Relaxing Music

Often during this time, I get overwhelmed and have to turn to a playlist I made of music that relaxes me.  Here are some of the most effective songs, most are laid-back and calm pieces that help me feel better.  I hope they might help you feel better, too.



God Only Knows-For King and Country with Dolly Parton: A Contemporary Christian song that reassures that God knows the problems you face from other people and your own personal issues and loves you regardless.  Joel Smallbone and Dolly Parton’s voices are very reassuring in this piece.



The Wonder of the Cross-Vicky Beeching: A Contemporary Christian song about how beautiful the sacrifice of Jesus is and that she doesn’t want this moment to ever get old.  The instrumentation gives this song a soaring feel and you can feel the conviction in Vicky Beeching’s voice.



Turn Your Eyes-Vicky Beeching: A slow, popular CCM (Contemporary Christian Music) piece about how when you focus on God, you will find you need little else.  I really like the additional lyrics Beeching added, asking “isn’t He beautiful, outshining sun, moon and stars, indescribable how breathtaking You are.” As well as, “you are so beautiful” which I feel may be reminding the listener they were created by God and God loves them, regardless of what they do.  Since she came out in the early part of last decade, I feel it’s appropriate to say she is so beautiful for being able to be herself and trust in God.



Above All Else-Vicky Beeching: An acoustic number about wanting to know Jesus more.  “Above all else, give me yourself.”



Hope Is Just Ahead-Billy Ray Cyrus: Written in the wake of Columbine, but wasn’t released until around the time of Sandy Hook.  It reminds us that even in tragedy, there is a plan, there is hope and things can and will eventually get better.



Hope (Let it Find You)-Billy Ray Cyrus and Glenn Hughes: Similar to the above, only it asks us to trust hopeful beliefs so we can be stronger.  Glenn Hughes also delivers some great harmonizing.



Chevys and Fords-Billy Ray Cyrus and Johnny McGuire: A song about the most American car brands.  It’s slow and sweet and holds a special place in my heart because last November, my Dad, my brother and I spent all day in Portland looking at RVs and frequently, the brand was brought up, that being Chevy or Ford.  When we got home and had time to relax, I played the song on my smartphone and my brother found it appropriate given the events of the day.



If She Ever Leaves Me-The Highwomen: A country lesbian love song, sung by Brandi Carlile from the Seattle area.  She details her lover or possibly wife to a male hitting on them and that he doesn’t have a chance with her due to the fact she doesn’t like men.  It’s slow and sweet and you can feel Carlile’s love.



Bron-Y-Aur Stomp-Adrian Conner: A Led Zeppelin cover performed and sung by the lead guitarist of the all-woman AC/DC tribute band Hell’s Belles.  It’s a folksy country romp about going for a walk with your dog and having fun doing so.  Fun fact; Robert Plant’s dog he wrote about here was named Strider, a Lord of the Rings reference.



Brave-Idina Menzel: An uplifting pop song from Elphaba/the voice of Elsa that states though it might be uncertain and scary, it’s time to stand up and be bold.



She Loves You-The Beatles: I first heard this song when I was very young and it was one of the first Beatles songs I ever heard.  I always love it for the vocals, the guitar work and the drums.  How this song didn’t get into Beatles Rock Band, even as DLC, I’ll never know.



Malibu-Miley Cyrus: A soft, upbeat pop song about finding joy by the beach.  I read Spotify’s “Behind the Lyrics” notes and apparently, Miley spent years in LA and never went to the beach until around 2016, when she began to turn her life back around from spending so much time with the drug-fueled Flaming Lips.  Then, she found she liked it and hanging out with people again, which helped her ground herself again.  The song is sweet as heck and always makes me feel better.



No Day But Today-Idina Menzel: A soft, slow performance of a song from Rent that reminds us “there’s only now, there’s only here.”  So don’t put off something you may regret not doing.



Let it Go (Live)-Idina Menzel: The now-classic Disney song, I like the live version better as the additional chorus where just the audience sings reminds me of when I saw Idina live myself.

Yellow Submarine-The Beatles: Another one of the first Beatles songs I heard.  I remember Mom saying when it came on the tape “that’s Mr. Conductor singing!”  Referring to Ringo’s role on Shining Time Station.  It’s another soft and sweet song about finding happiness under the ocean and Paul McCartney said it stemmed from Ringo being the “favorite uncle character” in The Beatles, which is definitely the vibe you get here.

Week Without You-Miley Cyrus: A soft-rock type piece that reminds me a little of John Lennon’s “Just Like Starting Over.”  Since Miley’s a John Lennon fan since before 2009, it wouldn’t surprise me if that was intentional.  Her voice is smooth and relaxing here, making it one of my favorites.



She’s Not Him-Miley Cyrus: A song about loving a woman while being more in love with a man.  This was the first love song I heard from a pansexual perspective and it really made me understand what people like that go through, having to choose between a variety of beautiful people to have a relationship with and loving a good portion of them all because of their personalities.  It also shows great heart when she says “You don’t deserve all the bullXXXX I put you through, you deserve a heart much bigger than one that’s torn in two.”



Be Yourself-Audioslave: A song by the late, great Chris Cornell.  It details how different people can be before going into the chorus of “Be Yourself, that’s all that you can do.”  It also says during the bridge “Don’t lose any sleep tonight, I’m sure everything will turn out all right.”  It’s hard these days to be an individual with all the peer pressure, especially online, but it’s healthier and more satisfying to do what’s important to you than follow what someone else is telling you to do.



Bmblb-Jeff and Casey Lee Williams: A cute pop love song on the RWBY Volume 4 Soundtrack.  However, there’s a twist, it’s sung by a woman to someone she calls her “queen,” she acts like people shouldn’t know about their relationship by asking to meet in a special garden asks her love to “set her free.”  It’s a lesbian love song, and this was actually relevant to the series.  In the series, there are the characters Yang Xiao Long and Blake Belladonna.  In volume 2, the two danced together at a school dance and at the end of volume 3, Yang loses most of her right arm defending Blake from her stalker ex, Adam Taurus.  This was a subtle or not so subtle hint that the two were headed for a relationship, which officially happened at the end of Volume 6 when they killed Adam Taurus, solely to be safe from his aggression.



Love Wins-Carrie Underwood: A song from an ally encouraging the LGBTQ+ community in their struggle.  It’s good to know you can be a Country Singer who sings songs like “Jesus Take The Wheel” and this, sometimes it feels like the right wing conservatives are trying to silence these voices and present a homophobic God as the only possible interpretation of the Christian God.

These Four Walls-Miley Cyrus: While it’s a breakup ballad, it means a lot to me.  I heard it at her 2009 show and the band got in close behind her, like it was a show at a bar or jazz club.  The acoustic guitar used looked to be a Gibson J-160E, the kind John Lennon used, and there was a stand up bass, which reminded me of when I saw my music professor perform in a show I saw for his class, he was a stand up bass/cello player.  Also, its slow, steady pace helps me unwind.

My Arms-Ledger: This came out this past February, believe it or not, but is a nice soft piano piece about how God is there for you, even when things are painful or spiraling out of control.  Ledger is an artist I found out about on Spotify, she’s the backing vocalist for Christian Heavy Metal band Skillet.  Her songs can vary in how hard rock they get, but in this one, I think the heaviest part is the drums.



We’re Gonna Be Alright-Switchfoot: An acoustic number from their album last year.  It lets you know “it’s okay to grief/to feel/to believe” and the chorus catchily calls out “We’re gonna be all right, gonna be all right, gonna be all right/Just take a look at the sky/we’re gonna be all right.”  Which is true, while things have been horrible in the last four years, the sun still shines, the birds still sing and life and compassion have not stopped.

You’re the One I Want-Switchfoot: The closing track of Switchfoot’s album last year, a piano ballad to God.  It states there are countless stars in the sky and countless adventures we want to start, but the light we really want, the companion we really want in those adventures is God, because He’s been so kind to us.