Playlist 2010

This is not so much a top ten list. It definately does not cover music mostly from this year- some songs are pretty old. But it is what we were listening to and why. We give out little homemade discs for Christmas each year. Here was our Playlist 2010:

1. Fans (Kings of Leon, Because of the Times, 2007)
Sara- I listened to this album a lot while running this year. There is nothing particular about the lyrics of the songs that moves me, but the big, open sounds on many of them, or what iTunes describes as songs that “luxuriate in mid-tempo [and] bump and shuffle with loose grooves” that makes me want to open up and move forward. Not just on a treadmill.

2. You’ve Got the Love (Florence and the Machine, Lungs, 2010)
Sara- This album was my new favorite this year. Florence has a sound that reminds me a little of Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane. Throw in some harp, power drums, and a slightly unhealthy yearning for the underworld, and you’ve got a deliciously dark and brooding album that actually does a lot to cheer me up.

3. Right as Rain (ADELE, 19, 2008)
Sara- This is from her critically acclaimed debut album of a few years ago. (She has a new release this year called 21.) I think “19” is because that is how old she was when she recorded it, which makes her soul-queen diva sound that much more impressive. These lyrics really do resonate, and though they are a little bleak, the overall mood of the song is pretty carefree, saying, “What’s so great about being ‘fine,’ anyway?”

Who wants to be riding high
When you'll just crumble back on down
You give up everything you are
And even then you don't get far
They make believe that everything
Is exactly what it seems
But at least when you're at your worst
You know how to feel things"

4. Southbound Again (Dire Straights, Dire Straights, 1978)
Dave- This is just a favorite traveling song for me since I do so much of it each year. Always to the north so at the end of each project I am always headed Southbound when it’s time to come home.

5. All the Roadrunning (Mark Knopfler and Emmy Lou Harris, All the Roadrunning)
Sara- This is one of my “desert island disks,” and I listened to it over and over while running this year. This beautiful, wistful song is one of my favorites on the album.

6. River of Tears: Live (Eric Clapton, One More Car One More Rider: Live on Tour, 2001)
Dave- After watching this DVD, there is no other version for this song. Clapton’s studio albums are a disservice to the passion and emotion he plays with. I love how the emotion of the music he is playing matches perfectly with the lyrics he is singing. Also I relate not to the heartache of love lost but to the constant overwhelming feeling of wishing

“In three more days, I'll leave this town
And disappear without a trace.
A year from now, maybe settle down
Where no one knows my face.”

7. Impossible Germany: Live (Wilco, Ashes of American Flags, 2009 – but I had to get this live recording from something called Rock the Net: Musicians for Neutrality)
Dave- Beautiful guitar parts. Great tone. (3 different fenders I might add). I love the layers spun from the melody.

8. On My Way Back Home (Band of Horses, Infinite Arms)
Dave & Sara- Simple, melodic and gorgeous. We love it. If you love this too, it’s worth buying the actual disk just for the accompanying album art. Another traveling song.

9. Into the Mystic (Van Morrison, Moondance)
Dave- This song makes me think of Sara and I when we were young.
For most of my life I wasn’t much of a Van Morrison fan until I learned recently that he and I dislike some of his same songs. He was rather socially awkward and would often have panic attacks before a show. He didn’t even show up for his own induction into the rock and roll hall of fame. He was kind of uncomfortable with his own success and felt it discredited his music. He is an artist and a great songwriter. I love this whole album. Rediscover it. It’s worth the listen.

10. For the Summer (Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs, God Willing and the Creek Don’t Rise, 2010)
Dave- Ray LaMontagne is one of my recent favorite singer-songwriters. I love this song as well because it is about traveling home after being gone for too long. I share the feelings behind every lyric in this song. This is probably my album of the year and my favorite song on it.

11. Windows Are Rolled Down (Amos Lee, Mission Bell)
Dave & Sara-
We both love this guy. Hands down one of our mutual, absolute favorite singer-songwriters. You’ve heard it all before. This is a new song from his album that will be released in 2011. We are looking forward to this new album and to a new year in 2011.