My songs are like a three-legged dog – you have to get to know them to have any love for them.
~ Dave Matthews
(Facebook, July 8, 2013)
I’ve been a fan of many songwriters over the years, but Dave Matthews is perhaps my favorite, his lyrics resonating with my unfolding experiences and observations, inner and outer. In the 1990s, when my kids were teenagers listening to the radio all the time, an occasional song would catch my ear and I would ask them who it was by. The answer was almost always “Dave Matthews Band.” So I bought an album and was hooked. Listening to his albums would energize and inspire me to cook, clean and drive up to visit my father, giving me a boost whenever I felt too weary to go on. Most of them were spiritually uplifting to me, or, if filled with existential angst it would be a feeling I knew well.
On my way came up with the answers
I scratched my head
And the answers were gone
~ Dave Matthews
♫ (Spoon) ♫
So I have an iPod with all his music on it, and a large sampling of other favored songwriters’ music, too. I play my whole collection on shuffle, mostly when I’m cooking or cleaning the kitchen, so I rarely get two songs by the same artist in a row. But an interesting thing happened while Toby was living with us. He often popped into the kitchen and asked me about a song that must have caught his ear, and it always turned out to be a Dave Matthews song. It got to be a joke between us. He never would say if he liked the song or not, for all I know he may have been asking in order to find out who that terrible singer was!
When I step into the light
My arms are open wide
When I step into the light
My eyes searching wildly
~ Dave Matthews
♫ (Lie In Our Graves) ♫
But I think now, whenever one of Dave’s songs is playing, I will half expect Toby to come up the stairs, poke his head in the kitchen with a smile and say, “Dave Matthews, right?”
Happy Birthday, Dave!
What a sweet beautiful memory!
You affection for the words and Music of Dave Matthews is a known fact around here. Your blog should come with a sound track!
Music seems to have the effect on most people…
I can think of a few people who would never visit my blog again if I added a soundtrack! The thought has crossed my mind a number of times and it’s probably a good thing that I have no clue how to do something like that. Hmmm… Note to self: ask son about that…
I’ve often noticed you mentioning Dave Matthews on FB Barbara, so knew he was a favourite of yours, and this story about Toby is very touching. He will still be there with you, listening to the music. The love continues, you know. xxx
The love of listening to music does continue, Joanne. Tim offered me a trip to a DMB concert this summer – we missed them last summer because the date conflicted with Dima & Larisa’s wedding – but after a lot of thought I decided we need to save our funds for trips to visit our kids and also his brother in Germany… Love the live concerts but being in the crowd takes a lot out of me.
Barbara – I love the way you shared what Dave Matthews music is like for you: “…his lyrics resonating with my unfolding experiences and observations, inner and outer.”
Thank you, Laurie!
I don’t have any Dave Matthews on my ipod. Gonna have to check it out. Thanks for the introduction, Barbara. Hope your week is going well!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
You’re welcome, Kathy! I wonder if you did check it out… I hope you’ve finished with your big move by now and am looking forward to some more of your colorful posts in the near future.
Beautifully told. Touching memory.
Thank you, Sybil.
What a beautiful memory! The little things sometimes stick with us.
Thank you, Sheryl!
I feel a strong desire to listen to Dave Matthews music and see what you might be talking about, Barbara. 🙂
I wonder if you did, Kathy. 😉
I, too, was introduced to Dave Matthews by my daughter in college. She was so excited to get to go to one of his concerts in Virginia. I like his music. And, I can just picture Toby popping his head into the kitchen asking whose song is that.
Oh, Susan, don’t get me started on Dave’s concerts! The last time I counted I had been to 13 of them! (There were probably a few more.) As I’m fond of saying, there is nothing like live music. My favorite concert was one we went to in Saratoga Springs…