Blog → Songs That Have Moved Me

Hello there, Justin here. I thought I'd make a journal entry about songs that have moved me. When I say moved me, I mean songs that just send shivers down my spine, or tears down my face, or songs that sent me jumping up and down in excitement. Or maybe even songs that painted a vivid image in my head.

I'll start with

Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
Tunnels by Arcade Fire. This is one of my favorites from Arcade Fire. It is a song, as I see it, about two friends or lovers cracking under the pressure of living and run away together. The part that always gets to me in the song is when he shouts "...Whatever happened to them?!" referring to his parents.

Hymn To
Freedom
The Oscar Peterson Trio is one of the few jazz bands I really really dig. I love piano music, and Oscar Peterson is one of the greatest piano players to ever live. Hymn To Freedom is in my opinion the best track off Night Train, a fantastic album. It starts off a bit somber and gloomy, and instantly just picks up into a soulful explosion. His piano playing is perfect, without ever coming off as a showoff. I really feel like he is playing from his soul. Unfortunately, Oscar Peterson passed away a day before I got the album. :(

At The Wig Store
Logan Whitehurst is one of my favorite songwriters. He writes music that is fun, and you can't help but crack a smile while listening to his album Goodbye, My 4-Track, which is one of my favorite albums ever. The song tells the story of a Wig Store employee who really wants to leave the job. He has to struggle to suppress his laughter as he hands people wigs, he has to arrange them, he just feels generally annoyed about it. It never tells us what happens to the poor guy, but I'd like to think he quit his job and now works somewhere nicer.


Holland, 1945
This is one of my favorite songs by this band. For those of you who don't know, which shouldn't be a lot, Neutral Milk Hotel are famous for their 1998 epic album In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, which chronicles the life of a fan of Anne Frank. This song is perhaps the least subtle when it comes to references to the Holocaust, more specifically Anne Frank. The last line seems to always get to me.
And it's so sad to see the world agree
That they'd rather see their faces fill with flies
All when I'd want to keep white roses in their eyes

Carry That Weight
Carry That Weight is one of the songs on side 2 of Abbey Road, which I consider to be the best side of an album ever. It is taken up mostly by a medley of songs from "You Never Give Me Your Money" to "The End." I think "Carry That Weight" is the climax of the medley. When the horn section comes in and plays the melody from "You Never Give Me Your Money," you can't help but feel overwhelmed in the best possible way.


Sleet
I think this is the most unique of the songs on my list today. It is on here because it just gets my imagination soaring. Shugo Tokumaru is really special. His music paints a colourfull, vivid image in your mind and it keeps you coming back. This song has fireflies in it, and has running through the wild of Japan.

Frustrated
Ulysses is a short-lived band headed by producer and frontman for the Apples in Stereo, Robert Schneider. The album as a whole tells the story of getting over a divorce. This song is about frustration and anger, and for some reason, it really gets to me. I feel this guys frustration.

The Only House That's Not On Fire (Yet)
This is my favorite song by Lemon Demon, a band (of one member) that has quite the following on the internet. This song, as far as I know, is really completely nonsensical. The music of it is really really good. It has an instrumentation that includes toy piano, organ, guitar, synthesizer, and is really quite unique in it's production.

Whatever Gets You Thru the Night
This is one of John's more popular songs, and I must say it is one of my favorites. It has a lot of energy, great saxophone playing, and I find it uplifting. and YES, the proper tagging is "thru" not "Through" !

Here Comes the Sun
This is maybe my favorite song George has written during the Beatles. It is the most uplifting song ever. It puts a smile on my face every time I listen. If you are feeling down, put this on.



Well, that is it for now. Thanks for reading!


- Justin