“Closer Than A Brother”
By Josh Garrels on Chrysaline (2019)
This song is one of my comfort-standard hymns. It’s one of those songs that tells the truth in a slow, steady way. It keeps me coming back.
“This Woman’s Work”
By Maxwell on Now (2001)
This is an oldie. I first heard this song on a soundtrack to an 80’s movie. This Maxwell cover flips it into falsetto, giving a tender take on this ode to womanhood.
“Indiana”
By Adrianne Lenker on Hours Were the Birds (2014)
This song is on standby, a circular thrill of comfort. It doesn’t stop, doesn’t resolve, doesn’t pay off, just lingers. Best kind to play on repeat.
“Who Will Comfort Me”
By Melody Gardot on My One and Only Thrill (2009)
This classic, modern lament song keeps the buoyancy and melancholy in balance. This one is a mood lifter, but honest.
“Most of the Time”
By Bob Dylan on Oh Mercy (1989)
I had to include a Dylan song. This one is masterful at capturing the self-awareness of contradiction. We are often both things at once. The clever lines draw me in every time.
“You Are My Sunshine”
By Norman Blake on O Brother, Where Art Though? (Soundtrack) (2000)
O Brother, Where Art Thou? brought bluegrass into every household. This folk tune takes me through all the verses. Another one in this list that soars over cloudy skies.
This story is from Common Good issue 07.