Why I frigging love this song: an introduction

American singer and songwriter Tom Petty once said that music is the closest thing we have to magic. I agree with him. Like its intimate friend poetry, music comes from the same magical place. They express the essence of human emotion and experience. Not only do they define what it is to be human, but music and words do it so thoroughly and succinctly that they create an immediate connection. How often have you listened to a song or read a book, taking you to a completely different place from where you are?

A song or a piece of music will immediately make you feel better. Listening to a favourite song will take you back to when you first heard it, to a childhood memory or any other part of your personal history. 

Songs and words created by great artists can connect to other people's hearts and memories, so the stories are no longer those of the writer or the musician. Like all other works of art, it has its own life. 

When an artist makes something new from nothing, that thing becomes like a new being; it is given an emotional soul and goes out into the world to become something for others who need it.

The true magic of a song is how honestly it speaks the truth behind thoughts and emotions. A song will put out into the universe will express something within us, and that expression becomes universal. Songs like poetry are personal expressions, but there is something special in sharing our inner turmoils and stories that make it easy for others to take those same emotions, identify with them and, in turn, make them their own.

One of my new year's resolutions was to listen to more music from different genres. I thought it would be a good idea to listen to an album every week from the Rolling Stone top 500 Albums of all time. I started listening and quickly realised the list was somewhat limited in its scope; I got bored quickly. And then I thought about how many other great albums aren't on that list. 

My rebel heart said, who made Rolling Stone the experts? How many outstanding records were rejected by big music companies in the past? So I found myself going back into my music tastes. Simply listening to songs I have come across randomly through the years. 

The songs that I have fallen in love with and still connect to me are better than any recommended listening list. I will occasionally look at the Rolling Stone list, but it's just something of a general guide, not my Bible.

So I'm going to be sharing my listening soundtrack. It's random, as most things are in life. I am sharing songs I love and telling you why they are so special to me. It's going to be self-indulgent. But I don't care. It's about sharing good art.

Because I am in love with words, the essential thing in a song is the lyrics, then comes the story, and finally, the emotion. The voice doesn't have to be perfect, but it's what it evokes in you. I have a weakness for singer-songwriters who can play a mean guitar, but that's just me. 

The songs that come back to me through the years have a special place in my heart; they soothe a hurt or say something of value. A good piece is like a good book or work of visual art; it speaks to you and makes you understand something about yourself or life in general.

Music and poetry, for me, are the things that help us get through life.

Let me know if you know the songs I will mention over the weeks. If you know of something else I should be listening to, leave me a comment.

Let's listen to some good music together. It will help us through this messy life we are living.