I was organizing some iTunes this week and re-discovered an album that was really transformative in my journey. I listened to the words and realized just how much they meant to me and how I can now imagine the scenes of that season as vividly as if it were right in front of me.
Do you remember that album that seemed to change your trajectory, define a season, or bring perfect meaning to a place? What is on your transformative album list? Is there anything embarrassing in hindsight? Are there albums you didn't even know were that important at the time but now seem so monumental? Leave a comment. I'd love to know that I'm not alone here.
Ben Folds Five's Whatever and Ever Amen was a really really big deal for me. Bought the album when it first came out but really started listening my freshman year of high school. I was dealing with some significant emotional hurts and his music seemed to address his emotional hurts so honestly and be...It made me want to become a songwritter...
ReplyDeleteAnd there are probably about 20 other albums like that...
All that to say you are definitely not alone
Say, broseph, you've got to list yours, too!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I was in DC in the fall of 2006, far from home, missing my family, and worried about the health of my grandmothers, both of whom had been diagnosed with cancer the week before I left. I had really started enjoying The National's Alligator album the year before, and I was excited (understatement) to hear them at the Black Cat in DC. I bought the Cherry Tree EP at the beginning of the semester, and I probably listened to it a billion times over the course of those four months. It's a wonder the CD still plays.
That was a tough semester for a lot of reasons, but one of the most difficult parts was being away from my girlfriend (and now fiance), Jennifer. Few things can challenge a relationship as much as distance. Even now, I still can't hear the incredible "About Today" without thinking of walking to my house at one in the morning, protected in my overcoat from the cold air of fall, thinking heavily about all the aspects of my future.
Great songs bring you back, but you're reminded how they also pushed you forward.
U2 - Joshua Tree...as a youth discovering music, guitar, a bigger world, deeper thoughts...
ReplyDeletePearl Jam - Ten...as a teen discovering angst, rock-n-roll, passion, writing, singing...
Seven Mary Three - Rock Crown...takes me back home to a summer in Idaho...
Norah Jones - Come away with me...reminds me of a girl I used to know...
Strata - The End of the World...sparks memories of a season of creativity...
...at least a hundred more, you're not alone, not at all.