There’s a few songs I’m absolutely incapable of turning off. And it’s because they tell a story. That story pulls you in. And you carry it with you after the song ends.
The first is a Warren Zevon song about an enforcer who just wants that one moment where he pots a goal to remind him of his childhood. It tells a deeper story about how somehow life takes us down a different path than we envisioned, and how we need to make the best of it. listen to the crowd get into this.
The next is about comeuppance. It’s a cautionary tale. You don’t go around hustling people strange to you, as you don’t know who you’re messing with.
Third on the list, a song about one who is needed and how when that’s called upon, nothing shall get in the way. Joe Cocker is as powerful as they come in this performance. Utterly riveting cover.
Speaking of covers, the incomparable duo of BB King and Eric Clapton speak to that needed lover, assuring that help is on the way. It dovetails seamlessly with the previous song, and they are invariably linked in my mind.
Lastly, amongst the older stuff for your listening pleasure: Conway Twitty’s “That’s My Job”. For all the shit I give my Dad and vice versa, every time I hear this song I think of everything he’s done for me, and I break down. Not ashamed to admit it.
Not that all story telling is dead. Hardly. Here, Adelle sings to trying to fruitlessly rekindle love lost. And it’s utterly heartbreaking. She’s got such passion in her voice, completely moving.
On a different note, one of my beloved bands, that I frankly enjoyed before they were cool, Our Lady Peace tells a story of friendship and sticking by one another and I, yeah, I feel it still resonates today.
One of my all time favorite songs, by one of my alltime favorite bands… yeah. The picture there is just laying on the beach, watching everything drift away in the arms of someone you care about… So why dont you slide?
One of the more contemporary music styles, Rap is just as capable of telling a story. This is the story of a comeback, undaunted, dusting ones self off and getting back after it. Eminem absolutely lights it up.
Lastly, depending on how long you’ve known me, you’ve heard me belt these two out. Both are about gettin’ while the gettings good. One tells a story of sage old advice from a streetsmart gambler, the other of a bar shutting down for the night and folks shuffling off to their beds.
and the latter, Semisonics one hit:
You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here. With that, I bid you adieu. Hope you’ve enjoyed the music.
RunBklyn 