CDs Most Frequently Played in My Car
Submitted by Arbit on Wed, 07/27/2005 - 01:12
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- Castaways and Cutouts - The Decemberists: My first Decemberists album, it will always ring of the nostalgia and quirkiness the group would always bring to me. I love almost every track on it, and it is one of he few CDs I can happily listen to, in full, without skipping that one track that just rubs me the wrong way.
- Stunt - Barenaked Ladies: Many BNL fans will call me a 'Stuntie', for I was introduced to the group through this one album, which ultimately led me to purchase every previous and future album the group put out. A mix if witty lyrics, varied tone, and simply amusing songs makes this one of my favorite albums. Lots of classic songs, each of which I have had an affair with since I first purchased it, from the energetic, catchy (and mainstream) 'It's All Been Done' to the slow, pretty 'Call and Answer', and around the corner to the quirky 'Who Needs Sleep?', I hold this album dear.
- Abbey Road - The Beatles: My mother was always a big fan of the Beatles, and her love was passed on to me. Many memories of my early childhood have this album the background, and beyond the nostalgia value, I adore the music. The blending of tracks, the range of emotions...it is an album only the Beatles could have made.
- Maroon - Barenaked Ladies: Probably my favorite BNL album (I'm a bit of an oddball), I a lot of the less conventional songs tickle my fancy. Ballads such as 'Helicopters' and 'Sell Sell Sell' just interest me, and the special humor and energy I have come to know and love from the group shines through. A bit slower and a bit more subtle, I think this will always stand as one of my favorite albums.
- Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Beatles: The first Beatle's album I heard in full, it really is an interesting, almost campy (in the good way) take on all the things that made the Beatles great. A bit of a pick-me-up album, the mix of beauty and happiness this album brings to my car is different than any other album. It reminds me of things I don't remember...I know that sounds like stupid philosophy, but it's the best description I can muster.
- Picaresque - The Decemberists: Many people say it marks a new direction for the band. It is their newest album, but holds some of my favorite songs by this strange group. The high-brow vocabulary, strange instruments, and ability to tell 9 minute stories makes this a great album. Each song has a mood, and manages to set it perfectly with a unique, almost unidentifiable quality.
I alternate between being a person who loves music and listens to it at almost all possible times, and being someone who enjoys music, but only listens to it while browsing the internet or going for a walk. Most of the time, I'm too busy stressing myself out or over-considering something to be the former person, and thus go days without hearing anything more musical than a commercial jingle in the background or the vague tune that someone is humming while walking down the street.
The truth of the matter is that I'm an iPod person. I only really started enjoying music in the mid-90s, and never had an expansive CD collection. I found CD player cumbersome before I got my first mp3 player, and only having 9-13 tracks is difficult for me these days. The only place I have (and continue) to use CDs is while driving my car.
I make it a point to buy CDs of artists I support, though more often than not, I just rip the CD onto my computer and put the actual disc in a dark corner, never to see light again. The one exception to this rule is in my car, where I start and end my workday, and spend a surprisingly large amount of time within. These CDs are the ones that have stayed in my care for months, and it is almost a fact that one of these will be playing every day I am not at college.
I can honestly say there is something magical and wonderful to each of these CDs, and the songs on each will always have fond memories for me.