5 Songs You Need To Hear (Dad music edition)

My dad isn't really what you'd call "flexible" when it comes to his taste in music. I've tried to get him to branch out, many times, to no avail. He's just stuck in the 60s/70s. Ultimately, I've learned to look on his inflexibility with good humor; a necessary thing when he makes horrible faces whenever you're riding in a car and decide to play some of your tunes. Mostly, I just give in and create playlists that both of us like. The good thing is, a lot of this music is new to my generation, so finding good 60s/70s/80s songs is kind of like going to a museum and finding out that people actually wore some cool clothes in 1925. Who knew?

So, in honor of my dad's birthday today, here are some oldies but goodies, lesser known to the Millennials of the world but well-known to the Boomers. This one is for you, you old coot.

#1
Snoopy's Christmas

The Royal Guardsmen 

I think my dad got a kick out of introducing The Royal Guardsmen to my brother and I when we were kids. I mean, we didn't live under a rock; we knew who Snoopy was, and like 80% of their music is about Snoopy. Before you listen to this one, you might want to hope over to YouTube and listen to "Snoopy vs. The Red Baron" first, just to give you some context. My father loves songs that tell stories, and these songs definitely qualify. I chose to list Snoopy's Christmas over Snoopy vs. The Red Baron simply because it was my favorite Royal Guardsmen song. Something about those bells.

#2
I won't Last a Day Without You

Carpenters 

I'm not kidding when I tell you that my parents owned the complete Carpenters collection (2 CDs), and I eventually absconded with it and listened to it on repeat. I think it might be my dad's lifelong dream for me to sing their songs in public. Like with a microphone and an audience. Not sure if that's ever going to happen, but I admit that I DO love their music. Her voice is just so soothing.

#3
Timberline

Timberline

This one is a bit obscure. This band was more of a localized music sensation, I think, because as far as I can tell, there isn't any video or recording anywhere of the original version of this song, except the snippet I've posted below. In any case, when I was a kid, we would go on trips as a family and (not even joking) would sing along to it in the car as a family. Before you go judging us, I should tell you that we also played trivia games and listened to books on tape...wait. That doesn't make us sound any less geeky, does it? You know what, I DON'T CARE. Take your judgement elsewhere. But first, listen to this song.

Click Here for a snippet 

#4
I'm Into Something Good

Herman's Hermits

Herman's Hermits was another of those random bands to which my brother and I were introduced as children. And, like the Royal Guardsmen and Timberline, we DEFINITELY rocked out to this stuff. HARD. Even more so than the others, I think. I mean, who can listen to any of the Hermits' music and be like, "I have no desire to bob my head up and down?" No one. That's who.

 #5
Leader of the Band

Dan Fogelberg

Oh, Dan Fogelberg. What a chill voice. What a storyteller. My dad isn't a crier, but if he was, I think this song would make him weepy. I mean, I can't even listen to the song without crying. So touching. Feel free to ugly cry if you have a father and/or a soul.

I keep thinking about all of this music, and all that is happening is I'm coming up with more ideas for more dad versions of this series. Maybe I'll have him pick 5 songs of his own and post it sometime. I'm sure he'd really dig that (Notice my use of old person slang there).

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TUMNUS!

5 (more) Songs You Need To Hear

#1 

Bad Guy

Mindy Smith

For some reason, this song reminds me of my college boyfriend. Basically, Mindy Smith is singing in my language. Plus it's a weirdly cheery song for such depressing subject matter. I'm all about contradictions, so here you go...

 

#2 

C'est L'amour

Rosie Golan

"When I saw him, I felt the room divide into pieces. All the lights danced around us just like stars in the sky. One night in Paris with a man I barely knew. Lost in a moment, c'est la vie, c'est la chance, c'est l'amour." How cute? Bonus points for including some actual French.

#3 

Pitter Pat

Erin McCarley

This one is kind of a downer, but sometimes you need to listen to a downer. Because why not?

#4 

Afire Love

Ed Sheeran

What's that? You haven't cried yet today? Allow me to fix that for you. Normally Ed Sheeran doesn't really do it for me, but this song had me getting really weepy while I was harvesting sugar pea greens one day, so I had to include it. Any song that brings me to tears and isn't a country song about someone dying gets an automatic 5 stars from this girl. Wait, this song is sort of about someone dying. Whoops. Spoiler alert. Favorite lyric? "And my father and all of my family rise from their seats to sing 'Hallelujah'" The kicker? They're at a funeral. Aaaaaand now my eyes are leaking.

#5 

Talk About Love

My Friend the Chocolate Cake

Now that your eyes are good and lubricated, here's one of my all-time faves. Weirdly touching. Not what you'd call a "normal" song, but with a band name like that, you didn't think it would be, did you?

5 Songs You Need to Hear (Part II: Christmas Edition)

I've been thinking about the passage of time, lately. Perhaps this is due to the fact that I turned 28 yesterday, which coincided with an old high school classmate of mine writing a Facebook post about how our 10-year reunion is happening next year. I don't think I feel old, but I can sense the flow of time, dribbling on in its irreversible way.

But some things never change. One of those things is Christmas. More specifically, Christmas music. You might add a new song here or there to your list of faves, but you keep the old standbys in your heart, drawing them out when "that time of year" rolls around again. And it takes you back to all those moments in your life when that song became YOUR song. The song that WAS Christmas. And natch, you want others to experience that joy, too.

Therefore, BEHOLD! Becky's 5 Songs: Christmas Edition.

#1
My Only Wish
by Jessica Simpson

I first happened upon this song a year or two ago, and I have to say, I find it delightful and fun. I hope you do too.

#2
All I Want is You This Christmas
by *NSync

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a Backstreet Boys girl through and through, but I'm a big proponent of giving credit where credit is due. And the one thing *NSync has on my beloved BSB is the fact that they released a Christmas album. And not just any Christmas album. An AMAZING Christmas album. I like to think that if the Backstreet Boys DID release a Christmas album, it would be unquestionably better than this one, but until that time, there's this. And let's be real, basically the entire album is great, but if I had to pick a fave...this one would be it.

#3
Emmanuel, God With Us
by Amy Grant

Speaking of bomb diggity Christmas albums, Amy Grant is seriously the queen of Christmas music. There is no such thing as a bad Amy Grant Christmas song.  I remember listening to these songs  when I was a kid and I'm reasonably sure, at the ripe old age of 28, I will never tire of them. This one is one of my faves. It really captures the mystery of Christmas.

#4
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
by The Choirboys

Oh, this one. I cannot even tell you how much I love The Choirboys Christmas album. These kids sing like baby angels. I can't handle it. I love them. And if I am ever in England over Christmas, I'm going to find out where they are performing and go watch. Because angel babies.

#5
It's True
By Sara Groves (feat. Toby Groves)

You might think you have a heart made of cold cold stone, but that's just because you haven't heard this song before. Sara Groves knows just how to yank your heartstrings out. And she can do it all by herself, but in case you have any lingering doubts about that, she also included the voice of her little boy on this track to remind you that it's perfectly acceptable to weep uncontrollably into your sugar cookie batter. Composure? What composure? Sara Groves eats your composure for breakfast.

5 Songs You Need to Hear (Part I)

Sometimes music just kind of...happens to you.

You know what I mean?

Of course you do.

Here is a list of songs that have happened to me. I think they should probably also happen to you:

#1
Somebody Loves You 
by Betty Who

This one is a super fun song. Seriously. I dare you to listen to it and not smile. 

#2
Do You Love Me
by Guster

This one reminds me somehow of all those Herman's Hermits songs my dad loves to listen to. I think it's the bells. Wait, BELLS? Yes. There are bells. It's a fun video too. These guys are super quirky.

#3
Bien o Mal
by Julieta Venegas

Ok, fair warning, this video is super weird. In fact, you should probably just listen to the song without watching it so the bizarreness of the video doesn't color your perception of the song. Unless you like watching women eat flowers and fart butterflies. And no, I'm not kidding. But the song is fun, and I have it on good authority from a Mexican friend of mine that the lyrics are very sweet. He could have been lying, though.

#4
Junebug
by Robert Francis

Part of the reason I added the (Part I) to the end of this post title was because of my deep abiding love for Robert Francis. The man is a fountain of great songs. This one has a bittersweet quality to it that I love, because apparently pain appeals to me. The video isn't my fave, but I think that's because the first time I heard it I imagined the whole thing taking place on a rickety front porch somewhere in the sticks, and this video tells a completely different story.

#5
We Can Try
by Between the Trees

This song changed me. Then I played it so many times that it also started to change my college roommate. It really sucks you into this vortex of hopefulness, and you're left desperate to know if she really did give the guy a second chance. Please say yes. She'd be a fool not to.