Song of the Day for Today

The Esplanade Riel in Winnipeg, Canada, just before daybreak; walking to work, I stopped and stood atop a picnic table to get a good angle. Photo taken on an empty stomach, before caffeine, with an iPhone 6s on October 7, 2015 at 6:56 am.
Traditional Lands Acknowledgement

This blog is composed primarily in Treaty 1 territory, on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe), Ininew (Cree), and Dakota
first nations, and the national homeland of the Red River Métis. The clean drinking water that sustains us all comes from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation and Iskatewizaagegan 39 Independent First Nation in Treaty 3 territory. The hydroelectricity that powers my community is generated on ancestral lands and waters in the First Nations of Treaties 1, 3, and 5.

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Welcome…

… and thanks for stopping by. I sure hope you’ll stay here for a while and listen to some music with me.

When starting this website and thinking about what should be on the home page to invite you in when you arrive on the virtual doorstep from anywhere on the internet craving a song (and maybe a bit of story), I stumbled upon this quote from writer Brooke Hampton:

“I hope there are days when your coffee tastes like magic, your playlist makes you dance, strangers make you smile, and the night sky touches your soul. I hope there are days when you fall in love with being alive.”

I’m grateful to Brooke for summing up almost everything that makes a perfect day for me. (The topper is “Sweety,” as you’ll see me affectionately refer to my dear wife and life partner, the one who showers our family with love and uniting devotion. Oh, and riding my bike is right up there, too!) I knew Brooke’s quote had to be part of the welcome to my blog, as it speaks to the value of music and what it has meant to me in my life. Music, quite literally, has kept me alive.

You can scroll down this page to see recent posts. If you want to know why I started this website, please visit the About page. And while you’re here, please check out the Index of Songs/Search page, to find something by your favourite artist among more than 1,550 posts by me, guest bloggers, or Jerry Vanderzanden, a longtime supporter and permanent contributor on Thursdays since February 2025! Also, I’d love to hear from you if you have comments about these posts. You can comment right below each post, or send me a message through the Contact page.

Warmly,

Steve

Other than the music, lyrics, and other quoted/attributed works, the content
on this website is © 2020-2025 Steve West unless otherwise specified.

This website has been opted out from WordPress’s practice of providing others’ intellectual property, without
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Latest posts (click on a song title to open a post)

‘Under the Covers’ Series: Who Knows Where The Time Goes?

Today’s post is the first in a nine-part series of posts on cover songs. This week, from Monday to Wednesday, guest blogger, fellow NYtheSpirit listener (“johnc” in the chat room), and friend of this site John Charlton is sharing one song from each of Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs’s Under the Covers albums released in…

Adagio in B Minor, K. 540

Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. Happy Easter and Happy Passover to all who celebrate these occasions! It has been a while since I shared anything by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), a composer born in Salzburg in the Holy Roman Empire (a Middle Ages political entity covering parts of western,…

If There Is Something

It doesn’t seem I can go more than a couple of months without posting about something by the English art rock, glam rock, pop rock, and sophistic-pop band Roxy Music, or the solo work of its debonaire frontperson, Bryan Ferry (b. 1945). They are definitely longtime favourites of mine. And thinking back to all the…

Center of the Sun (Solarstone’s Chilled Out Remix)

“And she sings ‘They say the most horrible things But I hear violins’” Today’s selection is a piece that played late in last week’s installment of O Canada presented by Live Earl Jive on NYtheSpirit. Anyone following along closely will know that I have not shared much of the music spun by NYtheSpirit’s lineup of…

Jerry’s ‘Throwback’ Song of the Day: Starry Eyes

Welcome to Jerry’s ‘Throwback’ Thursday Song of the Day for Today. Today’s selection sounds vaguely familiar, but I can’t place it or remember the song’s sound, so I can’t wait to dig in and listen. Let’s get to it then, shall we? Over to you, Jerry…. Steve * * * * * * * *…

Oh War!

Content warning: Lyrics contain a cuss word! I mentioned the other day that I had a Zoom meeting with Thursday contributor Jerry and occasional guest blogger John. At one point during the conversation, when discussing memories of Canadian bands, the band name Max Webster came up in the context of it being strange that they…

Positively 4th Street

If you’re an email subscriber and wondered where yesterday’s post went, well, it was a day of full-on technology woes that drained most of the day out of me. But I think today’s song makes up for the hiccup…. Lately, I’ve been reading about and listening to a fair bit of the music of American…

The Triumph of Time and Truth, HWV 71: 58. “Guardian Angels, Oh, Protect Me”

Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. Today, I encountered several interesting classical pieces before deciding on “Guardian Angels, Oh, Protect Me.” It’s an Air from the Baroque oratorio The Triumph of Time and Truth, HWV 71, by German-British composer Georg Friedrich Handel (1685-1759). The title was the third given to…

Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?

Welcome to the 1,600th post on Song of the Day for Today! After a lengthy and fun Zoom conversation this morning with our Thursday contributor, Jerry, and regular guest poster, John, I set out looking for something to share today. A discussion we had was relevant: with all the music out there, plus all the…

Voices on the Wind (feat. Linda Ronstadt)

“And though you are surrounded, feeling quite alone There’s a light to guide you home” This morning, I revisited my ever-lengthening list of possible songs for posting, and after sampling a few, landed on “Voices on the Wind” by the American southern rock and swamp rock band Little Feat. The band was founded in 1969…

Jerry’s Throwback Song of the Day: 867-5309 / Jenny (and a Bonus!)

Welcome to Jerry’s Thursday ‘Throwback’ at Song of the Day for Today. I remember the pop culture and telephone prank-calling explosion that occurred when today’s selection came onto the radio, many years ago. It’s a very memorable song from the early 1980s, and I hope you enjoy the history behind it, which Jerry is presenting to us today. Jerry’s waiting on hold here, so I’d better hand things…

Paris Train

It’s been quite a while since I caught any of the Sunday afternoon six-hour marathon of freeform DJs on the online, subscription-based NYtheSpirit. First up on the lineup at 3 PM Central comes Ivar Hamilton’s Teardown, and I heard several notable tracks on his show. One track that caught my attention partway through the program…

YELL

Some days, you just feel like it, am I right? On Saturday evening, I heard this song for the first time, on David Marsden LIVE at NYtheSpirit. At first, I thought I recognized the punchy electronic soundtrack as something that might be the work of British-born Canadian songwriter, keyboardist and record producer Rob Stuart. Then,…

Sonate Pacifique (feat. Isaac Delusion)

A comment on my post about k.d. lang’s “Constant Craving” from an occasional virtual seatmate in NYtheSpirit’s Marsden Theatre chat room reminded me he had sent me today’s song a few weeks ago. @laurensvg (his chat room handle) has sent me songs before, including the fun and quirky “Farmyard Cat” and the poignant “When Love…

Mina (for Orchestra)

Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. This week, I’m featuring another favourite, the English composer, conductor and multi-instrumentalist Edward Elgar (1857-1934). The modest musician was well regarded as an English composer, whose most famous compositions are Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36, more commonly known as the Enigma Variations, and…

Constant Craving

Today’s selection is, in my opinion, one of the finest of the signature songs by Canadian country and pop singer, songwriter, musician, producer and occasional actress k.d. lang (b. 1961 as Kathryn Dawn Lang). “Constant Craving” is the closing track from her second solo studio album, Ingénue (1992), which, like another household favourite, her ninth,…

Night and Day

This morning, while riding my bike on the indoor trainer, I listened to an episode of the podcast Word in Your Ear, with music journalists and presenters Mark Ellen and David Hepworth. In their latest installment, they spoke with English singer, songwriter, music journalist and co-founder of the synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys.   At…

Jerry’s Throwback Song of the Day: Old Folks

Welcome to Jerry’s Thursday ‘Throwback’ at Song of the Day for Today. This week, instead of sharing from his vast catalogue of music, Jerry sought out a special reader’s suggestion. I’ll bet I am as excited as he is to see what my Sweety thinks of his write-up on one of her all-time favourites. Over to you, Jerry…. Steve * * * *…

Fields of Gold

This morning, listening to random plays, I heard “If I Ever Lose My Faith in You” by English singer, songwriter, musician and actor Sting (aka Gordon Summer, b. 1951). The song led me into a little rabbit hole that took me to today’s selection. “Fields of Gold” is a song I’ve loved for a long…

Everybody’s Changing (Alternate Version)

After a morning that felt like a repeat of Groundhog Day in the quagmire of municipal politics, then a workout on the indoor bike, I ate lunch while heading over to YouTube to see what suggestions it would have for me today, and it didn’t disappoint. The first video in my feed was an alternate…

Chasing Cars (an Update and Repost)

Today, I was thinking about a song I shared in a blog post when this blog was still in its infancy, in February 2020. Hearing the song one evening many years ago cemented it into the soundtrack of life together with my sweety; it played the night before our wedding and was central to some…

The Falls (from the film, The Mission)

Spoiler alert: some details of the film plot are revealed in this post. Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. Earlier this week, in some agreed was an unusual pop-rock selection, I referred to the spaghetti western sounds of soundtracks composed by the Italian composer, conductor, trumpeter, and pianist Ennio Morricone (1928-2020). Today,…

The Mystery’s All Mine

The American singer, songwriter, and guitarist Jules Shear (b. 1952) is a musician I don’t hear often at all on random plays, but yesterday one of his songs caught my ear with its lively melody and wonderful vocal harmonies. I’ve mentioned Shears once before; well, in the context of him being the writer of “All…

Prismatic Spray (The Tinder Date)

I had been thinking, it’s been a while since I shared anything from the heavy metal genre. And notwithstanding Jerry having recently posted what’s dubbed the ‘first heavy metal song,’ it has indeed been a long time since I myself wandered into that land of thrash: last summer was my most recent sharing of an…

Jerry’s ‘Throwback’ Song of the Day: A Criminal Mind

Welcome to Jerry’s ‘Throwback’ Song of the Day for Today.  This week, Jerry is presenting another Canadian artist who made a big impact in the music scene here during my clubbing era in the early 1980s. And I’ve learned a lot from this post about Gowan’s career after that time. Let’s get to it, shall we? Over to you, Jerry…. Steve * *…

Intoxicated

Now and then, the algorithmically personalized streaming channel I most often listen to serves up a new (or new-to-me) song that truly captures my attention. This morning, it was the unlikely pairing of French pop, a kind of film noir sound and spaghetti western inspired country music in “Intoxicated” by the Seattle, Washington, USA-based duo…

Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing

Staying with the 1970s for another day, I spotted this lovely track by American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer Stevie Wonder (b. 1950), and I just had to feature it. The song has a remarkably positive and reassuring vibe; it seems perfectly suited to the current state of the world. From the Latin piano…

Feels So Good

The year 1978 was an interesting one in music. Disco, and one of its top performers, Donna Summer, continued to loom over the charts. Even the Rolling Stones were on that bandwagon, with their disco-influenced “Miss You.” Punk rock was going strong, and emerging post-punk influences would endure for many years, and still do. Meanwhile,…

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Orchestral Overture in E Major, Op. 21

Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. This week, I’ve chosen an orchestral overture, a standalone piece by the German early Romantic period composer, pianist, organist and conductor Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847, born Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy). At the age of seventeen, in 1826, Mendelssohn wrote A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Opus…

My One and Only Love

Why not another song about love… what do you say? Today’s selection was originally composed in 1947 by English songwriter and musician Guy Wood (1911-2001) under the title “Music from Beyond the Moon,” with lyrics by songwriter Jack Lawrence (1912-2009). Recorded by traditional pop/big band singer and actor Vic Damone (1928-2018, born Vito Rocco Farinola),…

Someone Who Loves Me

This morning, my Sweety left the house with a friend to gather with others for a morning meetup. There are many times when we’re at home together doing our own things that there might not be direct interaction for a while, though I always have a sense of contentment knowing she’s nearby. We often drift…

Jerry’s ‘Throwback’ Song of the Day: Arias & Symphonies

Welcome to Jerry’s ‘Throwback’ Song of the Day for Today. This week, Jerry returns to his regular Thursday slot after last week’s four-part series. And today, he’s coming by the virtual table with a double serving from an album by a Canadian band we both simultaneously shared an interest in, decades before we encountered each other through the…

Gone Hollywood (an Update and Repost)

Today’s re-sharing is of a song that often comes up on streaming. Whenever I hear the intro piano fade in, I literally run over to the computer and crank up the speaker volume and assume various air instrument roles throughout it (today it was all drums, as I was already seated). It’s such a fabulous…

Solitaire

Last week, the world lost another musical superstar with the sudden passing of American singer, songwriter and pianist Neil Sedaka (1939-2026). A comprehensive Wikipedia article on Sedaka reports he was last seen in public, showing no outward signs of ill health, just two days before his hospitalization and death on February 27. Sedaka, who was…

We Have Everything

This morning, I was catching up on emails and other paperwork, while enjoying the ease of the morning and trying out an episode of American author, speaker and presenter Mel Robbins’s podcast. After that, I was on to streaming music. Just after the ambient-infused, electro-industrial instrumental “I Nearly Married a Human 2” (a bonus track…

Jerry’s Founders Series, Part 4: McDonald and Giles

Founders (Part 4): This is the final song in the series this week. If you missed the other songs, click here, here and here to catch up.  “McDonald and Giles” by Mushroom from Hydrogen Jukebox Having explored the late 60s and early 70s over the previous three days, we bring it together in a retrospective by traveling to San Francisco…

Jerry’s Founders Series, Part 3: Hallogallo

Founders (Part 3): This is the third of four songs that share some commonality. If you missed the beginning of this series, click here and here to catch up. “Hallogallo” by Neu! from Neu!    Neu!’s “Hallogallo” is just over ten minutes of forward motion that somehow feels like both a road trip and a trance ritual. This track…

Jerry’s Founders Series, Part 2: Flight of the Ibis

Founders (Part 2): This is the second of four songs that share some commonality. If you missed the beginning of this series, click here to hear how this began. “Flight of the Ibis” by Ian McDonald and Michael Giles from McDonald and Giles  The Ian McDonald and Michael Giles album McDonald and Giles is a one‑off 1970 progressive rock LP that…

Jerry’s Founders Series, Part 1: 21st Century Schizoid Man

Founders (Part 1): This is the first of four songs that share some commonality that will become more apparent as we move along. “21st Century Schizoid Man” by King Crimson from In the Court of the Crimson King Arguably the original heavy metal song, “21st Century Schizoid Man” signifies the moment King Crimson kicked in the door on…

Wrapped in Plastic (for Twin Peaks Day)

In the past past week, American songwriter, musician and multimedia artist Matthew McCarty reached out to the Contact page at Song of the Day for Today, to share a single from the working-class Americana band he co-founded, Raccoon Brothers, from Austin, Texas, USA. Raccoon Brothers’ song is a clever, countryfied summary of the plot lines…

Guest Post: My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains

This is a big week at Song of the Day for Today… we’ve got a lot to share with you! Today, we’re welcoming back guest blogger John Charlton, purveyor of occasional ten-video playlists at John’s Jukebox. He just posted a new list today, so head on over once you’re finished here! This time around, John…

24 Preludes, Op. 28: No. 15 in D-Flat Major (“Raindrop Prelude”)

Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. (Note: this post has been republished with the correct video… apologies for the duplication.) This morning I was awake quite early, so I thought I’d get up and into the day. When I sat down to eat, I surfed YouTube looking for classical music.…

Happy Feet

After featuring a very good though sorrowful folk ballad yesterday, I thought I’d pick up the mood today, and what better way than with the big band sound of a jazzy swing/dance music number. “Happy Feet” is a composition of American composer Milton Ager (1893-1979) and lyricist and screenwriter Jack Yellen (1892-1991), written for the…

Sophie

A song that’s been on my list for about two years is “Sophie,” by the British alternative country and indie folk band Bear’s Den. I love the soft acoustic quality of the track, particularly the sound created by the banjo, which is quite dominant in the mix, as well as the lovely vocal harmonies. Bear’s…

Suburban Berlin

The other night, as I tidied the kitchen before heading upstairs for the night, I popped on some music to add some character to the mundane but satisfying clean-up tasks. One track that came on was the disco- and funk-influenced art rock jam “Suburban Love” from Adolescent Sex (1978), the debut album by the English…

From the Beginning (a Supplement)

I don’t know where I heard today’s selection most recently, but it seems like it was not long ago. I searched the playlists for David Marsden LIVE on NYtheSpirit, and it wasn’t there. And I haven’t had much time to listen to the other freeform DJs on Marsden’s online radio service, so it must have…

The Return of Pan

This morning, a weather app warned of “an abrupt return to winter temperatures” coming this Wednesday, after a recent period of milder conditions and mixed messages on Groundhog Day about how soon spring will arrive. On the Canadian prairies, a weather statement like that can mean the mercury dropping into the minus 30s (that place…

13 Pieces for Piano, Op. 76: II. Étude

Welcome to Classical Sunday at Song of the Day for Today. Last week, I featured a solo piano composition by German Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), written in the late 1730s. This week, I’ve chosen another piano piece, but this time, one composed in the twentieth century. And instead of it being played on…

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