Music as I commute Part 3

I have mentioned in previous blog posts how music is an integral part of my commute to and from work (Music as I Commute Part 1 and Part 2).  I thought I’d share with you a short memory about an album I played for the first time on my way home from work one evening.

When I started my full time working career many years ago I used to commute via train to London every day.  My shifts would start early and finish late and in winter I barely saw daylight as I travelled to and from work in the dark.  Working such long hours and working full time for the first time in my life was slowly wearing me out and the journey on the train was valuable time to read, sleep and listen to any new music I had bought. 

At this time I played my music on a personal CD player (before my brief foray into Minidisc and later upgrading to my beloved iPod) and so any albums I bought during the day I could put straight into my CD player and start to listen to it as I travelled home.

This day I finally bought the classic album ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ by Pink Floyd.  I had known of the album and had seen the famous cover numerous times throughout my life, but apart from a few tracks and excerpts here and there this was the first time I had listened to it in it’s entirety.

I sat at my seat, rested my head against the glass as my face reflected back at me in the dark and as the train pulled away I pressed play.  My exhaustion from work and the gentle motion of the train soon lulled me to sleep and I vaguely heard the music in my dreams as I gradually made my way home. 

Soon enough the album reached ‘On the Run’ and the hypnotic, repetitive synthesizer made me drift deeper into my sleep.  I recall being aware how soothing it was and how I was happy to drift away as I listened to it. 

Then the next thing I knew the loud, discordant alarm bells at the start of ‘Time’ were ringing all around and through my head.  I remember giving a slight startled sound and jerking awake as my heart leapt in my chest and pulse raced.  I had that coppery taste in my mouth as adrenaline coursed through my veins and my fellow travellers looked on at me with confusion and in some cases amusement.

I looked out of the window in embarrassment and tried to get my heart rate back to normal as the other passengers went back to their books, card games and their own exhausted sleep.  Needless to say I stayed awake for the remainder of the album and every time I hear ‘On the Run’ now I am transported back to that time and sometimes I’ll give a rueful smile as I remember how ridiculous I felt jerking awake and being startled by a cacophony of bells no-one else could hear or understand.

Listening to music as you commute can make a strenuous and tedious journey more bearable, but never forget it can also have it’s unforeseen risks!!  Of course that’s no reason to stop easing your journey to and from work with music, I mean…..what are the odds of it happening twice?

Chas n Dave and their English appeal.

I’ve been thinking recently about music that is particular to a certain country or region.  I know that some artists are more successful in some countries than others and that’s not quite what I mean here.  For example, Johnny Halliday is massive in France and the French speaking world, but his music doesn’t sound typically French and is enjoyed by many people outside of France.

The kind of thing I am think of here and which sparked this train of thought are artists like Chas n Dave.  These are a pair of typically English musicians and whilst their music can be enjoyed by anyone, it will resonate so much more with English people and especially Londoners.  Their music is in a good old fashioned pub singalong style and they sing of areas unique to London and England.  They also use a lot of local slang that may not be explained or understood elsewhere.  For example a crowd favourite is ‘Rabbit’, but not everyone knows this can mean someone chattering on incessantly.  So when they sing ‘she has more rabbit than Sainsbury’s’ (a UK supermarket) not everyone would quite get what they mean.

Chas n Dave

Also the style itself is very strongly from London and people in Northern England may not even like Chas n Dave as much as those down south.  Whilst they aren’t strictly cockney, the style of music they play is.

This thinking can apply to other styles and countries and I’m sure Shamisen players from Japan and Aboriginal chants from Australia have more appeal and market in their respective countries than worldwide.

Music is a global language and everyone can enjoy it regardless of your history, upbringing or outlook and this is what I love about it.  But maybe some music will resonate more in some countries than others due to the shared national history, the slang and musical styles they use that don’t translate quite as well elsewhere.

I am sure there are other examples of this and feel free to add your own thoughts here.

Musicophilia

About a year ago I read 'Musicophilia' by Oliver Sacks and I thought I would add and expand upon my original online review for you here.

`Musicophilia' is another readable book from Oliver Sacks that explores the brain in relation to music.  Oliver Sacks is an eminent Neuroscientist who has written numerous books about the brain and how illnesses and injuries can alter the way we experience the world around us.  In this book he explores this theme in relation to music.

A lot of this book looks at neurological issues where the brain stops working as it should and highlights specific idiosyncrasies of music in the brain, things like musical hallucinations after a stroke etc. But it also looks at synaesthesia and perfect pitch and other ways music is experienced or affects the brain that do not stem from injury or illness.

This has lots of case studies and first person accounts to help clarify points raised and this also adds a human elements to what could otherwise be a very clinical look at music from a neurological point of view. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Williams syndrome and found the case studies recounted both fascinating and endearing.  Williams syndrome is a physical condition that affects about 1 in 20,000 live births and whilst there are some physical attributes, this book focused on the love of music and perfect pitch that also typically accompanies this syndrome.

One minor niggle for me is that this book is very classical music orientated, which isn't a bad thing necessarily, but there are other forms of music that aren`t covered in any great depth.  My own tastes in music are so varied it would have been nice to read more about these other genres too.

If you are heavily into music then this book should have plenty to fascinate you, but if you have only a passing interest then there is still enough information in the scientific aspects of the book to keep you engrossed. This is a nice blend of the personal and the scientific and makes for a few days informative reading.

Waiting for Hurricane Sandy

I have a friend who lives in New York and what with Hurricane Sandy bearing down on them we were emailing one another last weekend before internet connection was lost.

Amidst all the talk of preparations and battening down the hatches inevitably our talk turned to music.

I told her a story of when I was a child and how I loved the song ‘Waiting for the Hurricane’ by Chris de Burgh.  I loved the lyrics describing a town anticipating the arrival of a hurricane and the relentless beat of this particular song.  I used to sing this song in the playground and one day as I was singing it a huge storm blew up.  I remember running down the playground as the teachers called us inside and a huge blast of wind gusted across the playground.  I distinctly remember feeling the wind under my feet as I ran and in my young overactive imagination thinking it could pick me up!  When me and my best friend got inside we swore to each other for ages that we had made the storm blow up just by singing the song.  I can also remember standing on a chair looking out of the window humming the song to myself as rivulets of water ran in the gutters.  It was nowhere near a hurricane I am sure, but to my young mind it was a powerful natural event that was heightened by my linking it with music.

This got me thinking about other songs about Hurricanes.  The two that immediately came to mind were ‘Hurricane’ by Bob Dylan and ‘Like a Hurricane’ by Neil Young.  Of course Dylan’s ‘Hurricane’ is a protest song about a miscarriage of justice and not a storm, but it is a great song never-the-less.

‘Like a Hurricane’ by Neil Young is a great, brooding track and I love a video of this that used to play on VH1 a lot when I was a kid.  Young was playing on stage with giant fans blowing his hair all over the place and he’s make his guitar scream out as the song built.  I am also partial to the ‘Unplugged’ version of this song which again is a brooding affair and one I can happily listen to over and over before moving on to the next track.

I guess if nothing else good comes from such violent storm systems then at least their power has inspired some great music.  Small consolation in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy I know and I hope my friend and the rest of the American eastern coastline get safely cleared up and back on their feet soon.