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Music makes the world go 'round, especially when it's relatable
You may not be a fan of country music, but I happen to love it. I probably spent the majority of my upbringing denying that I’d even consider listening to it. But once I hit college, and thanks to an influential roommate, I learned to love it.
It wasn’t the honky-tonk, boot-scooting, or old Western vibe. And it wasn’t the backwoods hometown, either. It was the storytelling that really hooked me. Country music songs have awesome content. From how you feel after a breakup, to explaining the great things about booze, there is just such emotion, such great topics; it’s a lot of fun.
Different songs have been meaningful for me at different times. Music, in general, means a lot to me. Lyrics hit home. They can reach your heart. They can inspire you. They can sadden you. They can help you to relate.
Lately, (and perhaps it is because she is soon coming to my hometown!) there is a Deana Carter lyric that’s been replaying over and over through my brain.
“I still remember, when 30 was old.”
In a song about missing one’s youth, a loss of virginity, and looking back and how it all becomes bittersweet as you remember those times, well, it certainly resonates as we age. Preparing to send one to college, as one becomes a senior, my mommy days are coming to a day-to-day end very soon. I long for the yesteryears, when tiny tots still needed me every single moment.
Don’t get me wrong. When I was living through those days, I was excited for them to grow up, to sleep in past 7 a.m., to make their own meals. I guess the grass always does seem greener.
I reference music lyrics often in my writing. That’s because there is almost no emotion, or time, or experience, I can’t relate to a song. It plays a crucial role in my life, impacting my moods, helping me get through the difficult, and celebrate the amazing.
My favorite will always be The Grateful Dead, but I’m a sucker for a good country tune. I find their lyrics to be incredibly relatable (just like my Dead). And somehow, when you can tie an emotion to music, it helps you to process.
Some of the best country songs are just amazing stories, in and of themselves. I won’t likely lose my true love to a rodeo accident, but it doesn’t mean I don’t find the song “The Beaches of Cheyenne” incredibly moving. It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve heard it, but when Garth Brooks gets to “Then I don’t give a damn, if you never come back from Cheyenne,” … just chills. It’s moving and sad and deep.
If you’ve never witnessed interviews of the two interacting, you can actually feel the love, commitment, and devotion between Johnny Cash and his wife June, in “Walk the Line.”
“As sure as night is dark and day is lightI keep you on my mind both day and nightAnd happiness I've known proves that it's right Because you're mine, I walk the line, mmm.”
It warms your heart. It makes you get it. It makes you smile. From Lonestar describing his young children in “My Front Porch Looking In,” to “Earl’s Gotta Die” by the artists formerly known as Dixie Chix, I can feel how they feel. I can relate to the sentiment. I find them to be meaningful, feeling-filled, and emotionally charged.
Happy or sad, laughing or serious, there is a song for that. And somehow, country has always been able to capture the emotion best for me. No matter how you find it, nor where you look, I would strongly suggest tuning into music. It has helped me through the good, the bad, the ugly, the giggles, and beyond.
It's always there for you. It will never fade. The meanings may change for you, but music? It’s forever.
