"HEAVY METAL DRUMMER" WILCO (2002)

I generally gravitate to the music first before the lyrics. But as a writer, I still marvel at well-spun verses and choruses. This month, I’m joining the music Twitter community in #31DaySongLyricChallenge

Day 6

That innocent, nostalgic and irresistible look back at a summer. Love. Music. And KISS covers. Lots and lots of KISS covers. What’s not to like? “Heavy Metal Drummer” is one of the more accessible tracks off the legendary Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, but that’s not to diminish any of its merits. The lyrics, in particular, are superb. A story that puts you there on the boardwalk under the hot, scorching sun. I can picture it and I feel like I vicariously experienced it.

“Shiny, shiny pants and bleach-blond hair. A double kick drum by the river in the summer. She fell in love with the drummer. Another and another. She fell in love.”

"SYNCHRONICITY II" THE POLICE (1983)

I generally gravitate to the music first before the lyrics. But as a writer, I still marvel at well-spun verses and choruses. This month, I’m joining the music Twitter community in #31DaySongLyricChallenge

Day 5

As a member of The Police, Sting was many things. A captivating frontman. An underrated bassist. And a sharp, witty lyricist. His lyrics were like poetry one moment, prose in another. The words he used in “Synchronicity II” are some of the most memorable lyrics in rock history. They have the power to make you laugh just as they’re able to keep you settled in awe.

“The secretaries pout and preen like cheap tarts in a red light street. But all he ever thinks to do is watch. But every single meeting with his so-called superior is a humiliating kick in the crotch.”

"CEMETRY GATES" THE SMITHS (1986)

I generally gravitate to the music first before the lyrics. But as a writer, I still marvel at well-spun verses and choruses. This month, I’m joining the music Twitter community in #31DaySongLyricChallenge

Day 4

The Queen is Dead is one of my favorite albums of all time. The remarkable sequencing of the songs took me on a journey that I didn’t want to end. The songwriting was superb – featuring some of the best instrumentation from Marr, Joyce and Rourke – and, of course, the brilliant lyrics of Morrissey. There are so many great lines in every song, including the brilliant ode to literary greats and slam on plagiarism on “Cemetry Gates”.

“A dreaded sunny day. So let's go where we're wanted, and I meet you at the cemetry gates. Keats and Yeats are on your side. But you lose 'cause Wilde is on mine.”

"GOOD RIDDANCE (TIME OF YOUR LIFE)" GREEN DAY (1997)

I generally gravitate to the music first before the lyrics. But as a writer, I still marvel at well-spun verses and choruses. This month, I’m joining the music Twitter community in #31DaySongLyricChallenge

Day 3

Billy Joe Armstrong doesn’t get the songwriting credit he deserves. I believe many music fans have written them off, mainly based off their simplistic punk-oriented instrumentation. But he’s written two rock opera albums as well as this ballad classic, demonstrating a knack for stringing the right words together.

“So take the photographs and still-frames in your mind. Hang it on a shelf and good health and good time.

Tattoo's of memories and dead skin on trial, go. For what it's worth it was worth all the while.

It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right. I hope you had the time of your life.”

"HURT" NINE INCH NAILS (1994)

I generally gravitate to the music first before the lyrics. But as a writer, I still marvel at well-spun verses and choruses. This month, I’m joining the music Twitter community in #31DaySongLyricChallenge

Day 2

Trent Reznor wrote from a place of anguish and isolation. The words are, above all things, real and raw. The lyrics are so powerful, they even took on a different meaning when Johnny Cash famously covered the song, proving that “Hurt” is not just Reznor’s personal memoir, it’s a song that you can make your own.

“I hurt myself today. To see if I still feel. I focus on the pain. The only thing that's real.

The needle tears a hole. The old familiar sting. Try to kill it all away. But I remember everything.”

"SUMMER, HIGHLAND FALLS" BILLY JOEL (1976)

I generally gravitate to the music first before the lyrics. But as a writer, I still marvel at well-spun verses and choruses. This month, I’m joining the music Twitter community in #31DaySongLyricChallenge

Day 1

Words worthy of sentimental yearbook write-ups and tearjerker slideshows. Turnstiles is my favorite Billy Joel album – and “Summer, Highland Falls” is one of the standouts from a lyrical and piano playing perspective.

“They say that these are not the best of times But they're the only times I've ever known. And I believe there is a time for meditation in cathedrals of our own.

Now I have seen that sad surrender in my lover's eyes And I can only stand apart and sympathize For we are always what our situations hand us It's either sadness or euphoria.”

"RUNNING UP THAT HILL" KATE BUSH (1985)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 31

I have to end with this song. The 80’s are the most meaningful era for me musically. It was the decade that I first fell in love with music. And many of the bands from that era are just as relevant to me today as they were back then. It’s my decade. And so there’s no better song to capture what the decade has meant to me than one of my favorite Kate Bush anthems: “Running Up That Hill”, a song that has experienced a resurgence through its appearance on Stranger Things. Because, for me, the 80’s are always ripe for a resurgence in my life.

There’s a delicate beauty to much of Kate Bush’s catalog. But “Running Up That Hill” showed a brasher, more assertive side. On one level, we can simply enjoy the song’s most memorable elements like its echoey drum roll, its unusual synth hook off a Fairlight CMI and Bush’s powerful lyrics and vocals. On another level, the song’s impact on the future of music is something to behold. It’s because of Kate Bush songs like “Running Up That Hill” that we have artists like Tori Amos, St. Vincent, Bjork, Florence and countless others.

“Let me steal this moment from you now.”

"SOMEWHERE ONLY WE KNOW" KEANE (2004)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 30

Hopes and Fears brings me back. A group of friends and I instantly loved this album when it first came out. We heard nothing else like it before. It was a piano-driven form of alternative rock that ascended into ecstasy with these achingly beautiful melodies. What makes “Somewhere Only We Know” more special to me these days is the fact that my oldest son also now loves this song. I will catch him singing it randomly sometimes, ever since that night he and my daughter joined their classmates in singing a beautiful rendition of the song at their spring concert. Their performance brought me right back to that year we first discovered the album.

“Somewhere Only We Know” opens triumphantly and beckons the listener in with those majestic piano chords. The verses start delicately, become more resolute, and intensify further into the chorus. It’s a gorgeous mid-tempo track. I used to wonder why my son loves this song so much compared to many other songs I’ve exposed to him over the years. I think it’s the song’s sense of permanence. Over the last 18 years, the song’s beauty has never faded or become obsolete. If anything, as more generations get to experience it, it has only become more and more beautiful.

“I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin.”

"MEDITATION" JULES MASSENET (1894)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 29

I grew up in a home full of music. My parents didn’t spin vinyl records, but my mom played piano and both my mom and dad sang in the church choir. My mom didn’t have the longest fingers, but she had tenacity. She would play the classics of the classical canons over and over again until she got it right. One of the pieces that I remember her playing was this one, a piece from the opera Thais by Massenet. When my mom passed away suddenly from pancreatic cancer six and a half years ago, my brother and nephew played “Meditation” together in memory of her at her wake. I was bawling. You see, this piece has given me both incredible joy and sadness.

“Meditation” is the only classical era piece to be featured in my #SoundtrackToYourLife series this month. Yet, classical music has played a significant role in my understanding of music. I studied piano for six years – which I believe eventually led to my love for synth-based music. I heard my mom play hundreds of classical pieces on the piano, but Massenet’s “Meditation”, along with Mozart’s “Moonlight Sonata” stood out for its beautiful melody and interludes. Just when I thought i heard the best part, another interlude would follow suit. It seemed to be a piece that was constantly outdoing itself movement by movement. The melody is both beautiful and somber, which, in addition to my memories of mom, might explain why I feel a wide range of emotions every time I hear it.

"ABOUT TODAY" THE NATIONAL (2004)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 28

There are songs that wow us for a time, but then whither with age. And then there are songs that stay exceptional, ones that truly stand the test of time. That’s the case with “About Today”. One of The National’s earliest songs, it never even made it onto a full LP. But because of its tremendous staying power, it lives on today on many of their set lists. While Matt Berninger might crowd surf during “Mr. November”, he, the band and the audience take a far different approach to “About Today”. One characterized by a near stillness and quietness.

The song’s beauty is felt in every note. When I listen to it, I want to devour every note, I want to feel all of it. Bryan Devendorf’s tom hits are like heartbeats inside a lover’s chest. The acoustic guitar and string arrangements are like souls entwined yet strangely distant from one another. And Berninger’s lyrics are sung to his lover only and no one else. “About Today” is not just my favorite National song, it’s one of my favorite songs of all time. The song that I look forward to seeing most on the setlist. The song that hits me the most. The song I might not be able to live without.

“You just close your eyes and I just watch you slip away. How close am I to losing you?”

"MR. TAMBOURINE MAN" BOB DYLAN (1965)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 27

I wasn’t always a big fan of this song – and wouldn’t even consider myself a casual fan of Dylan. But I developed an affinity for “Mr. Tambourine Man” when I became a dad. From now on, this song will always remind me of the time when my daughter Sophia was just a few weeks old. To help her fall asleep I’d carry her in the bathroom with the fan on and I’d sing her this song. She would just stare at me with her wide eyes, barely blinking. Like the songwriter, she was exhausted, but couldn’t sleep. And it seemed all she was interested in was listening to a song.

Though “Mr. Tambourine Man” may be interpreted as a song about LSD, its musicality matches a lullaby through and through. The single note guitar picking, Dylan’s vocals and even the sashaying harmonica parts create a steady lulling effect. When I listen to “Mr. Tambourine Man” again today, I’m right back there on that bathroom floor, helping my baby girl get some shuteye while growing her deep, deep love for music.

“Hey! Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me. I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.”

"HOW TO SAVE A LIFE" THE FRAY (2005)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 26

This song brings me back to a moment my wife and I had while lounging on Psarou Beach in Mykonos. We felt like we were on top of the world. We were on our honeymoon. And we had just discovered the Greek Isles, our new favorite place in the world. A few college kids were nearby, laughing, drinking, not a care in the world. They had one song playing out loud on repeat. That song was “How to Save a Life”, a song that many of us played endlessly back in 2006-07. I remember that day on Psarou Beach like it was yesterday.

The song itself feels like a window into a bygone era. In those early 2000s, a resurgence of piano-based rock was happening with bands like The Fray and Keane. Having grown up playing piano, these bands appealed to me. How they were able to make songs that rocked as well as ballads like “How To Save A Life” with the instrument. This track, in particular, was beautiful in its simplicity – leaning on the piano’s single note arpeggios to dot the landscape of the song, while Slade laments on and on about wasted efforts to save a troubled teen. It brings me back to Psarou Beach every single time.

“I would have stayed up with you all night had I known how to save a life.”

"THIS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE" PAUL MCCARTNEY (2005)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 25

The Beatles are definitely a part of my music journey. But what I can’t explain is, why they were more of a pit stop for me, not the destination. I listened, revered, and then quickly moved on. Perhaps because their larger-than-life pop status labeled them as mainstream, which they were. But I believe Lennon, McCartney, Ringo and Harrison don’t get enough credit for their experimentalism. Their non-hits are some of the most experimental music to come out of that era. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band is as conceptual, daring and unexpected as a rock album can get. Of course, The Beatles are more celebrated for their songwriting prowess. Lennon and McCartney, particularly, are wizards with words and melodies. My wife and I stumbled upon McCartney’s “This Never Happened Before” when we saw The Lake House. The movie left much to be desired, but the song was so good we decided to make it our first dance song at our wedding.

“This Never Happened Before” sounds like the song that someone should’ve written years ago, but no one did. Paul McCartney pulled another gorgeous melody and love song out of his heart and into the song. A simple, but poignant concept. A soaring, accessible melody that you can and want to sing along to. It’s the way the words are strung together that make it so warm and so human. It’s straight from the heart, like so many McCartney and Beatles songs before it. In our first dance, we swayed to the music with friends and family surrounding us. And nothing else mattered.

“I love you and now I see. This is the way it should be.”

"THESE ARE DAYS" 10,000 MANIACS (1992)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 24

Well, I certainly can’t share the soundtrack of my life without covering our wedding day. 10,000 Maniacs’ “These Are Days” is one of the most uplifting songs I’ve heard both recorded and live. I knew its beautiful, energetic sense of optimism had to appear at some point during our wedding. My wife Carol and I chose to include it in the ceremony as the recessional music. Well, I chose it, and she agreed. While my wife did some planning solo, and we did a ton of the prep together, the music selections were almost all mine.

“These Are Days” hails from my second favorite 10,000 Maniacs album. In My Tribe is tops in my book, but Our Time In Eden isn’t far behind in second place. The album sounds like a band that still has its sense of humbleness still intact. But it also sounds like a band that’s confident in its evolution. I love all the songs, but “These Are Days” is the one that stirs my emotions the most. Natalie Merchant sings with a sense of bewilderment. Buck – who co-wrote the song with Merchant – along with Drew, Gustafson and Augustyniak, ooze with merriment and wonder, each contributing signature instrumental elements to one of my favorite 10,000 Maniacs anthems.

“It's true that you are touched by something that will grow and bloom in you.”

"SILENCE" JARS OF CLAY (2002)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 23

One weekend during my early 30’s, I remember getting away for a weekend in D.C. I wasn’t necessarily looking to escape. I think I was searching for something. Looking back, I remember I was looking for some kind of sign from God following a failed relationship. I needed to be reminded once again that the creator of the universe didn’t fall by the way side, or suddenly become an entity too busy to deal with the little details of our lives. Music helped me through this voyage – specifically a lesser known album called The Eleventh Hour by Jars of Clay. It was just one weekend, but the album – and the song “Silence”, in particular – is a significant part of my life’s soundtrack.

“Silence” is that rare song that’s about both faith and doubt. It’s a song that has more questions than answers. And the key question is: “Where are you?” It’s a line that’s sung over and over and over again. Looking back now at how gripping this song was to me, I realize that the question isn’t posed simply to receive a response. It’s a lament. The question is almost rhetorical in nature. It seems a bit brash to be saying that to the God of the universe. But the vocals, the instruments and a constant record-spinning static effect all seem to be calling out to God in this way, because He is God, and He can take it. I never experienced a song – or really anything – quite like it before.

“I got a question. ‘Where are you?’?

"NYC" INTERPOL (2002)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 22

The first two albums from Interpol comprise one of the greatest two-year stretches in modern music history. That’s not an exaggeration. Turn On The Bright Lights is universally viewed as one of the finest albums of the 21st century. And many Interpol fans would argue that Antics is even better. More cohesive. More confident. Antics is a sign of a band firing on all cylinders. Musically, “NYC” is not my favorite Interpol song. However, it’s the one track that I’ve felt most attached to. NYC, after all, has been my home for the past 25 years. And it’s where the band met and first made a name for themselves by playing at small venues in the Lower Eastside. This is a song about my city that I truly get and can relate to.

The song begins like an ending. It doesn’t depict the city’s bright lights. If anything, it shines a bright light on the dark underbelly of the city. The opening line is one of Paul Banks’ finest: “I had seven faces. Thought I knew which one to wear.” Anyone who’s lived in the city for a few years can understand this honest sentiment. Daniel Kessler’s grating guitar riff is an outpouring of emotion. And on the original recording, Carlos D and Fogarino man a rhythm section that reminds me of walking city streets where, with great effort, we manage to put one foot ahead of the other. My love-hate relationship with this city, expressed beautifully and hauntingly in one of Interpol’s signature tracks.

“I had seven faces. Thought I knew which one to wear.”

"BLESSED BE YOUR NAME" MATT REDMAN (2002)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 21

My love for music, in many ways, started in the pews of churches. I attended services as a kid because it’s what my family did on Sundays. Then after college, I realized I actually liked church – and started going on my own volition. Faith in Jesus Christ became something I found tremendous meaning and purpose in. It was no longer just head knowledge. And music played a big role in this personal discovery and journey. I’ve discovered some incredibly moving and beautiful music through church – and Matt Redman’s “Blessed Be Your Name” is one of them.

It’s hard to think of another song that has had as much significance in my life as this one. The melody and lyrics aren’t meant for passive listening. They’re meant for the listener to join in. To absorb the words – and then to sing them back to the Lord. But they are words that are very difficult to swallow. Many people view God as someone who’s there to arrange good things for you when you ask for it. But when bad things arise, they might be dismissive of God – and feel they have no need for him. “Blessed Be Your Name” is about praising his name even when things are at their worst. The song was such a paradigm shift for me. And it has become a guiding force for me, a sober reminder that when things get tough, this God is going nowhere. He’s right there in the thick of the good and the bad.

“When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say, blessed be the name of the Lord.”

"ANGEL" GAVIN FRIDAY (1995)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 20

So much of our life soundtrack is tied closely to love, loss and laughter. Perhaps we look back at our soundtracks and cringe a little bit. How were we so naive? How were we so this or so that? On Day 20, that’s where I find myself. This is the song that a girlfriend and I played constantly. We saw Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet and bought the soundtrack. I was head over heels for this girl. And she was absolutely the wrong girl for me. How ironic that the song we listened to together was tied to the story of Romeo + Juliet: two star-crossed lovers from opposing families.

The interesting thing about “Angel” is that it was written before Romeo + Juliet, despite feeling like it was made just for the movie. The song mirrors the complicated situation that the main characters found themselves in. Like my then-girlfriend and I, they were helplessly in love to the point where it becomes impossible to put the brakes on it despite the impending doom. Flanked by gorgeous swirling synth layers, Friday’s falsetto feels like the whispering angel on one shoulder at times and the deceitful demon on the other. Everything seems ethereal and euphoric when you’re in love. But sometimes there’s something darker and deeper lurking beneath the surface that we’re blind to.

“Angel.... hold on to me, love is all around me.”

"ONE HEADLIGHT" THE WALLFLOWERS (1996)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 19

Truth is, my impression of The Wallflowers was really low at first. I saw them in ‘92 as the opening act for a band that literally exploded overnight: The Spin Doctors. I think we all had unfair, yet high expectations for the band, which seems to come with the territory when you’re the son of a legend. Jakob’s band just wasn’t quite together. But that all changed for me five years later. That’s when Bringing Down The Horse was released, a pub rock record that seemed right at home in smoke-filled rooms in the wee hours. The standout track was “One Headlight”. It’s a relic of the era and, for me, a poignant memory as well. One night, I remember dancing to the song on repeat until the wee hours at a party. We just couldn’t pull ourselves away from the song.

The tinny, yet emphatic snare hits drew me in quickly. And the guitar work is exceptional and underrated, in my opinion. Its bluesy demeanor seemed to thrive in space, creating these incredible intermittent moments before going full force at the 4:15 mark. Then, there’s Jakob, of course, whose voice is much less nasal and much more raspier than his father’s. “One Headlight” has a fantastic vocal performance. The heartbeat of the song, however, is that steady, insistent and unforgettable bass line, which carries the song along in this groove from beginning to end. I remember one night dancing to “One Headlight” at a house party on repeat until nearly dawn. There just aren’t many songs out there that can grab us like that.

“Me and Cinderella, we put it all together. We can drive it home with one headlight.”

"FREE" THE MARTINIS (1995)

One of the most powerful things about music is that it is the soundtrack of our lives. Fellow music fanatic Sharon Hepworth started a music challenge on Twitter for the month of July. Each day, fans around the world will select a song from their life and describe what it means to us. These are my songs. #SoundtrackToYourLife

Day 18

Hailing from one of my favorite soundtracks of all time, “Free” fueled both my imagination and my ambitions after graduating from college. I was living at home and commuting to the city for work. Some of my friends in the area were already living in the city and I was envious of their city lifestyle. The Empire Records soundtrack – and this song in particular – gave me a moment of respite as I daydreamed of life as a city dweller with my own apartment. Somehow these songs became synonymous with my desire for independence.

Hearing The Martinis today I’m pleasantly surprised that “Free” has stood the test of time rather well. The Breeders may be the more renowned Pixies side project. But The Martinis was no slouch in my mind. Pixies guitarist Joey Santiago teamed up with his then-wife to record two albums of unpretentious, melodic alt pop — a far cry from the pioneering two-minute musical rants from the Pixies. “Free” wasn’t the headliner on the soundtrack, but its sense of ease allowed the track to be right at home as part of an ensemble of great rock & roll songs. It was simply easy to get, easy to listen to and easy to like.

“So free for the moment. Lost somewhere between the earth and the sky.”