What songs I would choose for this weird time. How 'bout you?
[link to all my pandemic playlists]
Here are my first four--all songs I love.
#1. "The Mary Ellen Carter", Stan Rogers
A rousing ballad about working against the odds to raise and salvage a sunken ship. I am going to start singing this loudly every morning!
. . . It gets NUMBER ONE placement for the best line, boldfaced below:
"And you, to whom adversity has dealt the final blow
With smiling bastards lying to you everywhere you go
Turn to, and put out all your strength of arm and heart and brain
And, like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again!"
(The song starts at 1:40, but I love the sailor talking first.)
2. "Radio Nowhere" by Bruce Springsteen
The driving energy of the music makes this uplifting, even with bleak lyrics--trying to find a connection.
"I was trying to find my way home
But all I heard was a drone
Bouncing off a satellite...
Is there anybody alive out there?"
3. "Life on Mars" David Bowie
I've thought of this in recent days.
"Is there life on Mars?"
I'd never heard this late, live version before--I really like it. It's aged--the singer has––and become more complex than the acidy 1970s version. (Like some later Joni Mitchell does.)
4. "Under Pressure", Queen Live at Montreal, 1981
This one's obvious.
"It's the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watching some good friends screaming, 'Let me out!'
...
"Can't we give ourselves one more chance?
This is ourselves, under pressure."
[link to all my pandemic playlists]
Here are my first four--all songs I love.
#1. "The Mary Ellen Carter", Stan Rogers
A rousing ballad about working against the odds to raise and salvage a sunken ship. I am going to start singing this loudly every morning!
. . . It gets NUMBER ONE placement for the best line, boldfaced below:
"And you, to whom adversity has dealt the final blow
With smiling bastards lying to you everywhere you go
Turn to, and put out all your strength of arm and heart and brain
And, like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again!"
(The song starts at 1:40, but I love the sailor talking first.)
2. "Radio Nowhere" by Bruce Springsteen
The driving energy of the music makes this uplifting, even with bleak lyrics--trying to find a connection.
"I was trying to find my way home
But all I heard was a drone
Bouncing off a satellite...
Is there anybody alive out there?"
3. "Life on Mars" David Bowie
I've thought of this in recent days.
"Is there life on Mars?"
I'd never heard this late, live version before--I really like it. It's aged--the singer has––and become more complex than the acidy 1970s version. (Like some later Joni Mitchell does.)
4. "Under Pressure", Queen Live at Montreal, 1981
This one's obvious.
"It's the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watching some good friends screaming, 'Let me out!'
...
"Can't we give ourselves one more chance?
This is ourselves, under pressure."
Great selection. The thing about Joni Mitchell is, her songwriting improved with age, but her singing ability declined. (Too much smoking!)
ReplyDeleteSTEVE: Thanks--it's wonderful putting these together.
ReplyDeleteIneteresting about Joni Mitchell---I was surprised that David Bowie's voice here sounded, if anything, better!
I just looked it up and read that Bowie had only an "adequate" natural voice and worked to become a better singer. That makes sense.