This Week's Playlist

It's finally happened. After so long, it's finally happened.

No, we're not out of a drought yet. And no, gas prices haven't fallen back to $3.90.

Finally, someone has taken me up on my offer to submit their own Playlist.

As I throw in each week in my music column, I'm always on the lookout for those with a different view than mine when it comes to music and I'm more than happy to swap out my "Playlist" for their own.

This week, after more than a year, someone's taken me up on the offer. Namely, The Shelby Star's education reporter, Cherish Wilson.

And the offer still stands. Have your own "Playlist" you'd like to see in the paper? Shoot me an e-mail at grahamcawthon@shelbystar.com. Better yet, throw in your name and the city you live in so you can get proper credit.

I should preface this week's column by noting the opinions expressed below are not necessarily those of The Playlist or of its parent company, Graham Cawthon Enterprises.

And now for our feature presentation...

CHERISH WILSON'S PLAYLIST

"I'm taking over for Graham this week. And just because it's bright and sunny outside doesn't mean your music has to match. A good song can make you feel happy but it takes a great song to bring you low and make you cry. So, my list is a survey of the top ten songs that can bring a tear to the eye."

1. "WILL THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN" BY VARIOUS, NOTABLY THE CARTER FAMILY
A song about the hearse coming to retrieve the body of the singer's mother? What gets you more than that? Add to it that some of the covers of this song have been sung by the most moving singing groups - The Carter Family, The Gaithers, etc. Well, it brings a tear to the eye every time. I'll hear it every now and then on WGWG and when I do, two things always happen - I never move the dial and, no matter what, I always listen to the whole thing. It's a powerful song - powerful with despair and promise. "There's a better home a-waitin', in the sky Lord, in the sky."

2. "HE STOPPED LOVING HER TODAY" BY GEORGE JONES
I'm not sure that this song would affect me the way it does if it was sung by any other than George Jones. But the lyrics are universal - man loves woman, woman breaks man heart, man pines for woman until the day he dies. Funnily enough, during a conversation with Graham I inadvertently revealed to him that the man in the song dies. Apparently he didn't realize the full implications of the lyrics. It's something I goad our resident music guru about every chance I get. Regardless, it is a very sad song. Even sadder now for Graham.

3. "CASIMIR PULASKI DAY" BY SUFJAN STEVENS
Most of you probably aren't familiar with Sufjan but his music has gotten a good deal of critical acclaim and some mainstream play - his music was featured in the film "Little Miss Sunshine." "Casimir Pulaski Day" is a sweet narrative of budding childhood sweethearts, a bit of young awkward love, terminal bone cancer and the death of innocence on a lot of levels.
"On the floor at the Great Divide
With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied
I am crying in the bathroom
In the morning when you finally go
And the nurse runs in with her head hung low
And the cardinal hits the window"
Tender and doleful, it a song that always leaves a lump in my throat.

5. "HURT" BY NINE INCH NAILS, COVER BY JOHNNY CASH
I'm a big fan of cover tunes, a huge fan of Johnny Cash and for me this song is the best of both worlds. A song of disappointment, self-doubt and heartache sung by a man who knows each all too well, what's not to love. With wife June looking on in the music video for the song, Cash sits at a banquet he can't enjoy, filled with the memories he can't forget. Sung with Cash's post-stroke lisp - it's haunting, poignant and moving. Truly, Cash could have his own list. "Long Black Veil," "Give My Love to Rose," "Man In Black," "Sunday Morning Coming Down."

6. "HARD CANDY CHRISTMAS" BY DOLLY PARTON
Not to go all girly on you guys but this song is just so fantastically done. Dolly sings about a heartache and vows to muddle through it - after all, like every woman, she's been through worse than some fool of a man stepping out on her. Dolly's dulcet tones and lilting voice make any of her slower songs absolute treasures. So yeah, it'll make you cry but it's that good kind of cry. Yes, there is such a thing. Now, "Hard Candy Christmas" almost got squeezed out by Dolly's cover of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." But the rule is "No Stairway to Heaven."

7. "THE BALLAD OF LOVE AND HATE" BY THE AVETT BROTHERS
A band out of Concord that has finally gotten a taste of the big time, The Avett Brothers are unique blend of folk, rock and a bit of slightly atonal spoken word. I love their bouncy stuff but "The Ballad of Love and Hate" from their Emotionalism album really shocked me by being not only very deep and very well done but it showed a maturity I hadn't heard in the band's lyrics before.
"Love arrives safely with suitcase in tow.
Carrying with her the good things we know.
A reason to live and a reason to grow.
To trust. To hope. To care.
Hate sits alone on the hood of his car.
Without much regard to the moon or the stars.
Lazily killing the last of a jar
of the strongest stuff you can drink."
If you've not heard them before, and you're a fan of newgrassy music, you should check The Avett Brothers out.

8. "THIS WOMAN'S WORK" BY KATE BUSH
Say what you like about Kate Bush - yes, there is sometime some keening, a little wailing and a fair amount of flailing. But it's Kate Bush for crying out loud. That's part of her appeal. "This Woman's Work" is one of those songs that likely gets to every woman who's ever had "one of those days" and we all have.

9. "KING OF BOHEMIA" COVER BY LINDA RONSTADT
Another cover tune, of course. Ronstadt manages to sound full of the comfort offered in the lyrics - she will rock you in her arms and hold you safe and small. It's a tearjerker for a few reasons - most everyone can identify with being tested and puzzled by the blessings we have. I'll admit, it is more potent after a hard day of dashed hopes or even burnt casseroles.
"Did your dreams die young?
Were they too hard won?
Did you reach too high and fall?
And there is no rest
For the ones God blessed
And He blessed you best of all."

10. "WILD HORSES" COVER BY THE SUNDAYS
Don't get me wrong, I love the Rolling Stones - "Angie" would make an appearance on this list if I had just a little more space - but The Sundays' cover is a simple arrangement and the vocals are impeccable. The song itself isn't all that dreary - but Sunday's vocalist, Harriet Wheeler, makes it seem darker, with a little less hope in the promises. Anyway, it's another one of those that warrants idling the car until the song is done.
"I know I dreamed you a sin and a lie
I have my freedom but I don't have much time
Faith has been broken, tears must be cried
Let's do some living after we die."

Cherish Wilson is a reporter with The Shelby Star and isn't nearly as depressing as this playlist would infer. You can e-mail her at cherishwilson@shelbystar.com