I drove up to Seattle today, which is a three hour drive, and frankly, a pretty dull one. (Unless of course, one is freeway enthusiast.)
But the drive went by quickly, as I played music the entire time. I love to sing, and tend to choose music that’s fun to sing-along with. A pile of library CD’s filled the bill. (My son wore his own headphones and was not subjected to my warbling — Lucky boy.)
Today’s playlist included:
- The Puppini Sisters
- Lily Allen
- Regina Spektor
- The Beatles
I ended up singing so much that I had a bit of a sore throat by the time I pulled up to my sister’s house.
Which brings me to the question:
What your favorite kind of music? Do you have certain styles of music you listen to at different times? Think my music is dorky and want to steer me to something cooler?
How is this a Non-Consumer issue? I’m not really sure. You tell me!
Please share your musical insights in the comments section below.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Singing along to anything is such good therapy, we should all do more of it. I love to sing to Jack Johnson, Paulo Nutini, Feist and Elton John. I am fascinated by how music can bring us right back to a moment in our lives – actually creating a visceral experience where we feel the same feelings we did when we first listened to that song, who we were with, etc. Music just makes things go so much better, whether it’s a long drive, housework, or (sometimes) homework. And Katy – getting your music at the library is being a non-consumer, so your blog today was ‘right-on’.
When I was a kid, I toured with a lot of jam bands (Grateful Dead, Phish, Frog Brigade). Being a more liberal crowd, “green” and non-consumption was a common theme in that culture.
I am guilty of loving top 40 music which is pretty mainstream (which can be considered consumer culture). Actually, music is a true consumer issue. In a day and age where people think it’s okay to download for free it’s the one place where being a consumer is actually a sign of respect to musicians. I generally listen to the radio and make my own play lists on you tube (I also have a play list of hair braiding techniques that I am trying to master).. Library CDs are nice, because you don’t have to pay and you aren’t breaking the law.
As for music I love to sing to: Fiona Apple, Anna Nalick, 3 Doors Down, Britney Spears, Marie Antoinette Soundtrack, Across the Universe Soundtrack, YaYa Ssiterhood Soundtrack, and the Forest Gump Soundtrack. I generally just find download random songs for free (Urban outfitters had just released their 3rd play list).
Oh… And The Time Life Treasury of Christmas (the original track list from the 80s). I will listen to that any time of the year.
It’s all about mood and I’m pretty “all over the place”:
Big Band, Zydeco, Cumbia (think low-rider cars), Metallica, Old country (Hank Sr, etc), Baroque, Vaudeville-ish (gogol bordello) and cocktail stuff (Dino, Frank, Sammy and more)
It really depends on where my heart and head are. Very little from “my era” though. I just didn’t leave anything in the 1970s & 80s that I need to return to 🙂
I use iTunes to procure music, they have free downloads of tracks from little known groups or new albums every week. They’re only free for that week and as a result I have a rather eclectic mix.
I also listen to a lot of classical recordings from the music library at my university.
My heart soars from great jazz and wonderful operas.
The jazz I love best usually involves the Marsalis family and NPR radio late at night on my old 1934 bread box size radio. This is “compacty” because I found this radio at Goodwill for $7.99! 🙂 Cheap and a charity donation. 🙂
Operas can be found on Saturday mornings on the radio or -when I am able- I go to my movie theatre and watch a simulcast from Metropolitan Opera in New York. These are wonderful productions for a fraction of the price (in New York) and the sound is Dolby digital great. The production is live, and I don’t have to dress up or fight crowds. 🙂
Love the Beatles Katy; especially the later stuff! U2, Nickelback, Alanis Morissette, Fionna Apple
Fleetwood Mac, & R.E.M. pass the time quickly in the car.
I like old swing and old Jazz. Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Etta James, Eartha Kitt, Frank Sinatra……. and all the rest. Pandora.com is AWESOME because you can listen to any type of music that pleases you. Ella isn’t played on the local radio stations, but I can listen to her and singers just like her all day on Pandora.
Bluegrass, especially all of the fifties recordings. I love any music that could have a line like” A jug of wine, a deck of card and a woman have caused me all the pain in my life” or a title like “I can’t forget old what’s her name”!
Not only are they fun to sing a long with being trained to be a music snob(my husband is a professional) the musicianship is some of the best. I listen to baroque and a little jazz, as well.
I have a large music library-most of which is downloaded on our ipod-so nice to not have the clutter of cd’s- but my favorite road-trip music is Raffi! Having 4 kids there is nothing more entertaining than watching/listening to all of them singing “banana phone”!!
I love the Beatles, too, John Lennon in particular so I listen to his solo stuff a lot. In December when we were snowed in for 10 days, I had just picked up the latest John Lennon biography from the library. It was excellent timing, as the book had 800 some pages and I was actually able to finish the whole thing. I also love U2, R.E.M., classical, and opera. My son discovered the Jonas Brothers last year so that’s all we listen to in the car. Once a week, when I go out and do errands by myself, it’s so soothing and fun to listen to my OWN music! And by “recycling” my old music over and over, I’m being frugal and green, right???
My husband and I aren’t ashamed to listen to the old metal bands we loved as kids, as well as the Beatles! And when we need new cd’s, they’re usually the bargain bin ones.
We listen to Ancient Faith radio on the internet – Christian Orthodox music all day. It may be a boring choice for some, but no commercials and almost no talk.
hey katy! good for you singing your way to a sore throat! The act of singing is very healthy…
i’m an independent music promoter so i listen to a ton of indy music
my favorites right now are Simplified from Charlotte NC, Sol Driven Train from Charleston SC. Sol Driven Train has just released their second record for kids and it is a treasure indeed. So much fun to listen to and sing along.
Hmmm- would you like a couple copies for your kids? YUMMY- ginger snaps
(teehee)
Let me know – i’d be happy to send along, ginger snaps or not….
I so enjoy singing along to AC/DC, Dr Hook and the Medicine Show, and like meadowlark, it pretty much depends on my mood. Some of the 60’s song really got it going, well, for that era anyways.
A four year old boy told me that his favorite music group is Pink Martini. I always listen to four year old music critics especially when they can croon a few lines of their favorite song when asked! So I went to the library and checked out “Hang on Little Tomato” by Pink Martini. Fabulous! A mix of styles (Latin, Jazz, Big Band, Vintage, etc.) brought together by the phenomenal voice of China Forbes. A definite sing-along-while-driving band. And it isn’t music that most four year olds would choose to highlight. It’s a grown up band. The little guy who recommended it has a combination of excellent taste and amazing parents.
As for being frugal about my music choices… I either check things out from the library (always a lovely cheap thrill) or download from iTunes. The library saves me from buying stuff I don’t really like and iTunes lets me download stuff without the massive packaging and shipping issues. Win-win!