Songs that have found me and lodged themselves deep within

Have there been songs that just make you cry? Although not the only criteria which applies, this is what I base my music purchases on. Some songs come randomly while driving around, I hear these songs on CBC that talk directly to my heart and I’m tearing up. It’s what I needed to hear at that moment. Often it is the one and only time that I hear that song on the radio. Many songs move me during a live performance. I heard the choir and soloist from the Dr. E. P. Scarlett high school at the Jack Singer Concert Hall this spring and was tearing up at their rendition of Lorde’s Royals. Recently at a workshop in May, Kate Potter sang her own song into my heart. I’m glad I was present for that because that one is not available for download to my ipod. A few have come during a yoga class. Thanks Tamara for Nina Simone – Feeling good – lifting us in a warrior flow and the five minute down dog with Ray LaMontagne – Be here now – indeed… and so many others. Those two do not make me cry, but others have. Other songs are deliberately shared. Depending on the day and situation, these songs still make me cry. Many of these songs find their way onto my ipod eventually.

Just a short list…

  • Thanks Lori for this one… “Brave” by Sara Bareilles on Mothers Day, driving home from Kate’s workshop – and then I became uncorked. This song marks a moment in time for me. Important conversations followed, trips were planned, a little baggage was dropped. I was supported and supported friends and I feel just a bit braver. I started to write a lot, some of it landing here, some in inboxes, and on many notebooks pages. I guess I am a writer. My daughter also likes this song. She showed me the video a few days later.

  • After recovering from a mysterious never to be explained illness, in fact, as I leave the surgeon’s office for the last time, and on my way to meet friends to practice teaching a full length yoga class for the first time, I hear this song. “Mystery” by Bruce Cockburn. I didn’t know what the song was at the time because it was part of a recorded concert. I just remembered the line “Infinity always gives me vertigo and fills my heart with grace.” Thanks to google, I found the song. It will always remind me of teacher training which was always held on a Friday, because of the line, “I was built on a Friday and you can’t fix me, even so I’ve done okay”

  • Lately in an attempt  to encourage Kate to record her song already, I sent her this – Scare Away the Dark. But that just turned into binge watching passenger videos on youtube for the both of us and not enough sleep. How old am I? Kate has about a dozen new videos in the works for My Yoga Online including the elemental flows that we did at the workshop- Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. No guitar playing, no singing – you might hear a song at a workshop though.

  • Sleep was not in the cards that night. The same night, I was all wound up and energized from hooping with Lori at her epic first hoop goddess circle. With the resulting lack of sleep, I was tired and cranky the next day. I said to myself, ‘You’ve got your crankypants on don’t you?’ Which brought to mind this song about pants and I changed my tune and became tired and silly instead and that night I slept like a smart person would do. If you sing this song, you cannot be cranky.  It made me consider the question “What are you wearing?”  I decided I did not need to wear crankypants. In fact the next day I made sure to wear the most uncranky, most happy pants I own (that I bought from Sam at Free Aphrodite). It also reminded me that I have a pair of pants to re-groovenate. Again, google came to the rescue. I only knew the first line of the song, “pants are for keeping you warm, that’s what their designed to do”.  I heard the pants song on CBC when this band was in Calgary and I didn’t know who the band was. So the only song I knew by this great band was this song about pants that was written by a parent of toddlers. Poor northern hemisphere toddlers who have to wear clothes. Gratefully I learned that the band was the Wailin Jennys and I learned a few more of the songs by them, and they just happened to be one of Kate’s favourite bands.

  • Just one more. Three versions of the Book of Love, not the who wrote the book of love, but another song. I remember hearing that the songwriter, Stephin Merritt, wrote the song sarcastically, but any covers I have heard have been sung sincerely. I like both.

Original by Magnetic Fields:

I just found this one, with Stephin Merritt on Ukulele.

A re-groovenated version – a different take. My favourite so far by Airborne Toxic, dedicated to his grandmother:

Lately, I’ve found some new music to listen to including Sarah MacLachlanSarah SleanAdam Cohen and Passenger. I want to get some Wailin Jennys. I don’t like that I drive around a lot, but I am glad I can listen to music and podcasts during those times. And I am grateful that I can drive around.
(From Adam Cohen’s video, Lori, this quote makes me think of you.)

At the first of a series of hoop goddess circles led by Lori Bothwell at LMP studio, I drew a goddess card – Aphrodite.

APHRODITE Inner Goddess “Awaken the goddess within you through dance, self-care, and appreciating your divinity.”

 In my meditation she gave me a lantern to nurture and hold my inner fire. It’s fun to play WWAD? What would Aphrodite do? I haven’t lost my marbles, it’s a playful way to consider your patterns and break out of a few. Like choosing the happy pants! Get your beauty rest! Dance and sing and appreciate your own inner light. Tiny steps toward re-groovenating your own self.

“fear is dark but my love is a lantern” – Passenger, from coins in a fountain.

So what are you listening to old or new?
June Written by:

One Comment

  1. Avatar
    June 30, 2014
    Reply

    Thanks for this post. Music can connect souls. I also found the “Brave” song this year while I was away. Whenever I was feeling lonely or lost I would imagine the tune in my mind and then move into a safer place. Way to go.

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