Album/releases that have deeply moved you

I am very passionate about music, an emotional person, and some albums have especially moved me. What are some of the albums that have most moved you, and why? Being in the Prog lounge, I would expect the emphasis to be on albums included in PA' database, but I can moved it to General Music Discussions if it has legs and goes that way. You also can mention individual songs. Not that it should or likely does need saying, but please let's be respectful of how others feel and not negate or invalidate those feelings. This topic is about how it emotionally affects an individual and I want to keep that focus. Each person's experience is rather unique. But feel free to share how you it makes you "feel" in a thoughtful manner (your emotional response that may differ from others).

Three immediately stand out to me at this moment (it's not a topic I put thought into beforehand). Each of these releases not only touches me deeply in some way but evokes broad range of emotions. There is an air of tragedy to all of these and certain regrets (Wyatt was a wonderful drummer and the fall forever changed his life, the others had singer/songwriters who died). By the way, Wyatt has thanked the fall for maybe saving his life as he was so deep into bad vices (heavy, heavy drinker...).

David Bowie - Blackstar. To me this album is a masterpiece, an incredible swansong, a culmination of not just career, but a life. Both the music and circumstances can touch me deeply, and it brings out so many emotions in me. A song like "Dollar Days" and others can give me a lump in my throat.

Robert Wyatt - Rock Bottom. After Wyatt's fall and subsequent paralysis, he truly had hit Rock Bottom, but he came out of that (with some help from friends) with his most defining and acclaimed album. Again, I find it so touching, but also it evokes a strong range of emotions in me, from joy to melancholy, wistfulness...

Fishmans - 98.12.28 Otokotachi no wakare. This was Fishmans last performance with the original bandmembers. It was meant to be a farewell to bassist Yuzuru Kashiwabara, but ended up being a farewell to the frontman, lead singer, guitarist and main songwriter Shinji Sato who died less than three months later. Sadly the great Honzi who wonderfully contributed violin and keys died way too young too, not many years later. Not only does the music move me, and I loved it before I know about any tragedy, but when Sato speaks to the audience his words can take on a more profound and prophetic meaning (seen in hindsight).

And tragedy or not Peter Hammill solo albums also deeply move me, there is a melancholy to his music that touched me, and I will mention the Silent Corner and the Empty Stage as a favourite that provokes an emotional reaction.

Also Cardiacs music can me all the more-so because of the loss of Tim Smith. When he gets angry (faux angry but I think he had a temper) in a performance, say on All That Glitters is a Mares Nest. I want to tell him to calm down. That kind of thing can cause a stroke, and I speak from personal experience.

Not in PA:

Various Nick Drake music. Of course he tragically died and a song like "River Man" and especially "Fruit Tree" becomes all the more poignant. I especially love his Five Leaves Left and Pink Moon albums. There is a melancholy to his music that deeply affects me and having depression and going through some similar issues it resonate all the more with me (I empathise).

And Sufjan Stevens music often moves me., he too has had depression, he lost his partner, relatives, and his health and he sings about personal matters and while his music can be complex, it also can be simple and direct. And there is a sincerity to it. Something like "Fourth of July" touches me as one example. But his music bring on a slew of emotions.

And an album like The Antlers' Hospice: Such a sad album that I can relate to, especially with my experience with my parents.

Edited by Logan - Yesterday at 12:48

Logos - Sadako e le Mille Gru di Carta

Maybe because my daughter was about the same age of Sadako when the album was released, and she plays her same sport.

There's a huge number of songs able to move me, anyway.
Being Italian I can appreciate the poetry of Fabrizio De Andre'.

Out of Italy, the last video of Obiymy Doschu is quite moving

^^ Thanks for sharing the relation with your daughter, Luca. I have certain things that really resonate all the more with me due to time spent with my children listening to them, watching them, or because it reminds me of them. With my young daughter, I was listening to lot of Italian music, and especially Le Orme brings me back to the preschool times. And then when she was in grade one with me sitting on the lawn with me listening to Henry Cow's Western Culture (that was the time the album clicked for me) as she played in the school playground. The Wiggles is special to me due to the time I spent watching that with her, and the concert was very good (but I preferred The Wiggles with Greg and he had left due to health reasons). Lots of nice memories...

Other than that, I would watch Doctor Who with her, and that was special.

^ And Lau, those Cardiacs albums and Anabelas are a few of my favourite albums. Like and know all of those well other than Death. Those resonate strongly with me, and so does that KC, especially "Epitaph" which is so wonderful. And The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour may be my favourite Beatles album, and in my case brings me back to my childhood as I loved it then (I was not born yet when it was made). It makes me feel nostalgic.

While I discovered it much later, an album like Serge Gainsbourg's Histoire de Melody Nelson (which I falsely remembered adding to PA) also makes me feel nostalgic and yearn for a time and place that I did not experience even though the questionable subject matter (young girls) is not what I yearn for. I'm happy with, relative to me, younger girls. A joke if my wife reads this (she's a little older than me, but looks younger).

An album that touches me more because it was what I was listening to a lot during a certain time is Khan's Space Shanty.

On another note, while I am happy for people to like what they like and dislike what they dislike (with various exceptions) sometimes I have been quite defensive when people have been dismissive of albums I find poignant and emotionally resonant and where I think it insensitive to casually pooh-pooh/ dismiss/ give a thumbs down to the albums given circumstances surrounding the release. David Bowie's Blackstar and Robert Wyatt's Rock Bottom have elicited a strong reaction from me when people have called the albums weak/ bad or whatever (usually done very nonchalantly). To me that has seemed lacking in empathy, lacking in humanity, and lacking in perspective often given context.

Edited by Logan - 16 hours 7 minutes ago at 20:33

Let me implement this as an AP poll ...




just kidding (maybe later).


Two albums that come to my mind:

* Kevin Gilbert - The Shaming of the True. Kevin died way too soon, and the album is a masterpiece. Listening to it, knowing that it was posthumously completed, always makes me sad and glad at the same time, by its sheer brilliance.

* Pain of Salvation - Remedy Lane. Almost by the same token, a concept album about a terrible loss and at the same time musically probably PoS's crowning achievement. This reaction sums up the emotional depth: 642_zFYE0tE (watch from 5:00)

Side 2   Carmen. "Dancing On A Cold Wind"