I thought I'd share with you Celie's 0-5 month playlist. These are the albums we've been listening to since her first day home. Certain songs mean the most. Some we listen to at particular times of day. Neil Young is always on for taking medicine--Harvest Moon has a way of calming even the most unpleasant tasks. James Taylor is mostly for quiet times, like eating and early morning. Miles Davis is for naptimes and evening, a surefire way to get Celie zoned out and ready for bed. If I had to choose only one album to take along for Celie, Miles Davis Plays Ballads would be it.
Mike likes Jack Johnson, but something about his rhyming bugs me, so Celie and I don't listen to him much. Dave Matthews and Nick Drake are old standbys, always good for a good mood. We play Cat Stevens just about any time, but only certain songs. Some we skip over because they're just too sad. Usually when I'm in the mood to listen to Cat Stevens, I'm not in the mood to remember the time in my life that some of those songs take me back to.
But others, like Morning Has Broken and Can't Keep It In always spark the most blissful, optimistic chord in me that I can't help keep it in, literally: Celie and I dance around the room and sing out loud and generally just enjoy the day.
Mike re-introduced me to Jerry Garcia and David Grisman's acoustic CD that has some amazing bluegrass pluckin' versions of old songs like The Thrill is Gone and Friend of the Devil. These always create a happy place and I think Celie loves the sound.
Amerika by Bo Kaspers Orkester reminds me of Celie's first week home. A mild, funky, go-with-the-flow vibe that very much matched the feeling of our home those first few days. This and Dave Matthews, James Taylor, and Miles Davis were the very first records she heard.
The rest of the CDs in our stack have each been on here and there or not at all, but they still rest in the pile on Celie's dresser along side her stereo, hot pink satin winter boots, a silver brush and comb and a set of number stamps that Mike bought a long time ago.
Other audio staples include WWOZ and 89.9 the Classical station. We alternate between these two, depending on what's on. Only four days after Celie came home Billy Delle, a DJ who sits in on Wednesday nights with a show called Records from the Crypt, dedicated The Ray-o-Vac's amazing version of Besame Mucho "to Celie Violet...New Orleans newest OZ listener." I'd called in the request, a tune I'd fallen in love with not too long after my arrival to the city, a song I associate with the anticipation of Celie. It will forever remind me of late nights driving toward the lake along dark Gentilly streets--past empty houses, feeling adrift in evening daydreams, with a baby on the way.
To hear a clip of the Ray-O-Vac's Besame Mucho, visit the following link:
http://www.amazon.com/Besame-mucho/dp/B000ZMDGTA
