Inspirational Music

I am sure it's not really a big surprise for many to find out that I am a big fan of music. Heck, music-oriented topics make up about 50% of this blog. I am always interested in hearing new kinds of music as well as sticking to the old stand-bys which I am accustomed to hearing. A few of the songs featured in tonight's blog can be considered inspirational, in many ways. At least that is how I classify them to be. They are easy-listening and soothing to the soul. It's not very common to find a song you can just kick back to and mellow out to the message it provails. The songs with great messages within the lyrics end up being inspirational. So, with that being said, here are a few songs that I find to be inspirational in their own ways and ones I really find myself listening to over and over again.

"Fields of Gold" by Sting - This song gets me every single time I hear it. The simple and soothing beat that starts the song pulls you in. I remember being such a big fan of this song when it first came out and then forgetting about it for a long time. I then re-discovered it and became a fan of it all over again. It's a coming-of-age sort of song, which basically talks of an early romance which gradually grows into an affair. It's kind of amazing a song like this that has such a melodic low-key sound, yet have such powerful lyrics. Yes, love is mentioned in the song, especially early. But as we reach the crescendo in the song, it talks of looking back on fond memories while witnessing a new generation develop memories of their own in this "field of gold." So it definitely has this shifting focus from one of youth, love, and romance to one of reflection, memory, and past. Who knew a song about barley fields would end up leave such a lasting legacy for many years to come.

"End of the Innocence" by Don Henley - In my opinion, this is quite possibly Don Henley's greatest song he's ever written. When I first listen to the opening chords of this song - I get to feeling nostalgic, remeniscent, and even a bit teary-eyed as it emotes such a poweful sound. The song's message is actually quite clear - a group of people, a body, or a nation coming to grips with the end of the innocence. Upon reading back the lyrics, I am reminded how this really could be about John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963; how our nation was never the same from that point on. We became a nation in turmoil, dealing with a ton of issues worldwide. Not only that, but it could also be about humankind as a whole. Early in the song, it talks of children being allowed to be kids while the parents cover up lies that go on in the real world. Kids are left to be naive and not have a care in the world while lawyers, fathers, and other adults cover things up. But eventually, the whole world crashes down and even children are exposed to the cruel events going on. It was a song written in 1989, but it still holds such a sobering tone to this day.

"In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins - This song probably would've never been so high on this list if it weren't for the fact that it was played during a gruesome video I had to watch a couple of different times when I was in high school. The video was about drunk drivers and the harm they cause. Innocent people with families and bright futures are killed in an instant from stupid, drunken fools. In the video were images of those deceased, with brains oozing out of people's skulls, limbs decapitated from bodies, and individuals being completely unrecognizable from the severity of a crash. It really proved to be an eye-opening video for me and many others. In fact to this day, whenever I hear this song - I can't get that video out of my mind. The images have faded but the effect that it had on me lives on to this day. The song itself is actually quite simple and the lyrics aren't very long. But the music is what makes this song so powerful. I don't know what exactly the song is about and I guess that can be left up to whomever listens to it. But I really get a sense from the lyrics that it could be about someone that got away with a crime that should've been caught. The only problem is - he/her didn't know there was a witness watching each and every move the individual made. And in some ways, it could be about revenge. Again, that can be interpretted many different ways.

"Dust in the Wind" by Kansas - Another real simple song but the lyrics speak volumes. Just as "In the Air Tonight" is a shorter song, so is "Dust in the Wind." I think what this song really tries to convey is never take anything for granted - which I am sure we all do no matter how hard we try not to. The lyrics state "I close my eyes only for a moment, then the moments' gone ..." followed later by "same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea ..." So yes, take in the present, continue to cherish the memories of the past, but don't take anything for granted because everything can change in an instant. All it takes is one event for a person's life to change. And most of the time, it's never something positive. So no matter how many possessions you own, how much money you have, and how much power in the world you may hold - don't let it get to your head. Because essentially, "all we are is dust in the wind." We're only a small fragment in the universe as a whole.

"What Might Have Been" by Little Texas - Okay, so country music isn't all that bad - especially when you consider songs like "What Might Have Been" which has some very powerful lyrics. The song itself is about a relationship that failed, and the person telling this story is remeniscing about the past and is regretful about not being able to make the relationship work. They hold such good memories of the past - but cannot rekindle their relationship because they've moved on and too much time has passed. As for me, I often think of the song when something you hope so badly for never ends up working out. One such time was when I was in the sixth grade and our school was playing for the state basketball title in our division. Needless to say, we did not win and it really hurt to come up so short in a game with high expectations. Heck, that goes for any team, both locally and professionally that I've rooted all my life for and to see them fail in the end. Basically the jist of it is this, you try not to think about what might've been - because things happen for a reason and we have to try and accept that as best as we can. No one should ever try beating themselves contemplating the "what if's" in life.

So that will wrap it up for now. I am sure as we move along, I'll come upon a new listing of inspirational songs - at least songs I find to be inspirational, anyways. I hope you agree, too. Thanks for reading!