My dad and I have a somewhat unconventional relationship to music. Before the age of the aux cord, my dad burned CDs of his favorite songs. He would play them during road trips or drives to school or really any time I got in the car. When he pulled one out of the glove compartment, I would cry due to pure loathing. They were the same 12 songs every time (he eventually made two others), and they were all old and annoying and just…not One Direction. Eventually, I got so desperate that I secretly scratched up one of his CDs (I’m not saying it was right, I’m just saying I did it). But somewhere along the way I realized I liked one or two of the songs. The older I got the more of the songs I liked. My angst and need for rebellion has more or less subsided, and I now love or at least appreciate all of the songs. I mean, the man has some good taste in music. He introduced me to some staples like The Beatles, but also lesser known 70’s bands like The Kinks. He played a lot of Buddy Holly and bluesy soul artists like Sam Cooke and Fats Domino. And let’s not forget about the true love of my dad’s life: Johnny Cash. So when I got my own car and was longer subject to his constant CD playing I made a playlist dedicated to his taste in music. I quickly realized how I missed hearing the songs… crazy how growing up works.
Anyway, here are my top choices and why I love them:
Johnny Cash: “Folsom Prison Blues – Live at Folsom State Prison”
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I love this song. So much. It’s bluesy with enough twang to call it country. The songwriter really was an inmate in Folsom Prison, and most likely did shoot a man in Reno just to watch him die, but my god if I don’t get chills every time I hear that lyric. And with the live version, you get to hear the inmates’ reactions to the lyrics. The whoops and hollers after the Reno line never fail to remind me of the Freudian principle that says humans enjoy violence. I guess the whole reason I like the song is rooted in that principle. Why else would I love singing that line? I mean, I have never felt the urge to shoot a man in Reno, just to watch him die, but I feel like a badass whenever I sing it.
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Iconic Lyric: “My Mama told me, ‘son always be a good boy don’t ever play with guns.’ But I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die”
The Kinks: “Lola – Coca Cola Version”
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Listen to this song. The guitar in this song SLAPS. It’s such a feel-good song. Also, it’s about a man falling in love with a trans woman and I’m here for it. While it is a little problematic at the end, I want to believe the intention was good. It also makes my heart happy that it was so controversial and “lewd” that England and Australia banned it from their airwaves.
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Iconic Lyric: “Girls will be boys, and boys will be girls. It’s a mixed up, muddled up, shook up world. Except for Lola.”
Emmylou Harris: “Pancho & Lefty”
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I hated this song but now I love it. Emmylou Harris’ voice is angelic. And, unpopular opinion, her rendition is better than Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson’s. Maybe I’m biased because hers is the version I grew up on, but still. No matter which version you like better, we can all agree: the lyrics are stunning enough that the song could hold its own as a poem.
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Iconic Lyric: “Where he got the bread to go there ain’t nobody knows”
Sam Cooke: Bring It On Home To Me
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Sam Cooke is a god. His voice is pure velvet. All of his songs are good. Every. Single. One. This is a personal favorite just because it’s so fun to sing along to. And yes, I hated this song back in the day. It was a low point, okay. But now, if Sam Cooke told me to bring it on home to him I would bring it so fast.
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Iconic Lyric: “Yeah”
The Beatles: In My Life
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This song gives me a feeling of warm melancholy. The guitar riff that opens the song gives me chills, and don’t even get me started on that piano solo in the middle. It was one of the only songs I liked from day one. It’s a Beatles song so of course, it’s good. But it’s one of their more underplayed songs. It’s one of those songs that brings me back to long car rides with my face glued to the window watching my hometown of Nashville pass by me. It reminds me of the temporary nature of our moments. And the idea of loving someone so much nothing in your life compares to them is mind-boggling.
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Iconic Lyric: “In my life I’ll love you more”
Iris DeMent: “Let The Mystery Be”
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Iris’ voice is punchy but delicate and cutting. I’m a huge fan of her. This song asks serious, scary questions about the afterlife in a cheeky fashion and always calms me a little. So if you’re ever having an existential crisis give this song a listen. It might help. A little.
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Iconic Lyric: “But I’ve heard that I’m on the road to purgatory and I don’t like the sound of that”