Songs That Saved My Life
(plus others that shaped me, changed me and will stay with me forever)
My earliest memory of music actually comes from a photograph.
I’m a baby and my mum is bathing me in a bright yellow plastic tub on the kitchen table of our very 80s-looking kitchen. This was a daily occurrence in our house, and the soundtrack to this ritual was the cassette collection of The Beatles greatest hits.
Besides soaking up the tepid bathwater, I must have also soaked up the lyrics of John, Paul, George and Ringo, because I have always subconsciously known and been able to sing along to just about any Beatles song.
I was listening to a podcast interview the other day and one of the questions asked was, “What was something your parents gave you?” — as in, what’s a positive memory from childhood that you are grateful for now as an adult?
If someone asked me that, my response would be: music.
There was always music playing in our house, whether it was jazz while we ate dinner (something I used to hate as a youngster but appreciate now… sorry Dad!), rocking out to Tina Turner at my very first concert with my Mum, or belting out a Celine Dion number with my Dad in the lounge room.
As a teenager, I would spend valuable internet hours on Limewire, searching for all the right songs to burn onto my next CD compilation. I would then carefully handwrite the tracklist and slide the precious piece of paper detailing my latest musical masterpiece into the plastic front cover.
Fast forward to today, and in my own home with my husband, Spotify and YouTube are our constants. One of my favourite pastimes is curating playlists and choosing the perfect soundtrack for each occasion. And one of the things that keeps our 20-year relationship fresh is the thrill of telling the other about a new song we just discovered.
I see songs as a timestamp.
A way to mark a memory, whether it’s a significant milestone celebrated or a fleeting moment we never want to forget.
Music tells the story of our lives. Who we were, where we’ve been, the people we’ve loved, the days and nights we’ve spent, what we’ve been through… and how it’s shaped us into who we are today.
On more than one occasion, music has literally saved my life.
It has also changed my life and there are songs that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
I want to share some of these with you in this piece.
Because we are all made of stories, and every story carries its own song.
So here’s a little snippet of the soundtrack of moments of my life (so far)…
Coldplay — ‘Trouble’ (from the album Parachutes) — 2000
Ooft, OK. We are going to start at a really difficult part of my young life… and I’m not sure I’m going to be able to find the words for a time that I haven’t spoken in depth about, but let’s see how we go. My early-to-mid teenage years were tough. I grew up in a volatile home, and as a sensitive and emotional kid who also happened to be a chronic good girl and people pleaser, I was in a perpetually high alert state which, as you can imagine, was exhausting. I would find solace in the dark of my bedroom, laying on my bed with the stereo turned up. I’d escape into songs, and either let the words I couldn’t say fall out of my eyes in the form of tears or imagine myself someplace else, in another life. This song in particular stands out from all the rest, as this was an album I had on repeat. Also, the lyrics — “A spider web and I’m caught in the middle” — was such an apt description for how I felt at that time of my life.
Kylie Minogue — ‘Spinning Around’ (from the album Light Years) — 2000
I’m 15 years old. I’ve just had back surgery in St Andrew’s Hospital, where the surgeon fused 8 rods and 16 screws into my spine. I was the youngest patient on the osteo ward and the nurses’ favourite to hang out with. Knowing I was going to spend 8 days in hospital felt like a lifetime, so I asked my parents to bring in my stereo system and set it up in my room, together with 5 very specifically chosen albums that would play on rotation. This song in particular became something of an athem for my recovery. After having to relearn how to roll over in bed, sit up, stand, and then walk… and missing an entire term of school… I held onto the upbeat message that one day I would dance again, and be a whole new me.
Armand Van Helden — ‘Ain’t Armand’ — 1996
Despite the age of this track, it actually came into my life in my clubbing years as a young adult. There was one Adelaide club in particular, Savvy, that would play this track as the last song of the night, before the lights would come up and you knew it was time to head home. That extended opening note would begin to play and the crowd would roar… and then we’d dance our asses off, one last time. This song also (as far as I know) was never officially released and was super hard to get your hands on, so the exclusivity of it made it all the more special to me. A friend actually burned it onto CD for me, and I still have it, which gives me a feeling of nostalgia and makes me smile to think of a young Sonia in a boobtube and mini skirt, feeling joy and freedom in the middle of the dancefloor.
Thievery Corporation — ‘Lebanese Blonde’ (from the album The Mirror Conspiracy) — 2000
One of the very first gifts my then boyfriend (now husband) gave to me was a CD wrapped in red ribbon, and left in my letterbox. This song — and album — was one of his absolute favourites at the time we started dating, and knowing how much I loved music, he hand delivered this album to my home. Oh yeah, he knew exactly what he was doing in those early days to woo me. Obviously, it worked, and we’ve been listening to music together for 20 years. Every now and then I put on this song and it makes us both smile to think of how far we’ve come.
Rudimental — ‘Feel The Love’ (from the album Home) — 2012
This was the song I requested be played in the car as I was driven to O’Leary Walker Winery in the Clare Valley on the day we got married. It had this uncanny effect of being able to soothe me and pump me up, all at the same time. So of course, it had to be my pre-walk-down-the-aisle track. Looking back, this whole album was revolutionary and a total vibe, not to mention the originality and artistry of the music videos for each of the singles released… and still stands as one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to in my life. I can still feel the bass reverberating through my body and the thrill chills of an entire crowd of people jumping and singing in joyful unison, nearly blowing the roof off HQ Nightclub in Adelaide.
The Lumineers — ‘Ho Hey’ (from the album The Lumineers) — 2012
I’ll never forget the moment we arrived in Sorrento, Italy. After a dodgy hotel stay in Rome and a traumatic train and taxi trip to get to the Amalfi Coast, we opened the door to our hotel room… and I burst into tears. It was beautiful. The staff had kindly upgraded us as they knew we’d travelled from Australia and were on our honeymoon. And there we were: perched on the clifftop with views over the Gulf of Naples. This song reminds me of drinking prosecco with the shutters open, as we sang our happy hearts out and looked out over the water. “I belong with you, you belong with me, you’re my sweetheart…”
Hollow Coves — ‘Coastline’ (from the album Moments) — 2017
The very first time I heard this song was when I was unstacking the dishwasher in our Adelaide home… and I burst into tears. (Yes, this happens regularly for me!) I’d just recently shared with my husband my dream of leaving our hometown and moving to the Byron Bay region. This song spoke so closely of that vision: “I’m moving far away, to a sunny place, where it’s just you and me, feels like we’re in a dream, you know what I mean.” We had no idea how it would happen or when, but this song was like a lighthouse for us, guiding us toward our new hometown. Fast forward 3 years and that dream did, in fact, come true. And now, we’re living it.
Ziggy Alberts — ‘Simple Things’ (from the album Made of Water) — 2013
The last song I’ll share with you is another that soundtracked our move from Adelaide to Lennox Head. “So shake the cold from your toes and let the east coast walk you home…” This track was released the year we got married which feels kinda special, and Ziggy has remained a favourite artist of ours. Not only have we called the east coast of Australia home for the past few years, we are also going to see Ziggy Alberts live in concert for the first time next year, as part of his tour of regional towns in Australia. Feels kinda full circle in the most beautiful way.
My gosh, this piece could go on and on…
There are probably hundreds of songs I could write about and share with you, but I’m going to hit pause right here, and thank you for going on this melodic trip down memory lane with me.
I’d love to know if anyone of these songs hold a special place in your life and your heart, and also if you’d be keen to share another song with me that is meaningful to you, in the comments.
And, if you love music as much as I do, you can find me on Spotify and tune into the playlists I have on my profile.
Until the next, play on… and on… and on…
