Songs That Could, Under the Right Circumstances,
Make Me Cry
mixed by Liam Eagle
PERFECT FOR:
Quiet reflection; Soul Searching; Touching reunions; Unhappy endings.
INTRODUCTION:
Let me begin by pointing out that I could count on one hand the number of times, since reaching adolescence, that I have personally been brought to tears. To be honest, I could probably do the math on just one finger. This, of course, is not to suggest that there's anything wrong with crying. Even if you're a man. I am merely trying to place this mix tape in context by explaining that I am not, as its title may have led you to believe, a "sucky baby boo-hoo boy." Far from it, in fact. And if my kicking your ass, or perhaps stabbing you, would help to alleviate your doubts, that can certainly be arranged. Okay? All threats aside, though, I'm not much one for crying. I'm sure you'll agree that lends a certain interesting credibility to the mix. Or maybe it makes you uncomfortable. Regardless, while not one of these songs ever has made me cry, something about each of them has given me the impression that it could, if it caught me in the right state of mind.
TRACK LIST:
Tuesday's Gone - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Angel - Jimi Hendrix
Somewhere Out There (movie version) - James Horner, Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil
Bright Eyes - Art Garfunkel
Estranged - Guns n' Roses
Only Love Can Break Your Heart - Neil Young
Redemption Song - Bob Marley
Brothers in Arms - Dire Straits
7th Symphony (2nd movement) - Beethoven
Suicide is Painless (theme from M*A*S*H) - J. Mandel and M. Altman
That's How I Feel - Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee
What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong
Many Rivers to Cross - Jimmy Cliff
Don't Stop Believin' - Journey
Winds of Change - the Scorpions
PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS:
The best thing about the songs that could, under the right circumstances, make me cry is that while some of them might make you cry too, others might make you laugh. That's the wonderful diversity of people and their emotions at work. You'd better not be laughing now, though. Not while I'm busy getting all personal and sincere. I mean, it's not like I'm crying right now. I already told you that I don't do that. And I'm not trying to be macho here. I'm trying to explain to you that if someone as totally tough and stoic as myself thinks these songs could, under the right circumstances, make me cry, then making this mix tape is going to wring your ass out like a broken-hearted washcloth. What I'm saying, basically, is get out the Kleenex, Dorothy.
I'm sorry. I'm creating this very tense situation out of what would otherwise be a nice emotional moment. I'm sorry I called you "Dorothy." Please try to understand, though, that this isn't easy for me.
LISTENING INSTRUCTIONS:
But seriously, get out the Kleenex. We're talking about songs that cut through the piles of insincere bullshit, delivering the distilled essence of human experience. Get a whiff of that universal truth, dude. This is the real thing, so be careful. Don't go popping it in your walkman on your way to the gym. Use it only under truly meaningful circumstances. Play it after your wife leaves you, for example. Or as you part ways with your childhood friends, or during the finale of your popular, long-running sitcom. Play it as the Berlin Wall crumbles (or during some momentus historical event that has not yet occured), or if you somehow find yourself in a situation that compels you to stop believin'.
