“If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music.” ― Albert Einstein
Music has the power to evoke a flurry of emotions: joy, sadness, anger, hope, despair, contentment, bliss, and on and on. Many people turn to songs in search for answers to the questions that plague the everyday life of a human being. Sometimes the answer can be found. In our search for clues to the meaning of it all we may find ourselves distorting and bending the chords to match our own key of existence or to satisfy the yearning to be “understood.”
One of the most popular weddings songs of the past three decades has been “Every Breath You Take” by The Police. How romantic. How even more romantic is that Sting wrote the song during an emotional point in his own life which centered around the collapse of his marriage—the collapse of love. Hence the stalker-esque undertone of the lyrics that hint to the fact that he would be closely watching his lover move on with her life as he just sits idly by and bites his lip.
To cope with certain phases in my own life, I (still) turn(ed)[ing] to certain songs and artists. Perhaps my interpretations of certain songs were on point. Most likely, however, I probably had no idea what the artist was singing about. I failed to experience the song for what it truly was and made it my own. But, is there anything wrong with that? Nah. Who wants to think about abortion every time they listen to “Brick” by Ben Folds Five? It’s just another song about love lost, right? Sure, that’s all it is.
Here’s a list of several songs that I hold close for various reasons. I actually listed them chronologically to match my own feelings that evolved over the years as they pertained to love, love lost, depression, death, self-consciousness, growing up, falling down, getting up, falling down again, and coming out the other side intact. I won’t go into personal details about them because I think you should experience music for yourself and find your own meaning.
However, I will say that one of them became the song that I had my last first dance to. It evolved from a song of complete melancholy to a song of love. Maybe, you have one those too.
- Collapse The Light Into Earth by Porcupine Tree
- At Least That’s What You Said by Wilco
- Sideways by Citizen Cope
- Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 1-5) by Pink Floyd
- Farewell Transmission by Songs: Ohia
- 3 Libras by A Perfect Circle
- Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 6-9) by Pink Floyd
- Paper Boats by Nada Surf
- Good To Be Home by the everybodyfields
- Only In Dreams by Weezer
- To Build A Home by The Cinematic Orchestra
ps. Shine On You Crazy Diamond counts as only one song. There I go bending the truth again. But maybe the truth should get bent, and we should continue living only in dreams.
Additionally, if you are a Spotify nerd like myself, you can just listen to it on this list: