What’s with all this winter mishegas? It’s 20 degrees and I think I’m gonna die, then it’s 50 and I can see heaven, then it’s 15 and I just want to quit. I thought we had a deal, winter? You are supposed to be over! It’s now officially spring and in NYC we’re sort of being teased with nice weather, let’s hope it keeps up. Until then, here are eight songs to help you make it to summer.
1. “Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground.” 1927. Blind Willie Johnson
I feel like I’ve been floating in a never ending malaise of winter, kind of how this song is floating through space somewhere near Pluto on Voyager 1’s golden record. Written and preformed by a guy who puts Cinderella to shame when it comes to having an evil stepmother. His threw lye in his face when he was seven years old, blinding him for life. “Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground” captures the loneliness that long winters always bring.
2. “Goodbye Horses.” 1988. Q Lazzarus
Ok, so this song kind of creeps people out thanks to Silence of the Lambs. Remember Buffalo Bill asking, “Would you fuck me?” But as winter eventually turns to spring, creepiness can be turned into something fun and thanks to Clerks 2, I no longer associate “Goodbye Horses” with a serial killer.
3. “I Blame Myself.” 2013. Sky Ferreira
With my proclivity for using the word “dude,” way too often. I can really only blame myself for still living in NYC (at least in the winter) when I could just as easily do the same thing I do here in California on some beach. Of course, after reading that last statement my mother might ask, “What exactly is it ‘you’ do?” I blame myself, Mom. I blame myself.
4. “Last Train To Clarksville.” 1979. Plastics
This song often plays in a recurring dream I have during the winter. I am standing on my private yacht, which is setting sail for summer and waving goodbye to NYC and all of my friends who are freezing to death there. I then wake up half frozen and blanketless in my bed, having forgotten to turn my loud, annoying, radiator back on before I fell asleep.
5. “Make Me Wanna Die.” 2010. The Pretty Reckless.
Yeah, whatever. I like The Pretty Reckless. I also still like Gossip Girl, so double whatevs, brah. Winter kinda makes me wanna die sometimes but not like ‘Dead,’ die. More like build a blanket fort, watch Netflix and never talk to anyone, ever again or at least until it’s warm again.
6. “Bang Bang Bang.” 2010. Mark Ronson & The Business Intl
So this song just makes it feel like summer and I usually wear it out by November. There really isn’t much Q-Tip does that I don’t like and he’s perfect here. Also, Amanda Warner just sounds like summer. Thank you Mark Ronson. “Un, deux, trois!”
7. “King of the Beach.” 2010. Wavves
I really can’t wait to get a sunburn. Basically every Wavves song makes me wish for summer but “King of the Beach,” definitely tops the list. I really just want to sit on the beach, get drunkish and then caught in a rip tide (which I easily swim out of).
8. “Meow.” 2013. Anamanaguchi
Summer and fun are the same thing, right? So since Anamanaguchi is about as fun as it gets, does that make them summer? Who cares. Let’s just take this 8-bit train the hell out of winter!
By Timothy White. You can follow him on Twitter @TipToTheHip.