You can enjoy the Planted and Enchanted: Vol. 2 playlist in its entirety on Spotify. Just click on the included Spotify plugin.

Playlist Highlight: The Only Living Boy in New York, Simon & Garfunkel

I have fond boyhood memories of sitting in the backseat of my grandmother’s car as we wore out her Simon & Garfunkel Greatest Hits cassette tape. Even then, their music seemed perfectly partitioned between jaunty “bops” (just try to listen to “Bye Bye Love” without tapping your foot, I dare you) and devastatingly somber songs (I can’t recall the last time I heard the gospel-inspired “Bridge over Troubled Water” and it didn’t send a celestial shiver down my spine).

My favorite piece in their catalog is their 1970 track “The Only Living Boy in New York.” On the devastatingly somber side of the S&G spectrum, the sparse acoustic guitar blends with a lush Hammond organ (no relation) to emit a blended mood that’s the musical equivalent of a sweet and salty snack…chocolate covered pretzels if you will.

I chose this song for this month’s playlist highlight not only because it’s one of my all-time favorites, but because I felt the lyrics were particularly relevant during this uncertain time:

I get the news I need on the weather report

I can gather all the news I need on the weather report

Hey, I've got nothing to do today but smile

In the age of covid-19, a constant barrage of ALL CAPS breaking news alerts, anxious “Costco is out of toilet paper” Instagram posts, endless “oh gosh, what now” push notifications, one too many ignorant Facebook soliloquies from your definitely-not-a-epidemiologist cousin, panicky group texts from your friends, and emails from your corporate leadership team informing you that your day-to-day work life must change immediately and for an unknown time period have all become the norm.

It’s one thing to stay informed, but this air raid of news has arguably as much debilitating effect on your mental health as the virus would on your physical health. If you feel yourself becoming overwhelmed by this content artillery, consider tuning it out for a little while in favor of a local weather report. That way you’ll know if you need to wear a rain jacket on your morning walk or if it’s finally warm enough to break out a pair of shorts. After all, you’ve got nothing to do today but smile; Do-n-doh-d-doh-n-doh.

Playlist Highlight: Tiny Planets, Remember Sports

In 2017, the New York Times published a piece entitled: “Rock’s Not Dead, It’s Ruled by Women.” I’ve noticed. So much more of the new music I discover and enjoy comes from female artists and Remember Sports’s “Tiny Planets” is a great example why.

A jangly, low-fi, seductively melodic, wait have I been bobbing my head to this song the entire time? tour de force, we white-knuckle our way though a tune about a lost love with that special energy that seems to occur naturally after about the third beer.