"TOUCH ME I'M GOING TO SCREAM, PT. 2" MY MORNING JACKET (2008)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 11: Louisville, KY

There are typically two characteristics of a good morning jacket. First, a good one keeps you warm, and second, a good one serves its purpose early with no need to keep it on for the remainder of the day. That’s it. It isn’t complicated. In many ways, My Morning Jacket’s music has played that role for me, including this unique song from one of my favorite MMJ albums.

The aspects in “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream, Part 2” that get me going are both foundational and ornamental. At the foundation is a peculiar melody and song structure. It grooves early and then strangely fizzles out as if there’s a power shortage in the recording studio. On the peripheral is Jim James’s voice dancing seamlessly between high tenor and falsetto and an alien-like synth riff that sounds like it’s trying to communicate with us. I simply can’t get enough of it.

“IT'S BEEN SO LONG, SINCE SOMEONE CHALLENGED ME. AND MADE ME THINK, ABOUT THE WAY THINGS ARE. MADE ME THINK, ABOUT THE WAY THEY COULD BE.”

"CONCERNING THE UFO SIGHTING NEAR HIGHLAND, ILLINOIS" SUFJAN STEVENS (2005)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 10: Highland, IL

Sufjan Stevens’ Illinois album is one of my favorite records from the 2000’s. Combining Stevens’ unique storytelling ability, orchestral musicality, vulnerable exploration of Christian themes and the promise of a state project (which turned out to be a joke), Illinois had this sense of gravity and boldness that’s missing on so many albums of that era. It wasn’t trying to be great. It just was. A perfect example is the understated and subtle opener, “Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois”.

Google says there was an actual UFO sighting in Highland five years before this song was released. Whether you believe that or not, “Concerning the UFO” is probably Sufjan Stevens at the height of his state project. The song welcomes you into the moment. One of the most imaginative vignettes on the Illinois album, there’s a quiet wonder to every musical layer—vocals, piano, flute, recorder. Play it outside at night and the music might be just enough to help you imagine the sighting.

“INCARNATION, THREE STARS DELIVERING SIGNS AND DUSTING FROM THEIR EYES.”

"SMALL TOWN" JOHN MELLENCAMP (1985)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 9: Bloomington, IN

Time to drive westward – from a small city in Ohio to a small town in Indiana. When John Mellencamp wrote this song, he wanted to capture the notion that you didn’t have to live in a big city to live it up. “Small Town” was about his simple, yet idyllic experience growing up in Bloomington. More than that, it’s a song about embracing your roots and community instead of trying to escape it.

I remember the first time I heard “Small Town” was seeing the video on MTV. It was a big year for music. And John Mellencamp’s heartland-fueled rock wasn’t exactly my cup of tea. But I loved this song right away – and I never ever got sick of it. In some ways, it’s one of the sincerest, most unpretentious rock songs ever written and recorded. And that means something. It’s human. And, with that, somehow it seems “Small Town” is like the definition and antithesis of rock ‘n roll all at once.

“Educated in a small town. Taught to fear of Jesus in a small town. Used to daydream in that small town. Another boring romantic, that's me.”

"BLOODBUZZ OHIO" THE NATIONAL (2010)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 8: Cincinnati, OH

I have no direct ties to the state of Ohio. And I still have no idea what exactly a bloodbuzz is. But from the first time I heard it, I’ve always had a strong affinity for “Bloodbuzz Ohio”. It’s one of my favorite National tracks of all time. This is a song that I’ve never grown tired of. It never lost its luster after all this time. And when I see the band play live, it’s one of the songs I look forward to hearing the most on the setlist. But, why?

“Bloodbuzz Ohio” is actually not a song about Ohio. While that’s where The National hail from originally, the song is so much more than that. It’s actually a coming-of-age narrative. It’s about how when we return home after a long time away, it’s not just the place that has changed, we’ve changed so much as well. The song reminds us to look back for a larger perspective on our lives. And to see that, while the place we call home may change, there’s always a deep affinity and love for the places we came from.

“I WAS CARRIED TO OHIO IN A SWARM OF BEES. I NEVER MARRIED BUT OHIO DON'T REMEMBER ME.”

"SELLING THE DRAMA" LIVE (1994)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 7: York, PA

When I went off to college, grunge exploded. Everyone and their non-fanatic roommates were listening to Nirvana and Pearl Jam. But the true music fans, we’re devouring Smashing Pumpkins, Jane’s Addiction and Live. Throwing Copper is the album that I remember my college years by. Not Ten. Not Nevermind. It was still rock ‘n roll to me, but it was relatable. And the song that reeled me into the full album was “Selling the Drama”.

The thing that Live mastered as well as anyone at the time was the quiet-loud-quiet dynamic. Several of their songs on Throwing Copper have it as their blueprint, including “Iris”, “All Over You” and “I Alone”. But “Selling the Drama” stood out with its R.E.M.-esque mid-tempo melody before exploding into the chorus. The highlight, for me, was a self-fulfilling prophesy. Being able to see Live play “Selling the Drama” live. They were damn good in the live setting, and you better be with that band name.

“AND TO CHRIST A CROSS. AND TO ME A CHAIR. I WILL SIT AND EARN THE RANSOM FROM UP HERE.”

"ATLANTIC CITY" BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (1982)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 6: Atlantic City, NJ
There may not be an artist more associated with their home state than Bruce Springsteen. His passion, pride, and music are intimately tied to his love for New Jersey. It’s undoubtedly part of the charm with his music. What we get from the lyrics and music often feels like a slice of life from his old haunts. It feels local, not like the global sensation that an artist of his stature deserves. That said, “Atlantic City”, to me, is his crowning achievement and, in many ways, the quintessential Springsteen track.

The storytelling form of song lyrics doesn’t get much better than Springsteen’s Nebraska album. Music and production was stripped down to their minimalist form, putting the lyrics and vocal performance at the forefront. “Atlantic City” is one of the more memorable tracks from the record. On it, Springsteen. sang of love, escape, risk and organized crime. As we listen to the story of this couple driving to Atlantic City, I can’t help but root for them, hoping they find a better outcome than the Chicken Man.

“Everything dies baby, that's a fact. But maybe everything that dies someday comes back. Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty and meet me tonight in Atlantic City.”

"DON'T TALK" 10,000 MANIACS (1987)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 5: Jamestown, NY

When In My Tribe came out, I couldn’t stop playing it. Those songs ushered me into a different world that I could get lost in over and over again. “What’s the Matter Here?” and “Like the Weather” got all the recognition and airplay, well, at least on college rock stations. But the really good stuff revealed itself halfway through the album with Track 6, an unassuming, but peculiar song called “Don’t Talk”.

While every song was gold on In My Tribe, there was something a bit more magical about “Don’t Talk”. Each of the other tracks seemed to move along at one pace and were characterized by a single persona. But “Don’t Talk” shifted back and forth between three tempos. It was constructed with multiple movements. While most of the album had a very straight-ahead folk sound, this song took some more risks, marrying the aforementioned folk elements with a swirly, shoegaze-inspired sound.

“THE DRINK YOU DROWN YOUR TROUBLES IN IS THE TROUBLE YOU'RE IN NOW.”

"PORCELAIN" MOBY (1999)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 4: Fairfield County, CT

My early experience with Moby’s music consisted of devouring “techno” CD compilations and attending the occasional rave. These middle-of-the-night dance parties were fueled by Moby’s electronic vision. They were fun times. But it wasn’t until Moby released Play that I appreciated not just how his music made me move, but how it made me feel. From the first moment I heard Play, I just thought it was one the finest, fullest albums ever recorded, from top to bottom – rewriting elements of soul, funk, gospel and classical, just to name a few of the genres. “Porcelain” is one of the standouts from this breakthrough album.

This is the one track I always want to hear first. Delicate. Gorgeous. Soulful. Not rave Moby. This was a totally different side we hadn’t heard before. And it almost didn’t make it onto the album. Moby’s manager had to convince him this song was more than just “average”. Moby reluctantly agreed to include it. Thank God. Unlike many of the other tracks on Play, “Porcelain” relies mainly on its original synth compositions, not samples. There are still samples, but it’s Moby’s angelic keyboard wanderings and symphony-like chords that steal the show every single time.

“IN MY DREAMS I'M DYING ALL THE TIME. THEN I WAKE IT'S KALEIDOSCOPIC MIND. I NEVER MEANT TO HURT YOU. I NEVER MEANT TO LIE.”

"PULLED UP" TALKING HEADS (1977)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 3: Providence, RI

They’ve come a long way since their days at RISD, haven’t they? Last year, I saw David Byrne’s American Utopia, a brilliant show that combined a series of essays that allowed Byrne to truly connect with us in an honest, simple way. In between these treatises on the human condition was essentially a mini Talking Heads concert. I was in heaven. The show was a testament of two things: the resiliency of the band’s music after more than 30 years and the unique, yet highly relatable perspective of David Byrne. One of the longstanding testaments of this is their debut album’s closing track, “Pulled Up”.

Most of the songs on that record were overshadowed by the Talking Heads menacing anthem “Psycho Killer”. But to overlook “Pulled Up” would be a bad mistake. The song is one of the early blueprints of new wave. The instrumentation and demeanor was unlike anything else out there. Like on several other Talking Heads songs, Byrne’s paradoxical tendencies are on full display, most notably in the chorus. He seems simultaneously out of control and in control. He’s not just singing lyrics, those are emotions and expressions coming out of his mouth. Musically, we get a taste of the unique, boisterous bass playing of Tina Weymouth in lock step with boyfriend Chris Frantz’s ready-steady drum style and Harrison’s guitar riffs that cascade like little electric currents inside our brains.

“I DRIFT AWAY TO ANOTHER LAND. SLEEPING DREAMING SUCH A SIMPLE THING. I THINK OF THINGS THAT I MIGHT BE. I SEE MY NAME GO DOWN IN HISTORY.”

"WHERE'D YOU GO" THE MIGHTY MIGHTY BOSSTONES (1992)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 2: Boston, MA

For many of us, college is where we experienced some of our fondest encounters with music. When I first headed off to university for my freshman year, the alt rock landscape was going through a monumental shift known as the grunge era. Everyone was listening to Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Smashing Pumpkins and the like. But, because I was in Boston, I also got exposed to a thriving era for ska punk through the local outfit The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. My best friend from college – who later became one of my groomsmen – was a big-time Bosstones fan. The culmination of our experience with the band was a concert at Boston’s The Middle East, a basement club that seemed to only book excessively loud, hard rocking bands. I had my first experience in the mosh pit there, but there were also plenty of afternoons in our dorms where we’d crank up the Bosstones on our stereos – and “Where’d You Go” was one of our go-tos.

I’ve never seen the movie Clueless, and I likely never will. But I’ll tip my hat to whoever was in charge of the music. There are some gems on that soundtrack. “Where’d You Go”, even at its peak, was a bit of a minor alt rock hit. But for those who knew it, it has become an endearing song. Repetitive as hell, you can’t help but sing along to it. “Where’d You Go” doesn’t do anything unusual for the ska punk genre – but everything it does it does extremely well. Dicky Barrett’s vocals are practically swimming in gravel. The dueling saxophones and trumpet fly high, while the unforgettable trombone takes nosedive after nosedive.

“Any minute you will show and I'm wondering where did ya go?”

"NYC" INTERPOL (2002)

For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.

Day 1: New York, NY

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.”

"DON'T YOU (FORGET ABOUT ME)" SIMPLE MINDS (1985)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

Movie: The Breakfast Club

Few movies turned the high school experience upside down better than The Breakfast Club. It introduced us to all the cliques, spent nearly three quarters of the movie going through all the stereotypes, and then it flipped the paradigm on its head. The movie ends with Anthony Michael Hall’s character reading his note to the principal out loud: “Each of us is a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal.” Then one of the most iconic 80’s songs comes on as Bender walks through the high school football field, pumps his fist and we go to the closing credits. “Don’t You” was the exclamation mark for the whole movie.

Instantly recognizable from that first hit of the snare. “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” was a turning point in the commercial trajectory of Simple Minds. Up until then, they wrote a fair amount of great music, but not many in the States knew about them. The Breakfast Club changed all that. This was one of the original brat pack anthems. This was one of our anthems. No matter how you saw us. In the simplest terms. In the most convenient definitions. A brain. An athlete. A basket case. A princess. A criminal.

“DON'T YOU TRY AND PRETEND. IT'S MY FEELING WE'LL WIN IN THE END.”

"RUNNING UP THAT HILL" KATE BUSH (1985)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

TV Series: Stranger Things

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 through television 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 during Season 4 in a showdown between Vecna and Max. 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.”

"THERE IS A LIGHT THAT NEVER GOES OUT" THE SMITHS (1986)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

Movie: 500 Days Of Summer

Yesterday I covered a song from one chronically misunderstood band: Rush. Today I’m covering another. The Smiths are also one of my all-time favorite bands, an incredibly prolific band with an impressive album run and intense touring schedule in their short time together. In 500 Days Of Summer, the elevator scene succinctly encapsulates that strong connection and affinity that Smiths fans have for each other. No better song to illustrate that point with than “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out”.

One weekend during high school, I bought the Queen is Dead cassette and then played it non-stop that very same night. The album, along with a small handful of others, helped spark my love for music. A record this good only comes out maybe once a decade. and “There is a Light That Never Goes Out” was the lynchpin to the whole thing. Many great smiths songs seem to be composed of stories of odd, sad characters and stunning guitar riffs by Johny Marr. But “There is a Light” created something moodier, more orchestrated, more epic. I know this is sorta expected, but it is undoubtedly my favorite Smiths song of all time.

“DRIVING IN YOUR CAR, OH, PLEASE DON'T DROP ME HOME. BECAUSE IT'S NOT MY HOME, IT'S THEIR HOME AND I'M WELCOME NO MORE.”

"LIMELIGHT" RUSH (1981)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

Movie: I Love You, Man

Rush fans are an interesting bunch. They are inarguably some of the most devoted fans on the planet. Rush fans possess a special bond, but they are scorned, laughed at, and misunderstood by the masses – just like the band. Which is why I Love You, Man had such polarizing reactions. Many viewers saw the main characters’ obsession with the band as hilarious. Rush fans, however, viewed the obsession as nothing short of awesome. If anything, they wish the deep cuts, or at least less obvious picks, made it on to the movie soundtrack, not the universally known stuff. But c’est la vie. “Limelight” – along with “Tom Sawyer” and “Fly By Night” – deservingly put Rush truly into the limelight for a moment.

Moving Pictures is often cited as one of the band’s greatest records. It’s an amalgam of the band’s prog tendencies (“YYZ”, “The Camera Eye”, “Witch Hunt”) as well as their occasional penchant for straight-ahead rock (“Red Barchetta”, “Limelight”). On the latter, there actually isn’t much “slappin’ da’ bass”. Geddy’s biggest contributions on “Limelight” are singing in a more palatable tone for the masses and working in sympatico with Alex on the melody and instrumentation. Alex has some pretty fine guitar chops on “Limelight” as well. But I’d argue that this song was all about Neil, as the lyricist and purveyor of whatever the drum equivalent is of “slappin’ da’ bass”. There are some phenomenal fills in there.

“Living on a lighted stage. Approaches the unreal. For those who think and feel. In touch with some reality beyond the gilded cage.”

"KISS FROM A ROSE" SEAL (1994)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

Movie: Batman Forever

The trajectory of a song is a peculiar thing. This one started out in a place that most songs don’t climb back out of: the trash can. Seal wrote it well before his debut album, and then tossed it aside not feeling happy about it. By the time he was about to record his second album, he decided to show it to his producer. Together, the two of them resurrected “Kiss From A Rose”. But shortly after the song entered the charts, it fell out. Then, in a twist of fate, it came back with a vengeance, reaching the top of the charts in the U.S. Of course, this second life and incredible success had a lot to do with the fact that it was chosen as the love theme for Batman Forever. But, there’s a lot more to it than that, starting with the fact that there’s just no other song quite like it in history.

“Kiss From A Rose” is as ambitious as it gets. The melody, epic. The musicality, cinematic. The voice, grand. The song takes you on an elegant voyage back in time. They don’t write pop songs like it anymore, and likely never will. “Kiss From A Rose” is like a black and white movie, and exceptionally grand at times. It takes its listeners on a voyage through a caravan of acoustics guitars, synthesizers, drums and string arrangements. But the most memorable part is Seal’s voice. The song display’s Seal’s iconic, soulful vocals with incredible versatility up and down the scales.

“And now that your rose is in bloom, a light hits the gloom on the gray.”

"REDEMPTION SONG" BOB MARLEY (1980)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

TV Series: Lost

This is one of my favorite television shows of all time for many reasons. But perhaps its two biggest strengths have always been the character development and the ensemble cast’s chemistry. These two strengths are on full display at the end of Season 1. Sawyer, Jin, Michael and Walt sail away on a raft. The song for the scene was perfect. Sawyer sings it. A moment of redemption, but a moment of peril is alluded to in the first verse of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song”.

One of my favorite Bob Marley tracks, “Redemption Song” is considered by many critics to be one of the greatest songs by any artist. it was probably the most unlikeliest of his songs. More Bob Dylan than Bob Marley. Most of his recordings had the ability to transport us to Kingston. But “Redemption Song” liberated us. It was stripped of any accompanying instrumentation—not a hint of reggae in there. Just Marley’s beautiful vocals and his acoustic guitar.

“Old pirates, yes, they rob I, Sold I to the merchant ships Minutes after they took I
From the bottomless pit. But my hand was made strong By the hand of the Almighty. We forward in this generation Triumphantly.”

"YOUNG AMERICANS" DAVID BOWIE (1975)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

Movie: Sixteen Candles

Few songs did more to prop up a movie soundtrack than “Young Americans”. It elevated the soundscape of Sixteen Candles with instant credibility. Not to downplay Thompson Twins, Spandau Ballet, Billy Idol, Oingo Boingo and the like, but the rest of the soundtrack has a one-dimensional feel to it. A mediocre combination of new wave hits at best – a couple of solid tracks surrounded by mostly forgettable songs. But the scene in the movie where the family is getting ready for Sam’s older sister’s wedding is put on a pedestal with the Bowie classic “Young Americans”.

Some consider this to be Bowie’s best song. It’s certainly up there, showcasing his ability to traverse various genres. On “Young Americans”, Bowie is all soul. The melody. His lead vocals. The piano slide. The backing vocal harmonies, featuring a young Luther Vandross. And the saxophone flourishes from David Sanborn. On the album of the same name, “Young Americans” is the throwback opener that eventually leads to the album closer, “Fame”, which stands in stark contrast with its post-modern, new wave aesthetic.

“All night, I want the young American.”

"SHAPE OF MY HEART" STING (1993)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

Movie: Leon: The Professional

By the release of Ten Summoner’s Tales, Sting had veered from his rock roots with The Police and toward a softer, quieter musical expression. His previous record. Soul Cages was highly introspective. I much prefer the demeanor of The Dream of the Blue Turtles and Nothing Like the Sun to Soul Cages and Ten Summoner’s Tales. But there are some real treasures on the latter. In the wake of the grunge era, Sting turned to jazz and blues for inspiration – and even flamenco, as he did on my favorite track off the album.

If songs like “Shape of My Heart” prove anything, it’s that, no matter how slow or quiet the music gets, Sting’s exploration of different genres continues to inform his own approach. While The Police found inspiration from reggae and punk, “Shape of My Heart” dabbled in flamenco. It’s a beautiful, classical guitar-driven track with some of the artist’s finest lyrics ever written. Sting used the metaphor of a card player to describe life and love, which gave Leon: The Professional more gravitas as the song unraveled over the end credits.

“I KNOW THAT THE SPADES ARE THE SWORDS OF A SOLDIER. I KNOW THAT THE CLUBS ARE WEAPONS OF WAR. I KNOW THAT DIAMONDS MEAN MONEY FOR THIS ART. BUT THAT'S NOT THE SHAPE OF MY HEART.”

"EVERY AGE" JOSE GONZALEZ (2015)

This month, I’m looking back at movies and tv shows to rediscover songs that graced the screen. The scenes and the music are inseparable. They’re engrained in our heads and our hearts. And they’re proof that the best music we have doesn’t exist in isolation. It attaches itself to a moment or an experience. #SceneSongs

TV Series: Parenthood

One of the most underrated guitar players and one of the most understated songwriters of our time, Jose Gonzalez is one of my go-to’s whenever I want something chill. Over the last several years, my wife and I have made date nights out of his shows whenever he’s in town. “Every Age” is one of his simplest, but most reflective songs. When life moves too fast, it’s good to have a song like “Every Age” reminding us to slow the hell down, take a deep breath and stay grounded with a larger perspective. This is also a key strength of the television series Parenthood.

The song “Every Age” appears in the second to last episode of the final season of Parenthood. In the momentous scene, Amber gives birth to a baby – and she’s surrounded by family spanning four generations. It’s absolutely the right scene with the right song. Together, the picture and the music create a sense of wonderment where life seems to happen so quickly, yet simultaneously feels frozen in time.

“TAKE THIS MIND, TAKE THIS PEN. TAKE THIS DREAM OF A BETTER LAND. TAKE YOUR TIME, BUILD A HOME. BUILD A PLACE WHERE WE ALL CAN BELONG.”