You can tell a lot about a person from their iPod

I've been thinking a lot about the role of music in my life and how it's shaped who I am and how I interact with the world around me. I've always relied on music as a way to express how I feel, find the words that I can't come up with myself, and get those feelings out of myself and my head. There is nothing like hearing a song and thinking, "that is exactly how I feel, how did they know?" To connect with a song so deeply that it becomes a part of you. To play that song so many times and know it inside and out and whenever you hear it in the future it takes you right back to that place, that feeling, that moment in time and reminds you of how far you've come, how much you have left to do, or just how much fun you had. I've had this experience countless times and those songs tend to be my favorites, the ones that I can come back to and they feel like old friends, like coming home. These are just some of those songs for me:

Little Martha by the Allman Brothers

I went through a pretty major classic rock phase in middle school and LOVED the Allman Brothers. Amazing southern rock, first concert at Oak Mtn Amphitheater in Birmingham, and first time I was offered pot (don't worry Mom and Dad, I didn't take it :). I tend to lean towards songs with lyrics, but there's just something so sweet and simple about this melody that takes me back to my 13 year old self and contrasts with the complex and challenging changes I was dealing with at the time.

Full of Grace by Sarah McLachlan

This song captured all of my adolescent angst in a quick 3 minutes 18 seconds. This was one of the first songs that I really thought, oh she just gets it. I know exactly how that feels and it does not feel good.

Hometown Glory by Adele

One of my new favorite artists, this was the standout song for me from her first album 19. There's something about the way it builds that always gets to me. I like that she takes herself back to what it was like for her when she was younger, what her everyday was like in her hometown.

Not Ready To Make Nice by the Dixie Chicks

I don't listen to a lot of country, but I've been a fan of the Dixie Chicks since their first album with Natalie Maines taking the lead. I've loved watching them grow as a band and as musicians and seeing how their personal experiences have impacted their songwriting and depth of character. Without getting too political, I found it fascinating, devastating, and with a bit of dumbfounded shock to watch the majority of their fan base turn on the band after Natalie's comments about then-current President Bush at a London show. Their documentary "Shut Up and Sing" chronicles that difficult time for the band, but also shows the heart, soul, blood, and tears that went into the album Taking the Long Way. This song, the first single off the album, cuts straight to the point, revealing the catharsis that inhabits each lyric. I could probably write an entire post on this song, that situation, and the band itself (hey maybe one day I will!), but for now I'll just say how refreshing it was for me to see three strong women, from the South, saying whatever the hell they wanted, because they can.

Let's Stay Together by Al Green

This weekend I went to visit my mom's side of the family in Albany, GA. It was my Grandaddy's 88th birthday and we were there to celebrate him. It was a quick, but great trip and I know it meant a lot to him that we were all there. However, since my Grandma died almost 8 years ago, it's never been quite the same. This song is my ideal "relationship song" and theirs was the ideal relationship. Completely devoted, adoring, so in love, whether times were good or bad, happy or sad.
From my perspective at least, that's the goal.

Parting Gift by Fiona Apple

Extraordinary Machine overall is an amazing album and one that I continually come back to, but this song has always stood out to me for one set of lyrics:

I took off my glasses while you were yelling at me once, more than once.
So as not to see you see me react.
Shoulda put em, shoulda put em on again,
so I could see you see me sincerely yelling back.

I bet your fortressed face
Belied your fort of lace
It is by the grace of me
You never learned what I could see

The assumptions flying through these lyrics say a lot about the nature of this relationship and what each half expects of each other, sees in each other, and completely misconstrues about each other.

I could literally do this all day, but I'll stop for now and maybe continue this series in the future. What are some of your favorite songs? Artists? Albums? I'm always looking for something new, or old, for that matter.