The Stranded List
The stranded list
Over the past couple of months I’ve been obsessed
with two radio programmers both from the BBC and after listening to possibly
every episode from the people I like, and even some people I don’t because apparently
listening to four podcasts of it each day isn’t enough for me. I’ve decided to
take inspiration from both Desert Island Discs, and Desert Island disco and
come up with my own version of these programmers.
Each
week I will be posting an article on this blog and over on Spotify I will be
publishing a playlist under the title “the stranded list”, the stranded list
consists of ten songs that you believe would help you survive when your
stranded anywhere in the world and what these particular songs mean to you.
The series will vary from friends, family
members (only the ones that I like and that’s not many) and anyone I can
basically annoy enough into saying yes into doing this for me.
Now this series has been an idea for a
while always in the back of mind but with college, life, moving back home,
attending way to many festivals this summer and starting my internship I
haven’t really had the time to sit down and think about how this is going to
work and what songs I would pick, because honestly picking ten of your favorite
songs or songs that mean something to you has proven to be well rather
difficult.
It seems every time I come close to picking
my list, another song comes into my mind or another reason as to why a
different song means more to me than the previous one did, I mean the easiest
thing to do would be to just extended the amount of songs but I think that
defats the object, and then the whole idea loses its semential feeling.
All the songs I’ve picked have meaned so
much to me in one point of my life, or the artist has been my favorite, and
even at the young age of eighteen it seems my music taste and how diverse it
is, is shown throughout the songs I’ve picked and the reasons for them (I blame
my mum and uncle really) so without further a do here is the first in the
series of The stranded list I hope you enjoy.
11. These Days by Nico taken from the album
Chelsea Girl
The loveliest of songs
during my massive phrase last year of being obsessed (and I mean obsessed) with Lou Reed and the wonderful band that is
the velvet underground I discovered this song by the one and only Nico,
featured in one of my favorite films, this song hit me with a weird sense of
forgiving and forgetting or a cold winter night, where you’ve got big
headphones on and your looking out of the window thinking your in a film
(that’s what I do anyway) even though I had never heard it before last year,
this song to me reminds me of a time that things were a little bit shit in both
my life and Nico’s herself but listening to the words she saying always gives
me a bit of hope and that hey things aren’t always that bad, plus her accent
and her voice always brings a smile to my face all and all its rather
aesthetically pleasing I would say.
2 2. 30 Hours by Kanye West taken from the album
The Life Of Pablo Of course I had to include the one and only Mr. West a man that has been
in my life since the age of seven when I was given his second album Late
Registration, which was my favorite album then and is still one of my favorite album now, picking only one Kanye west song to
include in this list is possibly the hardest thing I’ve ever done as every song
that almost made it into this list meant something to me in one way or another,
but this song however featured on his latest album (which is a banger by the
way) always manages to bring a smile to
my face, even though it’s a new song it reminds me so much of the early Kanye
the College Dropout Kanye and the Late Registration Kanye the Kanye that I fell
in loved with and listened to constantly (nothings changed 11 years later)
there’s something so nostalgic about the lyrics and the beat in this song that
reminds me when things were simply in his life and mine as well, the song also
does make me want to drive for 30 hours.
3.
Steve Biko by A Tribe Called Quest taken from the album Midnight Marauders
I don’t think I have a
reason for putting A Tribe Called Quest in this list apart from the fact that
it would feel wrong if I didn’t, growing up with a mum and a uncle that are
both heavily into 90’s hip hop sometimes has its perks, and one of them perks
includes finding this gem of an album in a pile of tapes and being obsessed
with it since the age of 13, and this song I think sticks out to me the most on
the album (as well as 8 million stories it was toss up between that and this)
plus I like to think I’m a bit cool when I mention to older people that I’m a
massive fan of A Tribe Called Quest, little disclaimer it doesn’t make me cool
at all even when I tell them I can rap the majority of the album no one ever
seems that impressed by that statement.
4.My Baby Just Cares For Me
by Nina Simone taken from the album Little Girl Blue
I regret to say that over the past three
months ive only just started to appreciate the wonder that is Nina Simone after
hearing my mums story of seeing at Ronnie Scotts I thought I would finally
listen to her and this song stuck out the most to me, as well as the album,
there’s something about this song that I just adore and I cant really pin point
what it is, her voice has haunted me for the past three months and no matter
how many times I listen to her, it doesn’t fade.
5. Thames
Water by Archy Marshall taken from the album A New Place 2 Drown Three years
later and I’m still as obsessed with Archy Marshall also known as King Krule
when I first heard him, even though this song is not my favorite of his it’s
the longest and I think that’s why ive picked it because just picking my favorite
song of his is again the most difficult thing ever, and I think the longer the
better, there’s not much else I can say about King Krule or Archy Marshall
apart from he makes the most incredible music that just works so well with his
voice and I would like a new album as soon as possible really please or just
you know an album every day or something, that would be nice.
6.
Playground Love by Air and Gordon Tracks taken from the album The Virgin Suicides
In
the summer of 2014 also known as my what I was thinking summer I discovered the
wonderful yet ever so depressing film The Virgin Suicides by the one and only
Sofia Coppola after watching it for the first time and weeping for a good two
hours this song has been stuck in my head ever since, (yeah I’m not kidding it
wont leave) this wonderful song has something rather haunting about it, maybe it
could be due to the fact every time I hear this song I instantly think I’m in
the film, this song, means a weird amount to me ,it could be something to do
with the dreamy start of the song and the lyrics that tie in so well with the
film itself and a period of time in my life were I thought I was lux (referring
to the summer of 2014 again the summer of what I was thinking), so of course
this song had to make it on to list due to it being possibly the dreamiest song
ive ever heard?
7. Baby
I Love You by The Ramones taken from the album End Of The Century
You know that one song that always
brings a smile to your face, and makes you sing the words at the top of your
lungs because it’s the most joyful song maybe ever, and you feel that you
should be in some horrendous rom com walking down some road in new york, because
Hugh grant has confessed his love for you, whilst said song plays in
background? Yeah that’s basically all my feelings about this song, because how
could you not love this song or Joey Ramone for that matter.
8.
Me And Mr. jones by Amy Winehouse taken from the album Back to Black Closely followed by my love for the Ramones is my love for the beautiful Amy Winehouse,
much like my attempts to be like lily Allen, (I went through a phrase I’m still
pretty much in said phrase) the same can be said for Amy, and if there’s one
song of hers that can reduce me to tears every single time its me and Mr.
jones, I don’t think any words I write about Amy will justify how talented and
wonderful she was and how incredible her voice is in this song and pretty much
every song of her’s, so again I could not put her in the list.
9.Lotus
Flower by Radiohead taken from the album King Of Limbs Now if there’s one band that can reduce to me sobbing, shaking
hysterical mess it can only be Radiohead, a band that have made me an emotional
mess with everything they do since the age of 13 when I discovered the classic
song “Creep” through a media lesson (the only time I will thank school for
anything) much like my love for Kanye West this band have too many good songs, and
it took me at least three hours to pick just one song, let alone just putting
they whole discography in the list. Lotus flower much like Baby I Love You just
brings me endless amounts of joy, it reminds me of the times I sit with my best
friend in her kitchen just intrigued by Thom Yorke, and is wonderful dance
moves, it reminds me of a time when I played it for a basically a whole month
because it was the only bit of happiness I had, basically lotus flower is a
banger and Thom Yorke makes me cry no matter what.
10. Drive
In Saturday by David Bowie taken from the album Aladdin Sane
And last but by no means least my one and only my ginger haired love
David bowie, again there’s not many words I can write to express my love for
him or the things he did for music and generation after generation of teenagers
all over the world, I think both him and Amy had something about them some kind
of magic because no matter what he did it was incredible, Drive In Saturday
reminds me of a time when my love for David bowie started to grow, all of a
sudden he wasn’t just the guy who was the goblin king and the one who’s songs
my mum would always sing in the kitchen or the guy who’s song was in some film
about being a wallflower, he was and still very much is my everything, someone that I would turn to
when things weren’t that great, or when things were great and I just wanted to
listen to a song about life on mars, I don’t really have a reason as to why I
picked this song out of all the songs he has, I just know it brings a smile to
my face no matter what and makes me miss him even more than I do any other
waking moment.
Listen to the playlist on
spotify link below
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