Godspell.
I rarely put it on when looking for comfort. Or I didn’t used to. I would go for The Mountain Goats- The Life of the World to Come (or more accurately, a Mountain Goats plus other similar stuff playlist with that album heavily represented). But while that made me feel a little more understood and less alone, it’s never made me feel better.
Godspell, I put on when cooking or cleaning. And found that, once I start singing along (which I can’t help but do), I feel brighter and sometimes even more energetic. So now I go for that one on purpose.
My parents had Godspell in the car when I was a little kid and it was pretty much the only car tape (we had an old car with a tape player, but no CD player), so we listened to it repeatedly. So on top of just being a bop in general, it’s old and familiar. Perfect comfort album.
And second of all, oh my sweet curly Jesus, I’ve never actually seen the movie. Just one community theatre production and a few versions of the soundtrack/cast recordings. It looks absolutely WILD and I must hunt it down immediately. Thanks for that!
Anybody who has ever been in that show, as either cast or crew, has got that part memorized. Mainly because I flat guarantee that Judas will botch the lyrics constantly in rehearsal. So you will hear it over and over. And over. And over.
I didn’t expect to see so many classic prog albums here (Yes, Tull, Rush, Tool, Marillion, Jon Anderson, etc) but given the age of folks here and the fact that comfort albums would tend to be from one’s youth, it kinda makes sense.
I am a huge Yes fan, but their albums are too mentally stimulating for me to be comforting if that makes any sense.
I would have to go with either Come Dancing with the Kinks (1986 compilation) or Midnight to Midnight by the Psychedelic Furs
There are plenty of albums I prefer, but Supertramp’s, Breakfast in America evokes nostalgic feelings of carefree days and bittersweet memories of the sweet girlfriend I should have married…instead of the battle-ax I ended up with.
When I’m in the mood for sad comfort, I go with a somber classical piece in a minor key, like Beethoven’s 7th symphony-2nd movement, C.P.E. Bach’s Cello concerto in A Major Wq 172-2nd movement, or Chopin’s Nocturne Op.48 No.1 in C Minor.
In August of 1985, I drove a barely functional, hand-me-down, powder blue 1978 Chevy Malibu from my parents’ home in Birmingham, Alabama to Berkeley, California, where I was about to start grad school. The car had no tape player, and maybe not even an FM radio, so I had a cheap little boom box on the seat beside me (and a ton of spare D batteries in the back seat) with two cassette tapes. One was a mix tape my sister made for me, largely with music that was way too edgy for me (though I did like Laurie Anderson’s ‘Oh, Superman’). The tape I listened to over and over and over on that long drive was The Go-Go’s Beuty and the Beat. I had that album memorized start to finish. If I want to cheer myself up, indulge in a little nostalgia, and bounce around, I go for that.
yes, a long dose of Rush always soothes the savage beast within. And while 1976’s ‘‘All The World’s A Stage’’, especially the 11minute rendition of " By-Tor…’’ mentioned by alovem cures any inner malaise , 1981’s “Exit…Stage Left”, Rush’s 2nd live album is sound therapy for my darker days & nights. Opening w/“The Spirit of Radio”, speeding along in a "Red Barchetta’’ up "Jacob’s Ladder’’ with ‘‘Tom Sawyer’’ in a “Free Will” mode and ending up in "La Villa Strangiato , plus MANY classic 70s points in between, this album is pure rock ambrosia for restoring my spirits.
Everybody has different life experiences and different things that make them feel comfort. This is a subjective thing. Not a debate. Nobody can be wrong about this.
, plus MANY classic 70s points in between, this album is pure rock ambrosia for restoring my spirits.
