A thread for general music listening experiences in 2025.
3 thoughts on “Music 2025”
I just started my music discussion class. For the past several classes, each weekly discussion have revolved around songs based on a specific theme. For the upcoming week, songs by groups with female leads is the theme, and I wanted to write about this because the lyrics of most of the songs really hit me.
“Hold On” (2012) by Alabama Shakes (Brittany Howard, lead singer)
The lyrics and music are about as simple as can be, especially the lyrics. “Hang in there” is the message, for someone going through a trying a time, and the impact of the simple lyrics and music surprised me.
“Middle of the Road” (1983) by The Pretenders (Chrissie Hynde, lead)
These days when I describe a song as “rockin,” I’m generally referring to a harder rock sound. But this song rocks in more rock n’ roll way, if that makes sense (i.e., not as hard), and I really like it. I like Chrissie Hynde’s singing, the originality and just the sound, which is somewhat unusual because she has a punk/new wave sound, which I don’t naturally gravitate towards. In any event, this song is the reason I love her voice.
In reading the lyrics, I just realize that “road” likely refers to playing live gigs across a large area. I think I always thought the song referred to an actual road–i.e., “If you stand in the middle of the road, you get squashed like grape.”
With this angle, the song seems autobiographical–essentially, Hynde’s musings of being in her early 30s while traveling with her band.
(On a side note, one of my favorite parts of the song is when Hynde “growls” before a harmonica solo. What I didn’t know was the lyrics that preceded that: “I’m going home, I’m tired as hell/I’m not the cat I used to be/I got a kid, I’m 33, baby.”)
“Midnight Train to Georgia” (1973) by Gladys Knight and the Pips
I liked this song, but didn’t love it. I vaguely knew it was about a guy who went somewhere, experienced hardship, and was now heading back home. I also vaguely knew that a woman loved him, as evinced by lyrics like, “I’d rather live in his world. Than live without him in mine.” And I knew this because the lyrics that expressed this were either easy to understand and/or part of a memorable melodic line.
But in this listening, while looking at all the lyrics, some of which I never knew, I had a richer understanding of the song. Primarily, the song is more about the woman and her love for the man, than the man himself. Additionally, the man went to LA to become some kind of star, whether in the movies or music, but he failed, and he now wants to eschew fame and maybe a faster life for a simpler life he knew back home.
What I didn’t quite get is that the woman who loves him is going back with him–in spite of his failure. The song isn’t so much about the man going back on the midnight train to Georgia so much as the woman who must be with him on that train, in spite of his failure. That’s a little nuance I completely missed, and it had a surprising emotional impact!
A big reason I never got this fully stems from lyrics sung by the Pips, which can’t really be heard very well. Look at the chorus:
He’s leaving (leaving)
On that midnight train to Georgia, yeah (leaving on the midnight train)
Said he’s going back (going back to find)
To a simpler place and time, oh yes, he is (whenever he takes that ride)
(Guess who’s gonna be right by his side?)
And I’ll be with him (I know you will)
On that midnight train to Georgia (leaving on a midnight train to Georgia, woo, woo)
I’d rather live in his world (live in his world)
Than live without him in mine (her world is his, his and hers alone)
“Guess who’s going to be by his side?” is the line that did it–turning the light switch on and emotionally hitting me at the same time. That, followed by “And I’ll be with him (I know you will).” The black choir call-and-response is corny, but it worked on me.
(Also another nuance–the Pips sing the “woo woo” as if they’re train whistle.” )
One last thing. Knight may not have a great voice, but she sings with feeling, and when I view the song about a woman’s love and devotion that really takes it to another level.
“Strong” (2020) by Amaranthe (Noora Lourimo, lead singer)
2
If you told me to listen to a song and described it as pop metal with earnest lyrics, that would all but extinguish my interest in listening to it. Surprisingly, I like this song–the music, vocals, and I think the lyrics work fairly well as a female empowerment song.
Songs with some kind of footwear in the title is the theme this week.
“High Heel Sneakers” (written by Robert Higginbotham; performed Tommy Tucker
Blues. Just OK.
The parts that confuse me and give me pause are the “high-heel sneakers” and “wig hat,” which make me wonder if the person is trans.
“Boogie Shoes”(written by Harry Wayne Casey, Richard Finch; performed by KC and the Sunshine Band)
OK pop song. Very half-hearted, dull guitar solo. One thing that stood out is the really simple horn lines, which I think occurs in other songs by this group. It’s simple, but it’s effective enough.
“Blue Suede Shoes” (written by Carl Perkins; performed by Elvis Presley)
My understanding is that Perkins knew a guy like this in real life. I can’t remember if the guy actually wore blue suede shoes, but I like that image, and the character in this song.
Guitar solos are not very good.
The song overall is a quintessential rock n’ roll song.
“Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” (written by Joseph Sabalala and Paul Simon; performed by Paul Simon)
As far as I can tell the song features just vocals, Simon in the lead and later vocals from Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and an electric bass. I love the bass, and I think the bass lines and bass playing are fine.
As for the lyrics, they’re a bit more difficult to understand.The lyrics say that diamonds on the soles of one’s shoes is one way to lose one’s walking blues. That creates the impression that some wasteful extravagance can ease the struggles and pain of life.
Perhaps this aligns with the second verse:
She was physically forgotten
Then she slipped into my pocket
With my car keys
She said you’ve taken me for granted
Because I please you
Wearing these diamonds
The narrator takes her for granted because she’s overly extravagant and perhaps not a serious person. Maybe?
But in the third verse, the song introduces a new character, a guy without money pursuing the woman.
She makes the sign of a teaspoon
He makes the sign of a wave
The poor boy changes clothes
And puts on after-shave
To compensate for his ordinary shoes
And she said, “Honey take me dancing”
But they ended up by sleeping in a doorway
By the bodegas and the lights on
Upper Broadway
Wearing diamonds on the soles of their shoes
“Sleeping in a doorway” made me wonder if the woman was a prostitute, not a weathly person, but I’m not sure if this is right. The verse ends with both of them wearing diamonds on the soles of their shoes suggests that they’re both happy and “rich”–but not in material wealth, but love–and maybe that love is so bountiful that they can wear it on the “soles of their shoes.”
(By the way, I don’t know what to make of “sign of a teaspoon” and “sign of a wave.” I thought this referred to gestures of the upper class or even royalty, but that’s probably wrong.)
This section is followed by a variation on the chorus:
And I could say ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
And everybody here would know what I was talking about
I mean everybody here would know exactly what I was talking about
Talking about diamonds
“Everybody knows what I’m talking about” feels like irony as it’s actually not that clear what he’s talking about on one level, but it’s also an indication that a shift in meaning–namely, “diamonds” as a symbol of material wealth has become a symbol of a more internal, emotional type of wealth.
Here the narrator sings this part. I should note that the narrator seems like a prominent character in the song, first “appearing” when the woman accuses him of taking her for granted. So maybe he’s a guy she eventually left (when she put the car keys in his pocket?) Because he’s singing the verse above, maybe he has gained the new understanding of “diamonds.”
“I’ve Got Sand in My Shoes” (written by Arthur Resnick, Kenny Young; performed by The Drifters)
A “sequel” to “Under the Boardwalk,” where the narrator reminisces about that time. Both the music and lyrics reference the first song, manifested in both the music and the lyrics (e.g., “how we fell in love down by the sea“). Also, just like “Under,” I really like the singing in this.
“Boots” (written by Andrews Haas, Ian Franzino, John Ryan, Julian Bunetta, Thomas Rhett; performed by Thomas Rhett)
Fun, country-pop song, with a good driving groove–about a guy whose girlfriend “likes him better in boots” (as opposed to other footwear).
Certain parts of the song features speeded-up singing, which turboed the song forward in a way that I liked. Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Stop the Fire” is like this as well. (Other songs?)
I just started my music discussion class. For the past several classes, each weekly discussion have revolved around songs based on a specific theme. For the upcoming week, songs by groups with female leads is the theme, and I wanted to write about this because the lyrics of most of the songs really hit me.
“Hold On” (2012) by Alabama Shakes (Brittany Howard, lead singer)
The lyrics and music are about as simple as can be, especially the lyrics. “Hang in there” is the message, for someone going through a trying a time, and the impact of the simple lyrics and music surprised me.
“Middle of the Road” (1983) by The Pretenders (Chrissie Hynde, lead)
These days when I describe a song as “rockin,” I’m generally referring to a harder rock sound. But this song rocks in more rock n’ roll way, if that makes sense (i.e., not as hard), and I really like it. I like Chrissie Hynde’s singing, the originality and just the sound, which is somewhat unusual because she has a punk/new wave sound, which I don’t naturally gravitate towards. In any event, this song is the reason I love her voice.
In reading the lyrics, I just realize that “road” likely refers to playing live gigs across a large area. I think I always thought the song referred to an actual road–i.e., “If you stand in the middle of the road, you get squashed like grape.”
With this angle, the song seems autobiographical–essentially, Hynde’s musings of being in her early 30s while traveling with her band.
(On a side note, one of my favorite parts of the song is when Hynde “growls” before a harmonica solo. What I didn’t know was the lyrics that preceded that: “I’m going home, I’m tired as hell/I’m not the cat I used to be/I got a kid, I’m 33, baby.”)
“Midnight Train to Georgia” (1973) by Gladys Knight and the Pips
I liked this song, but didn’t love it. I vaguely knew it was about a guy who went somewhere, experienced hardship, and was now heading back home. I also vaguely knew that a woman loved him, as evinced by lyrics like, “I’d rather live in his world. Than live without him in mine.” And I knew this because the lyrics that expressed this were either easy to understand and/or part of a memorable melodic line.
But in this listening, while looking at all the lyrics, some of which I never knew, I had a richer understanding of the song. Primarily, the song is more about the woman and her love for the man, than the man himself. Additionally, the man went to LA to become some kind of star, whether in the movies or music, but he failed, and he now wants to eschew fame and maybe a faster life for a simpler life he knew back home.
What I didn’t quite get is that the woman who loves him is going back with him–in spite of his failure. The song isn’t so much about the man going back on the midnight train to Georgia so much as the woman who must be with him on that train, in spite of his failure. That’s a little nuance I completely missed, and it had a surprising emotional impact!
A big reason I never got this fully stems from lyrics sung by the Pips, which can’t really be heard very well. Look at the chorus:
“Guess who’s going to be by his side?” is the line that did it–turning the light switch on and emotionally hitting me at the same time. That, followed by “And I’ll be with him (I know you will).” The black choir call-and-response is corny, but it worked on me.
(Also another nuance–the Pips sing the “woo woo” as if they’re train whistle.” )
One last thing. Knight may not have a great voice, but she sings with feeling, and when I view the song about a woman’s love and devotion that really takes it to another level.
“Strong” (2020) by Amaranthe (Noora Lourimo, lead singer)
2
If you told me to listen to a song and described it as pop metal with earnest lyrics, that would all but extinguish my interest in listening to it. Surprisingly, I like this song–the music, vocals, and I think the lyrics work fairly well as a female empowerment song.
Songs with some kind of footwear in the title is the theme this week.
“High Heel Sneakers” (written by Robert Higginbotham; performed Tommy Tucker
Blues. Just OK.
The parts that confuse me and give me pause are the “high-heel sneakers” and “wig hat,” which make me wonder if the person is trans.
“Boogie Shoes”(written by Harry Wayne Casey, Richard Finch; performed by KC and the Sunshine Band)
OK pop song. Very half-hearted, dull guitar solo. One thing that stood out is the really simple horn lines, which I think occurs in other songs by this group. It’s simple, but it’s effective enough.
“Blue Suede Shoes” (written by Carl Perkins; performed by Elvis Presley)
My understanding is that Perkins knew a guy like this in real life. I can’t remember if the guy actually wore blue suede shoes, but I like that image, and the character in this song.
Guitar solos are not very good.
The song overall is a quintessential rock n’ roll song.
“Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” (written by Joseph Sabalala and Paul Simon; performed by Paul Simon)
As far as I can tell the song features just vocals, Simon in the lead and later vocals from Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and an electric bass. I love the bass, and I think the bass lines and bass playing are fine.
As for the lyrics, they’re a bit more difficult to understand.The lyrics say that diamonds on the soles of one’s shoes is one way to lose one’s walking blues. That creates the impression that some wasteful extravagance can ease the struggles and pain of life.
Perhaps this aligns with the second verse:
The narrator takes her for granted because she’s overly extravagant and perhaps not a serious person. Maybe?
But in the third verse, the song introduces a new character, a guy without money pursuing the woman.
“Sleeping in a doorway” made me wonder if the woman was a prostitute, not a weathly person, but I’m not sure if this is right. The verse ends with both of them wearing diamonds on the soles of their shoes suggests that they’re both happy and “rich”–but not in material wealth, but love–and maybe that love is so bountiful that they can wear it on the “soles of their shoes.”
(By the way, I don’t know what to make of “sign of a teaspoon” and “sign of a wave.” I thought this referred to gestures of the upper class or even royalty, but that’s probably wrong.)
This section is followed by a variation on the chorus:
“Everybody knows what I’m talking about” feels like irony as it’s actually not that clear what he’s talking about on one level, but it’s also an indication that a shift in meaning–namely, “diamonds” as a symbol of material wealth has become a symbol of a more internal, emotional type of wealth.
Here the narrator sings this part. I should note that the narrator seems like a prominent character in the song, first “appearing” when the woman accuses him of taking her for granted. So maybe he’s a guy she eventually left (when she put the car keys in his pocket?) Because he’s singing the verse above, maybe he has gained the new understanding of “diamonds.”
“I’ve Got Sand in My Shoes” (written by Arthur Resnick, Kenny Young; performed by The Drifters)
A “sequel” to “Under the Boardwalk,” where the narrator reminisces about that time. Both the music and lyrics reference the first song, manifested in both the music and the lyrics (e.g., “how we fell in love down by the sea“). Also, just like “Under,” I really like the singing in this.
“Boots” (written by Andrews Haas, Ian Franzino, John Ryan, Julian Bunetta, Thomas Rhett; performed by Thomas Rhett)
Fun, country-pop song, with a good driving groove–about a guy whose girlfriend “likes him better in boots” (as opposed to other footwear).
Certain parts of the song features speeded-up singing, which turboed the song forward in a way that I liked. Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Stop the Fire” is like this as well. (Other songs?)
“Nothing But Flowers” (written and performed by the Talking Heads)
The rhythm section sounds like an afro-beat group (S. African?)
“My Sweet Pikake Lei” (performed by the Brothers Cazimero)
“Wildflowers” (written by Thomas Earl Petty; performed by Tom Petty)
“Flowers on the Wall” (written by L. DeWitt; performed by the Statler Brothers)
“Forget Me Nots” (performed by Patrice Rushen)