Musical Legacy
Is it really August or are you Ju-lying to me?! đ¤ Welcome to âthe Sunday of Summerâ, my friends. Last month, I encouraged us to continue our wellness practice through timeless music, nourishing snacks, and community engagement. This month, I want to encourage you to explore your own musical legacy!
What do I mean by âmusical legacyâ? By definition, a musical legacy is the long-lasting impact, body of work, or cultural footprint that an artist, group, or genre leaves behind. If you saw our last newsletter, I talked about music history and how composers throughout the centuries directly influenced the way we write and listen to music today. For example, I talked about Scott Joplin, aka âthe King of Ragtimeâ, and how his influence in American culture fizzled out just as quickly as it exploded. And we see this trend occurring throughout American music history! For a long time, decades were defined by genres, but we see less and less of that with the rise of artificial intelligence and streaming services that now dominate our world.
SoâŚhow are we going to define our own musical legacy? Letâs dive into a fantastic song and dissect what the lyrics could really mean. A few months ago, our blog highlighted 4 playlists generated by our team here at GSMT. Today, I want to take a look at âI feel calmâ and introduce you all to a more recent song by a fairly familiar group.
The Monkees are a popular band from the 1960s, and brought us major hits like âDaydream Believerâ and âIâm a Believerâ in their heyday. While most people recognize those popular tunes, you may or may not know that in 2016, The Monkees released an album entitled Good Times!. Peaking at number 14 on the Billboard charts, Good Times! was The Monkees highest charting album in 48 years, presenting us with new music from the group for the first time since 1996. On that album, there is a song called âMe and Magdalenaâ, and it sort of became an instant classic. Written by Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard, this hauntingly beautiful song perfectly encapsulates the sound of the 1960s despite being written in the modern day. Letâs give it a listen (track #5 on the playlist above) and take a look at some of these lyrics!
Like most music, the meaning is up to the listenerâs interpretation. While many believe this to be a reminiscing/retelling of a loved one who has recently passed, I believe this could also be interpreted as a daydream of a fond memory from a relationship that is still ongoing. For me, the chorus has a present moment feel to it with words and phrases such as âwill beâ and âwhen.â Itâs almost like it reads âbut know that everything you already lost will be recovered when the next thing happens. And I donât know if I have ever loved any other half as much as I love her right now.â While this could be acknowledging lingering feelings and holding space for that unsettling human experience, it could also be acknowledging current feelings and identifying the depths of the emotion wrapped up in the relationship. Further, I think the bridge is the most intense and passionate part of the song. Using the phrase âalways leaving early and sleeping lateâ mixed with past tense words like âlostâ and âsecludedâ, this could be argued as a retelling of a past moment, painting the image in your minds eye as though you were watching it unfold, or it could be honoring the present moment as you daydream of what's to come within your connection. Once again, the beauty of this is that itâs up to your interpretation. How does this song resonate with you? I encourage you to try this practice! It might be fun to phone a friend and see if you have similar interpretations of the same song. Building your own musical legacy diving deeper into the music that moves you and sharing it with others can be an eye opening experience!
P.S. This practice encourages us to remain present as we dissect the lyrics and spend dedicated time pondering the meaning behind why we like a song so much. Yet another tool in the wellness toolbox weâve been putting together! Happy listening!
References:
Good Times! album cover photo credit: https://open.spotify.com/track/1XxRYmDKuABtbtCozx3pA2?autoplay=true
Me & Magdalena song facts: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Me_%26_Magdalena
Author: Kelly Weaver, MT-BC