What song makes you want to write poetry?

I don't want to write poetry. I never want to write poetry. It's not my thing. But when I think about songs that are poetry, I go to Dylan. And for some reason this is the first one that came to mind that I love, though there are so many.

Gotta love some mid-80s CCM rock-and-roll. Feels like this whole record was MWS trying to figure out where the heck his lane was. (This wasn't really it.)

Needed some good working music this afternoon and this hit the spot.

Watched the new Superman movie yesterday and enjoyed the filmmaker's attempt to take the usually over-earnest Superman and imbue it with some humor. Felt like the same sort of modernization and vibe shift happened with the soundtrack as well. While John Williams' classic theme is still right there, it wasn't always in the big bombastic orchestral form.

The version of the theme I most enjoyed in the movie was the ethereal electric-guitar-and-pad version - sort of Explosions In the Sky meets John Williams. The latter half of this track is the best hint of it I could find on the actual soundtrack album. On the whole the soundtrack album is forgettable action movie music, but the ambient vibe take on Williams is something I could get behind.

What's your favorite song about second chances?

I'm not sure if it's about second chances exactly, but this one from Caedmon's Call gets at the yearning of unreturned affection, and the Derek Webb vocals are so good.

A friend pinged me last night to say that I came to mind every time he hears this song. It's a long story why, but it's worth posting the song.

What's a song you associate with your hometown?

I'm not even sure what I consider my hometown at this point, but wherever it is it's a smaller Midwestern town, which is the kind of town Andy was writing about in this song.

What song makes you want to take a midnight drive?

For me, nighttime drives mean jazz. And what better than the opening track from a classic record?

What song makes you feel like you're in a dream?

For this let's go to a track that was my intro to ambient music and the work of Brian Eno. The 30-second sample here will barely get you started; the full track is over an hour long, and blissful in its ease.

I hinted at it yesterday, I should just post it today. The Lone Bellow hasn't stuck around for me quite like I thought they would when I first heard them, but this track in particular grabs me every time. The tight vocal harmonies are wonderful, and it's got just enough gospel vibe to go with the country that when the bridge kicks in finds another level altogether. Love it.