What Moves You?

Nothing can reach out and touch your heart and soul like a song.

While there are instrumentals that can evoke certain emotions (how many of us had some version of Canon in D for their wedding march?) I want to focus specifically on lyrics.

The picture to the right is from a Taylor Swift concert my wife and I took two of my nieces to. I know I may take a lot of flack for admitting that I went to a Taylor Swift concert, but quite honestly I was just as excited to go to the concert as they were.

Taylor Swift has a way of telling a story with her lyrics that not many current artists can. That's not to say there aren't those that do, but I feel storytelling in lyrics is something that lends itself more to the country genre. I think Swift's Red album is a perfect example of that. Red was a key time when Taylor was making a clear decision to move from the country market to pop. Although I enjoy 1989, and I can listen to Reputation, I don't feel the attention to lyrics is there like it was in Red.

This particular song I feel is a perfect example of my feelings about the album Red. In "All too well" she is painting a very specific story. When I listen to it, every word of it washes over me and moves me on a very visceral level. It is kind of hard to explain unless a song has moved you that same way.

I am a firm believer that the first time I listen to a new album, it needs to be done in the dark, with decent quality headphones. I want to hear every nuance, every note, every lyrical turn with no outside interruptions.

Now, as much as I would love to write a whole post about the lyrical mastery that is Taylor Swift, that actually isn't why I started this post. @slobberchops wrote a great post about earworms the other day and his particular example was a U2 song.

This got me thinking about some of my favorite U2 songs and why I like them so much. Bono has a fantastic way of writing lyrics that hold deep meaning in simple phrases and tell a story in whole or in parts.

My favorite part of this song is right at the beginning. "You left my heart, empty as a vacant lot, for any spirit to haunt". Anyone that has been through a loss of any kind has to identify with that lyric. Whether death, a breakup, a falling out, or simply drifting apart, it leaves an emptiness that you will try to fill with anything.

This might become a series. I am not sure yet. A lot of it will probably depend on the kind of feedback I get. Use the comments Steemians. Tell me about a lyric that reaches into your soul and touches you. Maybe it is just a catchy hook you really dig.

I am always open to being introduced to new songs and artists. Maybe you will share something that myself or another reader has never heard before and thus gain a new fan of your favorite band.

I look forward to hearing what you have for me. If you feel so inclined, feel free to link to a Youtube or Dtube video of the song. Maybe it will be a video of you performing the song yourself!

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