Day 22: A song that moves you forward
“A Plea from a Cat Named Virtute,” which is basically a pep talk from a pet to a person paralyzed by doubt and depression, is a song that can get me going.
Advertisements
Tag: Music
30-Day Song Challenge Day #21
Day 21: A song you like with a person’s name in the title
Not only is “Sweet Susan” by Mamadou a song I like with a person’s name in the title, but I really, really like Susan, my wife.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #20
Day 20: A song that has many meanings to you
Is it a science fiction story? Is it about God? Is it really a straightforward song about a bird-shaped nightlight? Is it all these things and more? “Birdhouse in Your Soul” by They Might Be Giants has many, many meanings.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #19
Day 19: A song that makes you think about life
For pondering life, there is always the lyrics of “Anthem” by Leonard Cohen.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #18
Day 18: A Song from the year you were born
I was born in 1973, the same year Gladys Knight and the Pips released this absolutely perfect song, “Midnight Train to Georgia.”
30-Day Song Challenge Day #17
Day 17: A song you’d sing a duet with someone on karaoke
I’ve never sung karaoke, but I have a long-standing agreement with an old friend to sing “I Touch Myself” by The Divinyls when I do.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #16
Day 16: A song that’s a classic favorite
Today’s prompt is wonderfully vague, but no one is going to argue against Otis Redding’s “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” being a classic.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #15
Day 15: A song that you like that is a cover by another artist
Sun Ra released “Nuclear War” in 1984, but Yo La Tengo recorded four different covers of the song. “Nuclear War (Version 2)” is my favorite because a chorus of children singing profanities just slays me in all figurative uses of that word.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #14
Day 14: A song you’d love to be played at your wedding
Susan and I danced to “Cheek to Cheek” by Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald at our wedding, just about 13 years ago.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #13
Day 13: A Song You Like from the 70s
The 1970s offers some great songs, and some awful, terrible, no good songs. “Spirit in the Sky” by Norman Greenbaum is one of the good ones.
I’ve made a top ten list for every year of my life, so if you want to see more songs I like from the 1970s, check out these pages:
30-Day Song Challenge Day #12
Day 12: A song from your preteen years
My preteen years – roughly 1983-1986 – corresponded with the funky fresh era of old school hiphop, so let’s go with “Jam On It” by Newcleus.
Album Review: Be the Cowboy by Mitski
Album: Be the Cowboy
Artist: Mitski
Release Date: 17 August 2018
Favorite Tracks: “A Geyser,” “A Pearl,” “Me and My Husband,” “Nobody,” “Washing Machine Heart,” and “Two Slow Dancers.”
Thoughts: Something of a concept album from the point of view of a married woman expressing her angst and ennui underneath a cheerful veneer. I love Mitski’s dynamic vocals and her guitar-playing style. She’s versatile musically too, transitioning through country, disco, and electro-pop without breaking a sweat. Lyrically she has a power with words to express introspection and vulnerability, even if it’s coming from the point of view of a character.
Rating: ***1/2
30-Day Song Challenge Day #11
Day 11: A Song You Never Get Tired Of
There are several, but “Lloyd, I’m Ready to Be Heartbroken” by Camera Obscura is one song I never get tired of. Those harmonies, the lush strings, the deceptive lyrics…aaahhh.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #10
Day 10: A Song That Makes You Sad
My happy song was about being sad, so it should not surprise that my sad song is Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush encouragingly singing “Don’t Give Up.” It must be the minor key.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #9
Day 9: A Song that Make You Happy
You wouldn’t think that this Peter Mulvey song called “Sad, Sad, Sad and Far Away From Home” would make me happy, but oh, does it ever bring me great delight.
Podcasts of the Week Ending September 8
StarTalk :: The Stars that Guide Us
Discussion of the traditions of celestial navigation used by Polynesian voyagers to traverse wide expanses of the Pacific Ocean.
To The Best of Our Knowledge :: What’s Wrong With Work?
Work is bunk. Find out why employment is meaningless and “work ethic” is just there to control us, along with some more human alternatives.
Another podcast goes in depth on how meaningless work is wearing us down. I sense a theme.
Twenty Thousand Hertz :: Jingles
Catchy tunes have been used to sell things since the early days of radio. This episode also offers a good deep dive into the phenomena of earworms and how to defeat them.
Hub History :: War, Plague, and the World Series
I’ve long been fascinated by the great number of significant events that happened in Boston around 1918-1919. This episode is an interview with Skip Desjardins who wrote a book about what in just September 1918.
99% Invisible :: The First Straw
Drinking straws have been in the news lately as they’re being banned for being a pollutant. This episode explores the origin of straws, their beneficial purposes, and possible alternatives to straws.
99% Invisible :: Double Standards
Yes, a double dose of 99 P.I. this week! This episode discusses blepharoplasty, a controversial cosmetic surgery which makes the eyes of people of Asian descent look more “Western.”
Decoder Ring :: The Paper Doll Club
Paper dolls are a toy that has fallen out of popularity with children, but there are sizable communities of adults who collect and design paper dolls, and a surprising connection with queer identity.
Risk! host Kevin Allison tells the story of how his Catholic high school missionary trip lead him to become a storyteller.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #8
Day 8: A Song About Drugs or Alcohol
“The Wild Rover” by The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem (and countless others) is actually a song about abstaining from alcohol which is best sung with a group of people drinking in a pub.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #7
Day 7: A song to drive bike to:
I try bike more than I drive, so here’s an inspirational tune to pedal along with.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #6
Day 6: A song that makes you want to dance:
“Sex Machine” by James Brown makes me want to get up, get on up, and dance.
30-Day Song Challenge Day #5
Day 5: A song that needs to be played loud:
I crank up “S.E.X.Y. R.O.B.O.T.” by The Pinker Tones past the point of what is safe for my ears any time it comes on.
