Songs dedicated to all the mothers we lost (a Spotify playlist)
This is a playlist of songs written by artists dedicated to and inspired by their late mothers.
How Many Years, Evergreen, Where Do You Go, and October Sky by Yebba
Abbey Smith (Yebba) has recently performed an intimate and soul-stirring set on Tiny Desk Concert for the promotion of her highly-anticipated debut album, Dawn. Before ending her stunning set, she sang a stripped-down version of her album opener, How Many Years. The following is her introduction of the song:
"This is probably the only song lyrically, I feel fully encompasses the experience with grief. And like the holding on to my mom, embodying--you know--what was lost and, I think kind of returning to my own perspective, I guess."
It might have taken her three long years to finish writing song, but it only took three minutes for her to captivate my heart with this precious tribute to her mother.
Three other songs from the artist appear on this list: Evergreen, Where Do You Go, and October Sky. The first two were written in the wake of her mother's death by suicide.
October Sky tells of Yebba's childhood memory of flying bottle rockets with her mother and brother one autumn afternoon, her move to New York to pursue her dreams, and her unfortunate return to Memphis because of her mother's death, weeks after her SoFar video went viral.
Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me) by Train
The most well-known song from the playlist, "Drops of Jupiter" was written by Train's lead singer Pat Monahan for his mother, who died of lung cancer.
The song explores the idea that our departed loved ones aren't really gone. That they're just out there in the atmosphere, floating and revolving around galaxies, discovering new things about themselves. While her on earth, those who are left behind grapple with the loss, trying to work their way out of the maze of grief. But Pat, in a VH-1 interview, beautifully puts grief in a different light, "The best thing we can do by loss of love is find ourselves." (from Genius)
While our loved ones glide through the Milky Way, we can navigate through our pain and discover something new about ourselves.
No One Knows Me (Like the Piano) by Sampha
Our dearly departed mothers are as alive as the memories we have of them. But when something tangible like a piano connects us with them, that is something special.
It truly is incredible how, even in their absence, we experience the depth and extent of our mothers' indelible love.
Fourth of July by Sufjan Stevens
A description of the song is posted on Genius:
"This song is a conversation between Sufjan and his mother, Carrie, while she was dying in the hospital. Each stanza alternates between them."
In an interview with Pitchfork, Sufjan recollects his last moments with his mother:
"She had stomach cancer, and it was a quick demise. We flew to see her in the ICU before she died. She was in a lot of pain, and on a lot of drugs, but she was aware. It was so terrifying to encounter death and have to reconcile that, and express love, for someone so unfamiliar. Her death was so devastating to me because of the vacancy within me…"
"At that point, I was only interested in communicating my love for her, unconditionally. There was a reciprocal deep love and care for each other in that moment. It was very profound and healing."
I don't know about you, but my last moments with my mother are seared into my memory. Vivid images of loss and love, which always render me helpless and senseless in its wake.
In Heaven by Japanese Breakfast
Songwriting is a gift especially for artists coping with grief. When overcome with such unspeakable loss, words serve as a cathartic release, expressing emotions numbed by grief. Psychopomp, Japanese Breakfast's debut album was inspired by Michelle Zauner's mother. It was released two years after Michelle Zauner lost her mother to cancer.
The album opener In Heaven is one of those ostensibly light and happy songs. But if you dig deeper, the song asks, "Is heaven real?" Because for us left behind, the existence of heaven is a balm that soothes our soul. And in the end, if we're lucky, everyone we've lost along the way will be waiting for us there, in that magical place.
Mother by Ingrid Michaelson
When I was young, I got lost inside a mall. After staying for what felt like an eternity on the spot where my mother told me to wait for her, I started panicking. I searched for her through aisles of denim pants and kids apparel, and when I thought I had lost her, I approached a security guard and asked for my mother to be paged while crying my eyes out. I know, I know. Even when I was young, I had irrational fears. But thinking about it, what scared me the most was not getting lost in a maze of aisles, but not finding my mother. It was the thought of losing her that filled my naive heart with dread.
On her Stranger Things-themed album, Stranger Songs, Ingrid Michaelson explains the story behind her song "Mother:" (from Genius)
"Mother is an amalgamation of Eleven’s search for her mother, Will trying to find his mother from the Upside Down and myself, having lost my mother. It is quite special to me."
I Remember Her by Ingrid Michaelson
In "I Remember Her" Ingrid sings of her childhood home and the memories from that place attached to her late mother.
Hoping these songs, though cathartic in every way, will help you get through another day without the one person who made life possible for you, and in her just being there, made it beautiful --- your mother.
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