Good-Bye

"What is the feeling when you're driving away from people, and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? -it's the too huge world vaulting us, and it's good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”

- Jack Kerouac, On The Road

What I love about music is its tangibility and malleability to any circumstance or feeling, and its consistency when you need it by your side. It's a sober woman's drug. I'm addicted.

"Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" - Bob Dylan

I never realized how ridiculously true these lyrics are until just recently. It's a beautiful, beautiful piece of poetry.

"Summer, Highland Falls" - Billy Joel

Another lyrically superb song that just captures a feeling. I have to copy the words here:

"They say that these are not the best of times
But they're the only times I've ever known
And I believe there is a time for meditation
In cathedrals of our own

Now I have seen that sad surrender in my lover's eyes
And I can only stand apart and sympathize
For we are always what our situations hand us
It's either sadness or euphoria

And so we'll argue and we'll compromise
And realize that nothing's ever changed
For all our mutual experience
Our separate conclusions are the same

Now we are forced to recognize our inhumanity
Our reason coexists with our insanity
And though we choose between reality and madness
It's either sadness or euphoria

How thoughtlessly we dissipate our energies
Perhaps we don't fulfill each other's fantasies
And so we stand upon the ledges of our lives
With our respective similarities
It's either sadness or euphoria"

"Linger" - The Cranberries

I've been overdosing on Irish music lately. I think it's that time of the year. Dolores O'Riordan is a magnificent vocalist who can sing softly, but with strength.

"Hello, Goodbye" - The Beatles

"You say goodbye, and I say hello..."; that's all there is to say.

"Since You've Been Gone" - Aretha Franklin

I'll admit that I have a soft spot in my heart for Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone", but Aretha's song takes the motherfucking cake for soul and spirit.

"Twilight" - Elliott Smith

This song is heartbreaking and gorgeous. I used to listen to it on repeat when I first realized that Elliott Smith was a musical genius. Choice lyric:
"I haven't laughed this hard in a long time, I better stop now before I start crying. I go off to sleep in the sunshine. I don't want to see the day when it's dying."

"Me and Bobby Mcgee" - Grateful Dead

How do you comment on a classic? Listen to it and feel it.

"Which Way Your Heart Will Go" - Mason Jennings

The simple and comfortable chord progression and Mason's stretching and settling voice make this song absolutely amazing. He asks that big question: "Where would I be right now, if all my dreams had come true?". Well, things obviously wouldn't be the same, but the question of whether they would be better or worse has yet to be answered. Jennings does tell us that "...there's no way to know which way your heart will go."

"Leaving Me" - ZOX

The Z-boys rock it out and explore the outer realms of violin musicianship and the outer realms of relationship troubles. Take Me Home is still my favorite ZOX album, and "Leaving Me" one of my favorite songs from that album. It's basically awesome.

"Time To Say Goodbye (Con Te Partiro)" - Chris Botti

Botti's the trumpet man, and this is an amazing example of musical composition. The first few notes seep in like a sunrise, then climax and drift back down to Earth. The strings are encouraging and playful, and the deeper horns sit in the background pushing the listener on. As the song ends, the trumpet grows stronger and reaches higher. It's an intensely emotional piece and one that I can only listen to with my full attention, and that I only choose to listen to on sunny days.