Words and Music

The Soundtrack Of Life

I love music. I wouldn’t pin my tastes down to one genre, although I probably do listen to country more than anything else these days. Music is a constant backdrop to everything that I do. It’s on in the car, when I am working, when I am cleaning, when I am potting plants, when I am reading, when I am cooking, when I am sitting in the garden. You could say I just like some background music to everything I do. I grew up in house where music was always prevalent and that has definitely rubbed off on me which is probably why I am comfortable mixing a playlist with songs from decades ago alongside those released this week.

Lately, I seem to be noticing more of the lyrics than ever. A good catchy tune will get you hooked in from the first note, but when you really take time to listen to the lyrics, a lot of songs are like a good story. As an avid reader, I love well written words and maybe that is why I am noticing so much of the lyrics. When well written you can picture the story running through the verses. Yes, a singer can bring a song to life but for me the real talent is whoever puts pen to paper to write the words and music.

While watching some concert videos last week my mum and I were talking about this very topic and that conversation is the inspiration for this weeks’ post. I’ve picked a few of my favourites to share some thoughts on.

Country Music

There is a very good reason country music is often referred to as Three Chords and The Truth - it's storytelling.

First to highlight this is Amarillo By Morning written by Paul Fraser and Terry Stafford and absolutely brought to life by George Strait. In particular “I ain’t got a dime but what I got is mine, I ain’t rich but Lord I’m free”. For me that highlights a very key fact of life. Be happy and thankful for whatever you have and where you are in life and if you can accept that, you will indeed be free. Free from worry and at peace with the life you have.

Next up is a similar theme, Red Dirt Road written and performed by Brooks and Dunn. “I learned the path to Heaven is full of sinners and believers. Learned that happiness on Earth ain't just for high achievers. I've learned, I've come to know, there's life at both ends of that red dirt road”. The whole song is so well written you can picture a childhood growing up in a small town, growing up and wanting to “go out into the world” to achieve something. Acknowledging our failures and mistakes made along the way and happy that no matter what, you can always go back home which is summed up in “driving home tonight feels like I found a long-lost friend”. It mirrors the theme of accepting the life you have and finding peace with it that I mentioned earlier.

“Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning” written and sung by Alan Jackson is the epitome of storytelling through a song and always brings a tear. The theme of asking where you were on 9/11 can resonate with us all who remember that day and try to make sense of it. For me, I hear it and can see exactly where I was. In my living room with my dad while a TV engineer was fitting our new Sky system with CNN on the screen. The first plane hit and we all thought it was a tragic accident, the second hit and we all looked and sat stunned knowing something truly horrendous was unfolding in front of us. To this day, I sometimes wonder if the TV engineer ever speaks about sharing that pivotal moment in history with two strangers. Years later, I visited the 9/11 memorial and found it hugely emotional walking through but I did keep playing this song in my head, it will forever be one of the abiding moments of that time for me.

These are just three to highlight my point but I also chose these in particular because the artists I have chosen don’t just have one song like this, they are all amazing storytellers and have a catalogue of songs which could be written about in the same way. So many in fact that it was almost impossible to narrow it down.  

Concert Poster

Album poster

Concert Poster

Photos taken in AJ's bar during a fabulous trip to Nashville in 2017

Musical Theatre

Finally, it’s not just country songs, I do love musical theatre and where else will you find a story through song than in musical theatre. There are so many to choose from in that genre but I wanted to pick one for this blog. Not just one song but the entire musical and that is Les Miserables. I believe that some of the best songs ever written can be found in Les Miserables. I remember before seeing it for the first time thinking how can they take that novel and put it to music. I might be an avid reader but I found Les Miserables one of the hardest books to read, I didn’t even finish it so there’s no surprise in me not being overly keen initially but wow was I wrong. From opening scene to finale, it keeps you hooked, takes you on an emotional roller coaster and if any song will ever make you want to stand up for what you believe in then it has to be “Do You Hear The People Sing”. Given that today is election day in the UK, we may well indeed see some people standing up for what they want. I digress but that could be a whole blog in it’s own right.

I’ve focused on country and musical theatre today but all other music would paint a similar picture. For example, I don’t like or listen to rap music at all but it does tell a story. Not one I want to listen to but each to their own.

I’ll finish with one more which I have used on a social post before by Ashley McBryde “I saw him strum this thing every chance he could, and if you ask me why it sounds so good, it’s cause I’m holding more than strings and wood” and that’s how it feels to pick up my dad’s guitar.

Whatever your taste, next time you listen then I ask you to truly listen to the lyrics and think about what it means to you. Songs with meaning become the soundtrack to our life, can trigger memories that make us laugh or cry and run alongside us through the years like an old friend.