SMILE
Uncle Kracker
In my college years, life is all about being happy; and the symbol of happiness is a smile. As a freshman from a small town, I’ve found happiness to be so accessible at Carolina. This campus is full of intelligent and happy people that are so fun to have as friends. Uncle Kracker’s “Smile” is a love song, and that is part of its appeal to me. Love is a goal that everyone has. In its simple lyrics, “Smile” does not necessarily have to deal with romantic love, but can also relate to friendship and the happiness that friends bring to life. Just listening to this upbeat song spurs a smile.
Living and Living Well
George Strait
There's a difference in living and living well
You can't have it all all by yourself
There's something missing until you share it with someone else
There's a difference in living and living well
“Living and Living Well” has much of the same message as “Smile.” “There’s a difference in living and living well” is a line with such truth. It is easy to simply go through the routine of life and to take life the way it comes. This song distinguishes living and living well, encouraging me to try to live life to its fullest. This song also discusses sharing your life with someone. As it says, “you can’t have it all all by yourself. Something’s always missing until you share it with someone else.” Having a great life, full of love and actual living is very important. This song has a smooth tempo that incorporates string instruments to transition to the more upbeat chorus. These elements underly George's ability to transition from telling a story to really showing off his strong vocals. Besides the great message of this song, I included it on my playlist because of the artist. I’ve grown up listening to George Strait, and many of his 50 number ones were around before I was. When I got my first CD player for Christmas at about age 5, I also got one of his CDs. I’ve never tired of George Strait’s sweet lyrics and country twang. Seeing him live only heightened my appreciation for his career.
Seasons of Love
Rent
5 2 5 , 6 0 0 minutes
Street Corner Symphony
Rob Thomas
Sweet Caroline
Neil Diamond
My association with “Sweet Caroline” has nothing to do with Neil Diamond. My favorite version of the song chimes from the bell tower on game day at UNC. "Sweet Caroline" is special to me as a North Carolinian and as a student at Carolina. “Sweet Caroline” is an outstanding song that provokes happiness in listeners (except for maybe Duke fans after a basketball loss). In fact, its hard to conjure an image of a happier bunch of students than a group of tarheels in the rafters of the Dean Dome belting the lyrics along with the band during a big basketball game.
Waiting on the World to Change
Me and all my friends
We're all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There's no way we ever could
Now we see everything that's going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it
John Mayer is one of my favorite artists. I played the guitar for years and was terrible, but the experience really taught me to appreciate acoustic guitar in music. In my opinion, John Mayer is one of the best guitarists of pop music. Because I enjoy his music so much, I was compelled to include one of his many songs on my playlist. While I love almost all of his songs, I chose “Waiting on the World to Change” because it really speaks of my generation. There are so many problems in the world today that young people are overwhelmed and often feel helpless. Even the greatest efforts are often unrecognizable in the big scheme of life. This is a difficult concept to address in music, but, I think John Mayer does a great job expressing it with this simple chorus and beautiful instrumentals.
Peace of Mind
Boston
Sometimes I'm just in the mood to listen to classic rock. It reminds me of my dad. Classic rock is definitely his music of choice and I have many memories of sitting in his truck in the driveway with him until one of his favorite songs finished on the radio. The classic rock sound, instrumentals, and vocals in this Boston classic are typical of the genre. Beyond these elements, I chose to include "Peace of Mind" because of it's message.
Boston’s “Peace of Mind” is a song about the future. As a college student, the future is something that I’m forced to consider. The song speaks of indecision, which typically accompanies thoughts of the future. As I “take a look ahead” I’m unsure of where I want be or where I have potential to be. Advice is thrown at me from family, friends, and teachers, but I realize that I must do things my way if I want to be happy. “All I want is to have my peace of mind.”
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking for
U2
All children dread long car rides with their families. I can remember wanting a T.V. in the car more than anything as a child. On a family vacation out west, we rented a car to be able to travel to both rims of the grand canyon, to other canyons and national parks, to Monument Valley, and finally to Las Vegas. In about ten days, my family saw so many sights and spent a lot of time on the road where in the dessert there were no sights and there was no radio. Luckily, I took a Walkman on the trip. Unluckily, I only had one CD: The Runaway Bride Soundtrack. I cannot even imagine how many times we played this CD. It only made it worse that my mom complained about how annoying it was getting, of course prompting us to want to listen to it more and also sing along. To this day, I can promise you that my whole family could sing the words to every song on the Soundtrack.
U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” is one of the best songs on this Soundtrack. The fast tempo in association with softer vocals make it unique and almost inspiring. The lyrics of this song are very meaningful at a time in life when I do not know what I want to do with my life and honestly “still haven’t found what I’m looking for.” Members of U2 describe this song as a gospel song and with consideration of the lyrics it in fact is. On this family trip and others, I’ve seen and further experienced some of the most remarkable natural wonders of the world. It is in these instances that I have experienced God. The lyrics discuss the speaker’s ambition to have these moments, and his or her desire for more. Like the speaker, “Yes, I’m still running”…
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I like the family roadtrip
I like the family roadtrip memories, especially the routine of having to listen to the same cd over and over. Nice. The layout is easy to read and there is a nice mix. Exploring the musical elements of the songs will make it even stronger.
Yessss
Love this playlist, Boston is my fav. classic rock band and love John Mayer and George Strait, great choices
Fun
This is an awesome playlist, everything on here is a lot of fun to listen to, I really enjoyed it. John Mayer is awesome, I'm glad somebody else sees how talented he is at guitar.
Your playlist is so awesome
Your playlist is so awesome Carolyn. I love all the songs and they all remind me of you:) A+++++
Entertaining
I really enjoyed your playlist. The songs were great and fit well with your writing. I also just loved that you used Sweet Caroline and a picture of the well! I love it!