Eternity Playlist
February 10, 2007 at 4:42 pm
But let us admit that the absurdity is a mere appearance, and that the impossibility for living beings to come back to the past is simply owing to the fact that the physicochemical phenomena which take place in living bodies, being infinitely complex, have no chance of ever occurring again all at the same time : at least it will be granted to us that the hypothesis of a turning backwards is almost meaningless in the sphere of conscious states. A sensation, by the mere fact of being prolonged, is altered to the point of becoming unbearable. The same does not here remain the same, but is reinforced and swollen by the whole of its past. In short, while the material point, as mechanics understands it, remains in an eternal present, the past is a reality perhaps for living bodies, and certainly for conscious beings.
-Henri Bergson, Time and Free Will: An Essay on the Immediate Data of Consciousness (Ch.3)
“Eternity list. Variation no.2/MdM”
01. Bjork - Play Dead
02. Etta James - At Last
03. Stan Getz - Nature Boy
04. alva noto + opiate - opto file 4
05. Venetian Snares - Szamár Madár
06. Mary Lou Williams - holy ghost
07. Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come
08. Miles Davis - Mystery
09. Paris Lounge - Le Tone
10. Digable Planet - La Femme Fetal
11. Vincent - The Conjuror
12. Modern Jazz Quartet - Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
13. Moby - The Rain Falls and The Sky Shudders
Note: How do one capture the idea of eternity? At least how can one put it in a series of songs. This list was built after a blog conversation about the idea of eternity. Maybe overal this list overly relies on very beautiful pieces bordering decadent, but the basic idea is not to reject the well known that I’ve done regularly. But to embrace it tightly. (Etta James, Sam Cooke, Mary Lou Williams) Sprinkled in songs about moment of daily life, amplifying event and emotion surrounding it. The list captures and magnified awareness. (Digable Planet) The practical construction drive, earlier version at least, was a music that one would hear upon entering hybernation state for interplanetary travel. Before one sleeps, what song exactly an interplanetary traveler of the future will hear? What to remember before the sleep? I tend to pick, soul classic, mix of minimalist electronica and hip-hop thick with melody and soothing texture. (alva noto, Miles Davis, MJQ). Anyway, perfect beauty shall last as a momentary trace of sensation. The idea of eternity.
see also: Var. 0208-2007, The Eternity Playlist
image: Three editorials pictures from Madame
Doesn’t the Le Tone track confuse you in all the right ways? I love it, and would use it to confuse, then delight unsuspecting and intoxicated friends.
Bjork’s Play Dead was in constant rotation when I lived up in BOston, so I appreciate the opportunity to flash back.
ONe other track that might flow nicely with this list is My Morning Jacket’s “Wordless Chorus.” I was thinking of it while listening thru this for some reason.
elysian list :)
My current hidden agenda is to declare rock dead, and push anything else, specially IDM. lol. Hence no clear rock piece in the list. Jazz seems to be the easiest to build upon.
I love that Le Tone. This list was build around it, after you post that. (I ripped apart an old list and build this one. The earlier version is a real “interplanetary” play list. Trippy, some noise art, IDM and way out there jazz piece I found on the net. …)
Avalanches has another classic jazz redo that sounded perfectly mysterious. (Tonight May Have to Last Me All My Life) I post it last year for valentine. Four Tet used to post a complete lounge mix on his UK label, Domino. It is filled with this type of jazz/hip-hop IDM remix. (They took it down, gah)
I am trying to build pure IDM list, something with pop melody in it… maybe people will find it interesting.
-
PS. buy the Mary Lou Williams album peeps. It’s a must have classic jazz. you won’t be dissapointed. She is highly underated. It’s a very elegant with a dub of bass funk here in there. super cool.
angeles –
” elysian list :) ”
whaaat…. :P
elysian
:)
Wow!!! This is an awesome chill-out playlist!!! Moby, Paris Lounge, and the Digable Planets sounds awesome. THANKS!
I was looking for At Last by Etta, and was surprised to find this playlist.
Needless to say, I love it and notice it has been nearly a year since its publication, and I wonder if you might make another….
That would be way lovely.
There are several other inside the archive that has similar mood. If you look same month archive, you probably get consistent mood.
I’ll do another one, but I have 2-3 posts that I have to do first. SO it could be a little while.
[...] The point of TUF, though, is to enjoy them live. They have a great sense of how to put together a set, and the covers they sprinkle throughout (Etta James’ At Last original courtesy of Motel de Moka, Bob Marley and The Wailers’ I Shot the Sheriff original courtesy of Aquarium Drunkard) the show, as well as the extended solos, really get a crowd going. The female vocalist/bassist Danielle Schnebelen is magnetic! The few YouTube clips available do not do them justice at all, but if you’re curious, see here, here, here, and here. [...]