Even If -- Mercy Me

I discovered this song in 2019, while Paula was sick. It expressed everything I felt then, and everything I feel now. Listen to it.

Breaking Find -- Way Less Sad -- AJR

Finally, an absolutely true breaking find, because it just came out today!

I like how this works for the last year and for COVID-19: No, I'm not quite happy yet, but I'm way less sad. I like that expression. I've had days like that this last year, and I think that's my goal for 2021: if I can't be happy on any specific day, I can at least be Way Less Sad.

Kokomo - The Beach Boys

I went looking for a winter song in my playlists, but for some odd reason, I don't have one. Instead is this hit from 1988, with the Beach Boys. The song was originally written by John Phillips (of the Mamas and Papas) and Scott McKensie, and recorded (but not released) for a new touring version of the Mamas and Papas. The Beach Boys needed a song for the movie Cocktail, and Phillips pulled this out. Mike Love and Terry Melcher get writing credits for some of the changes the Beach Boys did for their version.

As much as Brian Wilson tried to give the Beach Boys depth, most of their hits are light, airy compositions with minimal depth. This one is a flashback to those early hits. (It's appropriate, as Brian Wilson wasn't able to participate in the recording because of health issues.). It's a neat song that appears on both Best Of and Worst Of lists.

Breaking Find -- No Hole In My Head -- Tom Jones

YouTube for the win again. It decided to suggest this newly released song by Tom Jones, and it's good. First, it's impressive that he's still releasing powerful songs like this into his 80s, and has kept his voice in as good a shape as he has.

Second, this song is as appropriate as ever. It seems the world is rejecting truth and wanting to substitute their own reality, and we need to resist that push.

Your Woman -- White Town

One day, I went into Kroger after work to pick up the van and talk to Paula for a couple of minutes, and I heard this song on the in-store music channel. I put it in my favorites list quickly, but Paula refused to hear it any more. It was a neat music channel for us shoppers, but those who worked at the store were suffering. They played the same 15 to 20 songs over and over again on a loop for 2 or 3 days straight. Shoppers just thought they were neat 80s one hit wonders, but they were instruments of torture to the staff.

This is one of the first techno songs I ever liked, and I was intrigued by the androdynous nature of the person singing. Ends up that it's a guy singing, but he's not directly trying to play a gay man. (It's really a panache of lots of women singing a song where the lead character is clearly a man. In this case, it's a man singing a woman's song.)

Fair warning, the video's weirder than the song. I'm not even going to try on that one.

Overland - I'm With Her

It took us a while to realize who I'm With Her even was. It's a "superband" with Sarah Jarosz, Sara Watkins, and Aoife O'Donovan, all incredible up-and-coming bluegrass singer-songwriters in their own rights. They started playing and writing songs together as the three worked their way through the bluegrass festival circuits, and it led to putting together a band.

Overland is a neat "newgrass" folk song about a person who's decided to leave Chicago to try their fortune in San Francisco. It's an excellent song.

One and One - Robert Miles

Paula and I bought this album around the same time Bo was born, and we often listened to it when we brought him back from the hospital. I remember that either Paula or I asked her mother Myrtle (who stayed with us a while to help with Bo) if she liked the album. "It's not much."

Even so, I always loved this song. One and One still is One. It is an incredibly romantic example of "dream house" techno/dance music of the 90s. It features Robert Miles on the music, with Maria Nayler on vocals.

Butterfly -- Christa Wells

I got this song from NoiseTrade as an artist sampler for Escape to the Lake. It's an amazing, beautiful song that struck me about letting people grow up and do their own path; letting them be their butterfly. I'm having to let one go to Louisville and set up life there, and the other is mentioning the M word and discussing graduate schools.

Here's the song:

And here's Christa' own description of her ideas for the song (and it is about your kids growing up):

Power Windows - Billy Falcon

This is a definite "Paula" song. This came out before we were dating, but it reminded her of the white Pontiac I had that had 100k miles and parts falling off. Since then, I've had a lot of cars that had a lot of miles and not a lot of luxuries, but it was OK because Paula was with me.

Harvest Moon -- Neil Young

Recently, YouTube has been getting stale on their recommendations, nothing new has popped up. Until I managed to happen across this old gem.

This song was written and recorded in 1992 for Neil's wife "Pegi", and is an incredible song. I can't believe I had forgotten about it of late. I am correcting that mistake of course, having added it into the Favorites playlist for replay.

Still Not Dead -- Willie Nelson

Every so often, I start making ambitious plans. I'll go visit some foreign country. I'll get rich on some amazing stock buy. I'll write the Great American Novel.

2021 hit, and this song sumarizes my mood exactly: I woke up Still Not Dead Again today. Good enough.

I Got You Babe -- Sonny and Cher

There is of course only one song that can be put on for Groundhog Day: I Got You Babe. This is a great romantic song, and sappy sweet.

The association with February Second is from the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray. He woke up throughout the movie (every 2/2) to the same song, I Got You Babe.

(Don't go to YouTube or the Internets to find out how many days Bill Murray's character probably lived through. That'll make about the whole day disappear...)

I Got You Babe -- Sonny and Cher

There is of course only one song that can be put on for Groundhog Day: I Got You Babe. This is a great romantic song, and sappy sweet.

The association with February Second is from the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray. He woke up throughout the movie (every 2/2) to the same song, I Got You Babe.

(Don't go to YouTube or the Internets to find out how many days Bill Murray's character probably lived through. That'll make about the whole day disappear...)

It's All Going To Pot -- Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

When I first heard this song, I thought about a certain great uncle of mine who was sure that civilization was going to end, just after he died. He was predicting oil shortages just as the US started pumping more oil than we ever had in history, so you can't take him as a prophet. He'd appreciate the overt subject Willie is claiming here.

Of course, one could accuse Willie and Merle of talking about something else than the end of the world. I can't imagine why one would think that....