Story Tellers

To paint an image with words is a gift.

A story teller’s ability to transport us to another place, fictional, inspiring, or nostalgic within our lives; to rouse a feeling, or to conjure images within our minds as we hear the words of their tales is something truly incredible.

I have always had an added focus on lyrics. For whatever reason, a song’s words just carry a weight for me. I’m the guy to stop a conversation and turn the volume up as a favourite line approaches in a song. I know that this isn’t the case for everyone, and I know that songwriting isn’t necessarily at the forefront of today’s mainstream music – and that’s totally cool. A bit of nonsensical rambling over a shoulder moving beat can be just as wonderful; that I won’t deny. A catchy song is a catchy song, and that’s great.

A well written story, though – paired with music to turn (for example) poetry or a tale of life to song, well that to me is where the magic really happens.

Story tellers come in all types – poets, movie writers, authors, grandparents. Music to me has always been at the forefront though, and with this, my favourite story tellers have always been songwriters.

This playlist is focussed on my four favourite songwriters: Josh Ritter, Brian Fallon (Gaslight Anthem), Joel Plaskett, and Craig Finn (the Hold Steady).

Now, I make no claim that these are the greatest songwriters of all time. Each has a different style, and I know that all people will have their own favourites – that is the most wonderful part of all of this. That said, these four, to me, are the greatest.

Ritter and Fallon can tell such vivid stories. Stories of life, of love, and of experience. They paint such beautiful images – of all emotions, with words like “if this was a Cold War, we could keep each other warm, I said on the first occasion that I met Marie*” or, “I’ve got a picture of you on the dashboard, so I can feel like you’re watching right over me. I hope some day you’re going to move to the city, ’cause the lights in this town they don’t brighten up anything.**”

Finn and Plaskett, to me, tell different stories. They tell tales of the cheekier side of life, and although they too speak of those heavier emotions, love, loss, and longing – they also play heavily with the fun. Lyrics like “And if you swear to keep it decent, then yeah I’ll come and see ya but it’s not going to be like in romantic comedies; in the end I bet no one learns their lesson***” and “Hey good looking, why the frown? You always look better when it’s upside down. You say you’ve got nowhere that you’re going to, can I go nowhere with you?****”

There are countless songwriters in the world of music, and many I love in addition to the four I’ve mentioned above. A few others I love, sprinkled as well through this list, include: Matt Mays, Ben Howard, Kristian Matsson (The Tallest Man on Earth), and Dermot Kennedy. Not in this list are the likes of Donovan Woods, or Lupe Fiasco. Songwriters are everywhere, and I hope that maybe after this hour and a half of story telling, you think a little more on your favourites. Maybe you’d even share them with me.

To tell a story is a gift, both for the teller and for the audience, and I hope that enjoy this mix I’ve put together. Find a friend tonight and tell a tale – share a laugh and make new memories; stories for another time. It’s a beautiful thing and I hope some of that beauty finds us all well.

*Josh Ritter – The Temptation of Adam

**Brian Fallon – Among Other Foolish Things

***Craig Finn (The Hold Steady) – The Weekenders

****Joel Plaskett – Nowhere With You