A Year in the Life: 2013 As Told by the Music I Recorded

2013 was a year unlike any other. For several reasons, it seemed an important formative period in my life- one which I hope to reflect upon and learn from for many years to come. As someone with a mind oriented towards historical thought, I often contemplate the ways in which I can best preserve my own personal history. One of my greatest passions- writing and recording music- has proven a useful avenue in the conservation of my memories of the past.

Throughout 2013, I recorded seven pieces of music with some people who I deeply care about. Each song serves as a reminder of the circumstances surrounding its creation- a brief musical snapshot of my life at a specific time and place. And so, this post will serve as a memorandum of the three hundred and sixty five days that made up the 2013th year of the Gregorian calendar: a period of considerable personal growth and creativity, which saw the creation of countless, invaluable memories.

The Ballad of Jack Frost

An ode to Winter, "The Ballad of Jack Frost" was the first song that I recorded in 2013. It was also the first song recorded as part of a three-quarters complete collection of songs paying homage to each of the seasons. Featuring John Edgar on guitar and Andrew Robie on drums and bass, the song was recorded during a time when my admiration of the Beach Boys rivaled my fascination with pizza. Can you tell?

These Rain Clouds

"These Rain Clouds" was the next song written and recorded as part of the seasonal collection, this time inspired by the rain-soaked Summer of 2013. Performing alongside a familiar rhythm section, I contributed piano, organ, and vocal tracks to the song. While Andrew offered his multi-instrumental talents (drums and bass), John sang lead on the second verse, in addition to performing his guitar parts. As the first C-Chord rings out from the acoustic guitar, I immediately recall watching rain drops roll down the window pane as I recorded vocals on a dreary July morning in a small bedroom in the University District.

Long Black Veil

At the end of July, as we prepared to move out of our off-campus rental house, John and I hastily threw together a cover of "Long Black Veil," which has been performed by The Band, as well as by Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison in 1968. By the end of the hour-long recording session in John's sweltering third-floor bedroom, we'd managed to complete our rendition of a song that I, admittedly, had never heard before that evening.

Harvest

The third installment of the seasonal series arrived with Autumn, when the rain drops that fell all Summer long were replaced by the gorgeous leaves of Fall. "Harvest," with its great triumvirate of percussive instruments (the tambourine, the bongo, and the shaker) interwoven with a finger-picked acoustic guitar lead, became the first song recorded in my new apartment. John wrote the song around a chord progression that he'd originally composed in our dorm room in Baker Hall East, allowing for a quasi-poetic start to our final year as undergraduate students.

I'd Never

The lone love song among 2013's compositions, "I'd Never" was written for my darling girlfriend Samantha. A follow-up to last year's home-made Christmas present, another ode d'amour entitled "Luna," this musical love letter gradually came together over the last two months of the year. For several reasons, both sentimental and musical, the creation of this song sits atop my list of cherished musical memories from the past year. 

Little Cloud

Like "Long Black Veil," "Little Cloud" was recorded in about an hour. That's where the similarities end though, as I recorded the song entirely on my own in my frigid apartment a few days before Christmas. Aside from the jingle bells and the vocals, every sound in the song came from my piano (leaving me to wonder how many pop songs are produced entirely on a keyboard). "Little Cloud" was my final musical act of 2013, a brief (& almost entirely ad-libbed) meditation on one of my favorite aspects of nature: clouds.