Fast Five Friday: Music That Tells a Story

The Rileys are back in Tucson after another great July in the Midwest. Meg and the girls flew home, but I drove with my father-in-law and the dog. On the last leg of the trip, I put on one of my favorite records (is this word outdated in our digital times?), Hollywood Town Hall by The Jayhawks. Memories drifted in and out, mostly the Minneapolis days and other road trips, and all felt right with the world. There's something about listening to great music on the road. It clears out all the clutter and frees my mind to wander. Even though it was only a couple days ago now, this latest communion with The Jayhawks already has a nostalgic feel to it.

A great record is like a book. Each song is a chapter, building on the one before it, all of them coming together to tell a story. Hollywood Town Hall is a Minnesota story for me, and I love every song. You can't say that about many records, and it got me thinking about other records that create a story for me.

In the order I discovered them, here are 5 records with great songs from top to bottom, great individual songs working together to create a story.

5) Born in the USA, Bruce: Springsteen is a master storyteller, and this is his best story. It's the story of looking back and finding the meaning in your life. I didn't really understand that when I was young, but when I listen now, I hear a story of reflection with an eye to the future.

4) Joshua Tree, U2: This record spawned a number of hits, but the songs that weren't radio hits are just as good. When I listen to Joshua Tree, I hear the story of my transition from high school to college, a time in my life when this record was perpetually playing in my head.

3) Nevermind, Nirvana: In a lot of ways, Nevermind tells the same story as Joshua Tree. I graduated from college in '91, and this record feels like a chronicle of that time, another time of great transition. Nevermind was a snarling record, a call to make the transition to adulthood on your own terms, regardless of what others might say. 

2) Hollywood Town Hall, The Jayhawks: My first night in Minneapolis, I walked up to the Uptown Bar and Grill to listen to some music. I'd never heard of The Jayhawks, but I fell in love straightaway, and this record is the story of my years in Minneapolis, a time when I became a teacher, met my wife, bought a home.

1) Day and Age, the killers: Hailing from Las Vegas, the killers know a thing or two about the desert. The desert is an unforgiving place, but it is also a place of unrivaled beauty. Day and Age is a story about seeing beauty all around me, the beauty of creating a family in a troubled world.


I hope I'm not the only one who hears stories in his favorite music. What are some other records that tell great stories?