Setlist Society

My first instinct was to follow that urge to wallow, so I picked out some Coldplay, some Johnny Cash, and some Melody Gardot, for starters. Then I thought, nah, I'd rather go for some fist-pumping raucousness, indulge in some rage and fury--turns out I don't have much music that fits into this category. Perhaps I could go for the musical shaman thing? But that would turn into a list of my favorite classical pieces, the stuff that really heals and binds me, and that felt a little serious for this theme. So I opted for power. Power to the ladies--but before you roll your eyes or glimpse the obligatory Shania Twain track out of context, I'll ask you to consider the playlist as a whole:

Alright, friends, here are my guilty pleasures--dunno if any of them are really skeletons in the closet material, though:

This playlist kinda cracks me up; however, in no way is it representative of all my concert going experiences. I grew up attending concerts by the Philadelphia Orchestra (it was sort of my family's version of Family Home Evening--we had season tickets to a lot of cool stuff back then). Once I got to BYU, I went to tons of free recitals and inexpensive concerts. One of my favorite memories of my BYU years involve a big group of us driving down to MOAB for the annual music festival there. We trekked up to the top of a mesa overlooking the Colorado River, gathered under a white tent, and--as the sun set--listened to a piano quintet perform classics by Russian masters like Prokofiev and Rachmaninoff. I spent most of my free time on a London study abroad watching plays and musicals, but I got to see a few concerts there, too. Then during the year I lived in D.C. I was lucky enough to catch a lot of concerts at the Kennedy Center for free, as well as a few others for pretty cheap. Anyway, I offer these details as a stand-in for a more legit, comprehensive playlist...

And then there's the readings I've attended. Sure, they're not musical concerts, but they're arguably similar, right? Eh, I'll spare you that, at least. :)

A few comments: 1) I love love LOVE the first track. Judge all you want--it won't phase me a bit. I have glorious memories of this song, most of which involve dancing and eating candy. 2) The last track is from The Snowman, which I loved watching over and over as a kid, melancholy as it is at times, and I assume you have all seen it, too. (If this is not the case, repent!) 3) The primary reason for including track 11 is because every time I hear the brass blast after the first line I think of Jared shaking his dang hobo-gloved hands at me at BR in Provo. 4) If I had more time, I would download Barbara Streisand's album so I could include her version of "Jingle Bells." I think that's it.

This is my last full week of classes & teaching before finals, so I'm just gonna go ahead and post early, since I expect by Sunday I'll be pretty much outta commission.

Aaand count it: Third time I've gotten every song on the widget. Word.