Playlists for Time Travel

Saturday is throwback music morning for Elke and me. We have been doing this for years, but recently, we discovered Spotify’s “Top Hits of” playlists that contain songs from albums released in a particular year.

If you pick a year you have already been alive, it is a surefire way to be flooded with memories (so make sure it was a good year in your life). Last Saturday, we played hits from 1981, which sparked a lively discussion at breakfast:

• It was the year Kim Wilde broke. You never forget your first music crush.
• Phil Collins released “In the Air Tonight,” which inspires air drummers to this day.
• Kim Carnes’ super hit “Bette Davis Eyes” was a cover of a 1974 song by Jackie DeShannon. I did not like the song, because it kept Kim Wilde’s “Chequered Love” from number one in the Bavarian charts.
• Both Bruce Springsteen and Rick Springfield released new music. Many in Germany could not tell them apart. True story!

Also, Stevie Wonder released “Happy Birthday” in 1981 in Europe only, where it climbed to number two in Britain. It was part of Stevie Wonder’s campaign to make Martin Luther King’s birthday a public holiday, which happened three years later. As kids in Germany, we were oblivious to that fact and thought of it as a fun birthday song.

Today, we are more enlightened about the profound positive impact that Dr. King’s message had - in the US and the world. While in the coldest time of the year, the holiday is a welcome break from the return to everyday life after Christmas and a reminder to not give up on the dream of a better world.

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Song Pick of the Day

Listen to/watch all seven songs on YouTube. Follow our daily updated playlists on YouTube and Spotify for the 50 latest Song Picks of the Day. Thank you for following us and sharing the excitement.

We have arrived in the new year with the first songs released in 2024. After the holiday break, it feels like artists pull out all the stops, eager to present what they have been working on.

“‘Follow me’ at its core is just a straightforward love song,” says Irish, London-based singer/songwriter Lucy McWilliams. What better way to kick off this playlist than remembering that love is all around with this beautiful, heartwarming song, “Follow Me.”

“Let’s Run Away” and leave all petty chores behind you. And let UK duo SOLAR EYES provide the soundtrack to your mental getaway movie. The cinematic soundtrack channels a “Spaghetti Western vibe,” as the band puts it.

LA-via-Toronto singer/songwriter Abby Sage is no unknown at glamglare. But with her latest song, “Obstruction,” it clicked, and I’m a fan. The track evolves around an abstract mental concept about “a thought that doesn’t leave you no matter how hard you try.” The brilliant video explains it further - wait for the scene when Abby fires a bow with laser-sharp precision:

Pittsburg singer/songwriter Mirabelle Skipworth met a deer in her driveway one night and felt an immediate connection with the animal. A perfect inspiration for writing the beautiful, mediative “The Deer Song.” She recalls: “The contrast between such a commonly seen animal and a deep mysterious feeling made for an interesting emotional concept.”

Caravan Palace is a trio from Paris, France that goes all out on fun, energetic, danceable music. Their new track, “Mirrors,” is about jealousy and the frustration of standing behind a dominating figure. This makes us curious about who a powerhouse singer like Zoe Colotis had in mind when she wrote the song.

“Caustic Cross” is the new dark synth-pop song by Brooklyn three-piece Public Circuit. Singer Ethan Biamont came up with some deep lyrics: “What’s a good gothic synth song without some religious symbolism? Just a good tune,” he explains.

The London-based musician Yodashe attended Goldsmiths in London to study music production. There, she found an EDP Wasp, a rare vintage synth, which she made the centerpiece of her upcoming album. There is no release date yet, but she put out the single “MRKTPLC,” an expertly crafted track about how the need to fit into algorithmically determined categories affects music.

Nine Photos Connecting the Old and the New

One of the many reasons why we love living in New York is the city’s proximity to water, be it the ocean, the saltwater tidal estuary East River, or the Hudson River. That’s why we decided to spend the last sunset of 2023 on the Williamsburg Waterfront, had a delicious seafood-themed buffet at home, welcomed the new year on our balcony with light rain from above, and ventured out again on the first day of 2024 to celebrate the young year’s first sunset at the Hudson River in Downtown Manhattan. Happy New Year!