Grantblings

Puppet Up Toronto Tour Diary – Epilogue – Puppet Up Playlist

I love music.  When people ask hypotheticals about if they’d rather lose sight or hearing I think I’d have to go with losing sight first because audio is so important to who I am as a person.  I love the way that something you hear can make you feel a certain way.  It’s one of the reasons I love producing audio dramas.  Finding the right sound effect or piece of music that fits perfectly for that part of the story will instantly put a smile on my face.

I also love music.  Music can just make you feel some many things.  The right song can make you feel incredibly happy or rip you to your very core.  Puppetry is, obviously, a visual medium but music plays and important part in it.  Puppet Up is no exception.  There’s our opening and closing numbers, there’s our new finale piece called The End and there’s Windy, Java and I’ve Grown Accustomed To Your Face that play a huge part of in the show.  Then there’s the underscoring that Dan, our accompanist, does.  I always get a big laugh when Dan finds just the right song to play after the blackout of a scene.

But there is other music that I really associate with Puppet Up and that’s the music I’m listening to at the time or that I hear while on the amazing trips.  For example, the first time I went on tour with the show was in 2011.  I joined up with the tour in Florida for a string of five shows.  Since I was meeting up with the tour I flew to Florida on my one and then got a taxi to the airport.  While in the cab, Foster The People’s Pumped Up Kicks was playing.  I’m not a terribly huge fan of the song, but when I hear it I always think of that feeling I felt, driving to meet up with the tour in Florida, ready for a week of adventure and shows.

I thought it might be of interest, to no one but me, to make sort of a record of some of the songs that I was listening to while on this recent Toronto Tour.  Here’s ome of the more notable selections complete with YouTube links.

The Hellacopters – I’m In The Band
This is my ‘show song.’  I listen to this before every show to get pupmed up and ready to go on stage.  This and Alcohol by Barenaked ladies really get me ready to puppet up.

Martin Solveig Feat. Dragonette – Hello
This one will always remind me of the Toronto tour, like Pumped Up Kicks will remind me of the Florida tour.  This run we got brand new pre-show and intermission music and this track plays during intermission.  Not really my type of song, but it’s poppy and fun.  Ted HATED this song with a passion and would constantly say, “I think there should be a video of this song where the girl is just running away from that noise.”  By the end of the run Brian had a whole dance routine worked out to it that he forcibly made me learn one night.  Several times we got our intermission ‘places’ call and this song would come on as were standing backstage, ready to go for Act 2.  Everyone would be dancing.  Ted even danced one night.

Neko Case – Calling Cards
Neko’s new album has been on heavy rotation on all my music paying devices.  So many great songs.  This one is my favorite.  From the first time I heard it.  While in Toronto, I heard an interview with her on NPR and she talked about how it’s about being on the road with a band and missing other bands you play with and wanting to be with them.  Love the line, “Looking like you just woke up from making songs.”  Kind of a perfect song for being out on the road and away from home.

Jonathan Coulton – Space Doggity
I love me some Jonathan Coulton. The David Bowie exhibit was in Toronto while we are there. I’m not a huge fan but several of our group are and they went and saw it. There was a lot of Bowie talk and it got me thinking about this song by Jonathan. Such a sad song and a sad story. I’ve talked about it elsewhere on this blog. Listening to it a few times on this trip got me thinking that, someday, when I have the time and inclination, I’d like to create a puppet piece based on this song.

Bleu – Could Be Worse
Blue is my ‘artist of the year.’  I’ve had a song by him in my collection for awhile.  A song I loved (Snow Day).  I rediscovered him through a Jellyfish fan group as a member of Jellyfish sang on one of Bleu’s songs.  Anyway, I love this song.  Rocking, great lyrics.  Good message.

Shawn Colvin – Wichita Skyline
While perusing my Twitter feed one morning I saw a tweet from Shawn Colvin with a picture of the real Wichita Skyline and it got this song in my head.  Great song about being stuck in you life and unable to break out.

Dar Williams – It’s Alright
Listening to Shawn Colvin got me thinking about Dar Williams and this song.  Listened to this several times while in Toronto.  In the hotel and walking around the streets.  THis is a great song and I’m glad I rediscovered now.  Has a lot of meaning for me in this point of my life and things going on around me.

It’s time and I am changing,
Into something good or bad
Well, that’s your guess.

Something about this song just really hooks me deep inside.  It’s about loss and moving on, changed, but “It’s Alright.”  Listening to this song also got me onto Dar’s I Saw A Bird Fly Away.  Another great tune.