The 5 Songs I Listened To The Most This Year.
Something old, something new, a little country to make me blue.
This year’s Spotify Wrapped for me was a bit strange.
Early in the year I got into a phase of just listening to really popular music from the 40s, 50s, and 60s. I had never really taken the time to appreciate the likes of Elvis, Little Richard, and Chuck Berry, to name a few. I played Elvis and Little Richard especially often, so that is reflected.
After the bulk of that phase was over I didn't really listen to a ton of new stuff until around the very beginning on Fall. This time period is where my two top songs came from, number one being played 105 times in the course of just a couple months.
My number five song was kinda just a song that I knew and listened to, but was just feeling it often this year so it managed to take 5th place after being 24th last year.
5. “Caroline” by Colter Wall
This beautifully written melancholic message to a lost loved one, comes from the country western giant, Colter Wall, and his first album, Imaginary Appalachia.
“Caroline” is a very minimalist track, with only two instruments featured; acoustic guitar, and a gorgeous fiddle. Nothing more is needed however, in this case three really would be a crowd. The stripped back instrumental allows for Colter’s trademark deep voice to shine, along with angelic backing vocals from Belle Plaine during the chorus.
This is just an incredible song to listen to when you feel poetic and/or mournful, and I was feeling that this year a lot. It’s a great song to drive through the Appalachians to as well, and I did that a lot too.
The lyrics are just unbelievable. One of my favorite lines of the past decade is pulled from the chorus: “The grave in the garden won’t be satisfied, ’til your name’s next to mine.” Just wow.
4. “All Shook Up” by Elvis Presley
“All Shook Up” just barely edges out “Heartbreak Hotel” as my favorite Elvis song, but there’s just something about that piano in the instrumental that keeps me coming back to “All Shook Up” just a bit more. I’m also a sucker for when a song stops the backing track entirely for a couple words and then kicks it back in, and this song perfectly appeals to that love.
This track also features some of my favorite subtle Elvis vocals. When you think of Elvis you tend to think of the groovy growl in “Hound Dog”, or the deep voiced cat on the aforementioned “Heartbreak Hotel”. “All Shook Up” however, features a more pop-focused, gentle delivery.
My favorite part of this song apart from just the general composition, would have to be that little, almost hummed, tune from Elvis in the chorus followed by the “Yeeaaayyyh yeeeeh yeeeaahh”. Frankly I don’t think there is proper terminology for anything Elvis does other than maybe just Elvisisms.
3. “Long Tall Sally” by Little Richard
I don’t remember exactly what I was doing when I heard “Long Tall Sally” the first time, but this is the song that put me in my 50s phase. Little Richard is criminally underrated when it comes to the general public’s knowledge of rock, and even modern pop’s foundations.
This song is my absolute favorite by him, and is impossible not to dance, or at least tap your foot along to. The booming, unmatched vocal style of Little Richard is really what makes this track so special, but the bold brass play on the song is incredible as well.
I really dig the video I linked as well. A scene from the movie “Don’t Knock The Rock” where Little Richard is performing with such an over the top, awesome style, playing the piano under his leg and dramatically diving back when delivering the line “ducked back in the alley”.
2. “In Dreams” by Sierra Ferrell
I was hooked on “In Dreams” as soon as I heard that opening riff. I get just that riff stuck in my head with no words sometimes, it’s that good. I’ve loved Ferrell since before any of her music was even on Spotify, I found her via the YouTube channel GemsOnVHS and her song “Rosemary”. So when Ferrell began to officially release stuff under Rounder Records, I was ecstatic.
“In Dreams” was the third single off her debut album with Rounder, and as I said before, I was immediately addicted. Sierra’s voice draws lots of comparisons to the late, great, Patsy Cline, and for good reason. Her vintage voice singing metaphors about life itself, just perfectly clicks with the punchy, western-inspired instrumental that bolsters the track.
This was the first song I added to my “Fall” playlist on Spotify. I added it prematurely, in the late Summer, but I was just so excited for Fall, I couldn’t wait any longer. The same sentiment goes for my number one song of the year.
1. “In The Morning Light” by Billy Strings
This was a perfect number one for me. This is my favorite song of the year and I played it 105 times. This is one that when I hear it I will immediately be transported in my mind to the sights I saw when I was listening to it the most. This little breakdown will be a bit more personal and longer because of just how many moments this song followed me through.
This year was a weird one for me, I went through tons of ups and downs mentally, some of my worst slumps of my life were this year, but some of my happiest moments were as well. When I first heard the song on September 1st when the video released, I just kind of skipped over it. I was in one of my worse slumps, and wasn’t really open to any new music. About a week later, I remembered it came out and decided to give it another shot. This time, it clicked and I was nearly in tears.
“In The Morning Light” is so, so, heavenly. I don’t even properly know how to explain everything I love about it. Obviously Billy Strings’ guitar playing is among the best of all time, so that’s stellar. Every single instrument used in this mix is unreal. The mandolin, and the fiddle are particularly beautiful, especially in the instrumental break for the bridge, where they absolutely shine alongside a banjo.
The reason Billy Strings is going to go down as one of the greatest bluegrass artists of all time is because you could write a whole thesis on his instrumental arrangements, but once you finished that, you’d need to write another one about his stellar lyricism. I could make a whole post breaking down each lyric of this song but for now I’ll just stick to giving a couple of my favorite lines.
“Every now and then the past will ring a bell, but I’m not lookin’ back, I’m only movin’ forward / If I knew then what I know now, I wouldn't be here anyhow and that’s been clear.”
“And in the evening when the sun is running low, I’ll walk bravely through the fields of burning ember / and I’ll remember everything she said to me when our love was first in bloom”
I was playing this song immediately before and after some of the more memorable moments of the year for me. I was getting back into photography around when I started listening to this song so often. I really enjoyed photographing birds of prey. So there were a few mornings where I would head out to a spot on the river before daylight to try and see ospreys, herons, or eagles, and I would listen to this song as I drove, and as I sat by the river. I just wanna say, this song definitely fits it’s name. If you get up before dawn, I want you to play this song on repeat on a misty morning when it’s just starting to break day, and report back to me on how changed your life is.
One major thing that happened this year, was I got to take advantage of a raffle prize I won and stay at a local bed and breakfast. It was an incredible getaway. The owners and other guests were amazing, kind people, and it was extremely helpful for me to meet new people and break away from my shyness that has plagued me before. One of the innkeepers told me about a spot to hike to up on the mountain that the B&B was on, so I drove up there and hiked up to a huge bald on the very top of the mountain. Along that ride up there, “In The Morning Light” was playing yet again. When I got to the top I took a while to just take it all in. The trip was a turning point and I was just up there on that beautiful mountain full of drive and inspiration that I was desperately in need of. This song absolutely had a big play in me feeling like my true self again this year.
I’d love to hear about what some of your top songs were, and your thoughts on mine! Was there any song that had a huge impact on you this year?
