impacts me until today. I may not be what someone would refer to as actively “religious” right now, but it doesn’t mean I don’t have my faith as a part of what drives me or guides me. This song was one that was used during the retreat and still reminds me of the experience and the people I shared it with.
This song has a lot of memories attached to it, but most specifically it reminds me of the last time I saw each of my grandparents alive. They were two amazing people who instilled in me the love of travelling, service, and also allowed me to have a lot of great experiences that helped shape me into the person I am today. I often stop and wonder what they would say to me if they could see me today, and I know, deep down, they would be proud of me and proud of the adult I have become.
Duluth. April 23-25, 2010. This was the weekend where I had my first experience of the DFL endorsement process as a volunteer. It was my first cycle where I wasn’t working directly for a campaign, and I was able to do things that I wanted to. It was also my first big DFL “thing” after a year of big changes, some medical issues, and a lot of growth and soul searching. Plus, it reminds me of the fabulous team I worked with, and the great friends I made as a result of being on Team MAK. Plus, who can forget the epic floor demonstration? I saw people busting moves I would not have expected from them – EVER!
4. “Andrea Chenier”
During my junior year of college, we played a selection of music from this opera in Symphonic Band. However, the concert that we played this at wasn’t just any concert, it was guest conducted by the Conductor of the U.S. Marine Corps Band, Col. Tim Foley (who has since retired). This was a huge honor to have him at Marquette, directing our rag tag group of non-music majors on this complex piece. It was one moment in all of my musical career where I truly felt like a musician. I felt that it was more than just something that I did – it became very real. Our group came together that day and gave one of the best performances of my time at Marquette. It was an honor and a privelege, and I’m thankful to have been able to experience that moment.
I heard this song while travelling in Australia in 2003 in a random club – in Brisbane or Sydney I believe. It made me laugh, since it was a song that I heard a lot as a result of pep band, and it’s just a random remix. When I returned back to the states, I would add it to party playlists and always be reminded of that trip. This trip to Australia not only caused me to fall in love with this beautiful country, but also inspired much of the research I did during grad school. There was just something about the people, the vibe, and the scenery that I loved. I actually was planning to return for my PhD, but my life plan took a slight detour in 2006. I hope to be able to visit again – perhaps for a bit longer of a stay – some day soon.
Words really can’t capture fully why or how these songs cause this reaction – they just do. I can only really explain what it reminds me of, but can’t figure out how to explain the more emotional part of the reaction. I had a discussion with someone along these lines earlier this week. The conclusions that music is simply inexplicable and that is the best way to explain music.
And with that, I suggest that you take time to enjoy some music and the memories and emotions they carry along with them. Good or bad, positive or negative, it will be worth it. Sometimes you just have to feel and remember.
I was tipped off to the 23 This Year: The Sub Pop Amazon Sampler (which is FREE on Amazon! – go get it now!) by a friend, and came across this song while shopping at Target. Yes, I often to music while grocery shopping, which sometimes leads me to strutting around, bouncing my head, or generally getting into the song, but I digress. . . .
I am thankful that I have decided to expand what music I am listening too – otherwise I would be missing out on some really great music. Not only am I adding variety to my choices, but also honing in on the genres I really like. There are some other great songs in this mix too, and it’s free, so get it while you can! 🙂
