Songs That Have Stood The Test Of Time
Thanks to history, people, facts and events are documented to act as guides to the new generation. Music, as we know it today, wasn’t always this way. The songs we play today are mainly current ones; trending songs mostly from Billboard’s top 100 and from similar lists.
However, some songs have stood the test of time. Regardless of the age, these songs still put listeners in awe because of their vocals, inspiration, production and even the singers themselves.
Yes, music is transcendental and as such, legendary songs exist and have been made available for the growing generation and its music industry.
So, today, we’ll review some number of songs that have stood the test of time. Songs that every music enthusiast should know because they form the foundation of the music industry. Read on and enjoy!
1. “Closing Time” by Semisonic
This song was written by Semisonic and the lyrics urge customers of a bar to leave when the bar is about to close for the evening. It’s actually reminding customers in a bar that they were done for the day, urging them to leave and that they were about to close.
However, according to Dan Wilson, the more fundamental interpretation of this song is based on the concept of “being born and coming into the world.” Wilson wrote it unconsciously about his daughter Corazon, also known as Coco, who was still in her mother’s womb at the time.
Wilson was going through his first experience as a father at the time that he was writing the lyrics for this song, and the drummer for Semisonic has confirmed that Wilson wrote the lyrics in part as a commemoration of this experience.
2. “Walking In Memphis” by Marc Cohn
This song is constantly played in bars. Till today, it still remains one of fans’ favourites and it is yet another masterpiece that has stood the test of time. The singer and songwriter Marc Cohn wrote the song “Walking in Memphis,” which became a hit in 1991. The lyrics are a poetic recollection of Cohn’s first trip to Memphis.
The song captures a significant amount of the ethos and persona of the local community. It does not matter if you are just passing through or planning to spend some time in Memphis; the lyrics of this song highlight some of the city’s best attributes and attractions, which you should check out.
According to the legend, Cohn experienced a dry spell as he was trying to come up with his trademark music and lyrics. The legendary singer and songwriter James Taylor served as an inspiration for him.
Taylor once explained that he overcame his writer’s block by travelling to a place he had never been before and drawing inspiration from the new surroundings. Cohn found that Memphis was the ideal location for him. Cohn did visit fun places like Graceland, as you learn from the song and one can conclude that indeed, his visit to Memphis was memorable.
3. “Master Blaster” by Stevie Wonder
This is a vision that Stevie Wonder shared with reggae superstar Bob Marley, and it is one that he expresses in this song. Stevie Wonder sees the people of the world coming together in peace.
In this version of the globe, Zimbabwe is at peace (“Peace has come to Zimbabwe”), and the countries of the Third World have been rescued from abject poverty.
Wonder did not write the song as a work of fiction; rather, he sincerely believed that he could accomplish his goals with Marley’s assistance.
They became acquainted with one another in 1975, while Wonder was performing in Kingston for a benefit concert for the Jamaican Institute for the Blind (this would be the last time Marley performed with The Wailers).
They hit it off and talked of organising a massive concert event in which Marley would play his entire album Survival in its entirety, and Wonder would perform his entire album Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants in its entirety as well (both albums were released in 1979).
The plans for the project were scrapped when Marley was diagnosed with cancer. Consequently, the album “Hotter Than July” was issued in September of 1980, and Bob Marley passed away in May of 1981.
4. “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” by Journey
Everyone experiences difficult times in their lives. No one is always happy and smiling all the time. folks grow depressed. And at other times, we may believe that there is no way out or that our situation is hopeless for the rest of our lives.
People who are depressed may, at times, be terrified of being hopeful again for fear that they would be disappointed once more. They may believe that fantasising about happier times does more harm than help.
However, the message of this song is that we should “hang on to that feeling” since there will never be a shortage of opportunities in life to experience joy.
There are other individuals in the world who share our space, and we might discover love in the most unexpected of places. Happiness can be found in such a vast number of different locations.
They might take place in a town on the outskirts of the countryside, in a major city, in the middle of nowhere, or even just around the corner from where we live.
Although there is a great deal of suffering in the world, you should not give up your faith since there is also an unlimited supply of joy, possibilities, and love. This song embodies a great deal of positivity and hope for a better future.
5. “You Don’t Own Me” by Lesley Gore
The lyrics tell the story of an imminent attempt at liberation. The narrator tells her lover that he doesn’t have ownership over her. Therefore, he does not have the authority to direct her actions or dictate what she should say, and he must refrain from putting her on show. She makes a firm statement that she’s not one of the many toys that he could control as he wishes.
The song however can be seen from another perspective. The lyrics of the song seem to be advocating for the empowerment of women. Younger women were motivated to fight for their rights as women and not as slaves or inferior toys in the hands of men as a result of it.
One of the numerous creative works that contributed to the foundation of the women’s liberation movement is this song.
