Get the compilation for free: click here to start download.
[/column] [/columns_row]When I saw Heather’s facebook wall post asking if I could come with a music playlist that would not only be cool enough for her readers, but also chill and relaxing, I think I instantly recalled a Cloudspotting video I had done way back with this Chemical Brothers track called “Asleep From Day”. So I replied to Heather saying I would take on the assignment. And here I am writting these useless words.
So I do have a tracklist containing around 50 tracks (or 4h worth of non-stop music) of what in my humble opinion would make the ultimate air travel playlist for any average joe/jane out there. If you’re a slam-clicker, a frequent flyer, a Mother with 5 “Kevins” (a common name given to your annoying kid in the aisle) trailing behind you or a jump seating commuter going back home to your Husband well I got your trip covered, musically at least. I can safely say it is also boasting tunes suitable for all ages, all eras. For this playlist, I tried to get the widest scope of music to suit all kinds of tastes without any pretention either. For this matter, we do have the comment section below so you could give us some feedback and get something going ! Right. I’m gonna try my best to tell you why I chose so and so track so you get the bigger picture or the sentimental attachment so or so tunes has with me. (jeeee you must be falling outta boredness from your seat at this point !)
[columns_row width=”half”] [column]
Get the compilation for free: click here to start download.
[/column] [/columns_row]TrackList :
[separator type=”thick”]| Hymn Of The Big Wheel | Massive Attack | This track and more specifically the entire album called “Blue Lines” by Bristol (United Kingdom) based Trip-Hop band was and still is one of my faves for a dosing off session and applies quite well to the airtravel environment and all the stress it can generate. |
| World Can Be Yours | Telepopmusik | OMG, this song just feels like cotton, no? It feels as if you’re wrapped in uber-comfortable clouds and just levitating above your everyday life drama/problems/crap, that lies beneath.It also was Air France Hotline waiting tune, and the choice proved to be extra effective the decrease in hotline complaints was very significant ! |
| This Land Is Your Land | Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings | This awesome Soul singing by no other than the reigning queen of soul music these days is just a beautiful reminder of how some simple melodies, good backup singers, and some of the best band/artists around will never mind what the genre is, give you the joy to hear some quality tunes. This song opens for Up In The Air with George Clooney as a road warrior. Director did a fab job at illustrating this song might I add. |
| Asleep From Day | Chemical Brothers | This is most certainly THE track that set the general feel for this playlist ! It was also an Air France commercial score, depicting one of their aircraft slowly approaching a record groove turning on the turntable then taking off again (Gondry was the director) towards the blue sky. Tag line : “Turn the sky into the most beautiful place on earth”. And it still is, believe me… |
| Wonderwall (Oasis cover) | Ryan Adams | This cover is just perfect for cruising at 36000ft. And one of the best, if not THE best cover out of an Oasis track ! Just plain simple. |
| Spring (Air France Remix) | Saint Etienne | Don’t get misleaded by the remix name, this is just a DJ name and has nothing to do with the carrier only the signature type of band they usually like to be featuring on their in-flight entertainment. |
| Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) | Marvin Gaye | Now, an all time favourite of mine just because whenever this awesome tune comes tickling my ears it will, wherever I’m at,, who ever I’m with recall that very night I sat past midnight looking down on these lights from my building in dubai with Sheik Zayed Road in the horizon. It really felt like the end of the world for me that night and just like the ending Fight Club when Pitt looks out to the city lights below and the Pixies for soundtrack. Same feeling for me and “Inner City Blues”. This is the best track to be listening if you’re taking off from LAX at night and its ever spreading suburbs… |
| Demons feat. Macy Gray | Fat Boy Slim | Macy Gray’s classic voice is instantly recognizable on this track and would suit any taxi ride back home after a night out in Hong Kong. This was tried, tested and remembered. So somehow that ride back to the hotel was the perfect ending to one of those crew crazy night. |
| Between us | Aswefall Bleed | By the end of this song I would’ve crashed in my bed already (still in Hong Kong) looking out this bay window (managed to swap a suite with one of my seniors who requested a smoking room)at the busy harbour waking up with the sunrise |
| Safe From Harm | Massive Attack | Best song to go to bed with. Extremely appropriate in an aircraft too. Forget the lack of space, snug in your blankets, gather pillows (if available) from empty seats around you and go to sleep. Wake up on top of descent. You’ll be fresh enough for your business meeting once you get off the plane! |
| The High Road | Broken Bells | The High Road indeed! I didn’t give much attention to this track until quite recently. Broken Bells is what we’d call an Ubergroup/Supergroup with the lead singer of The Shins and Brian Burton AKA Danger Mouse who’s fame came with The Grey Album (an amazing mash up between Jay-Z’s Black Album and The Beatles’ White Album. Then he got into the spotlight when he released St. Elsewhere with Cee-lo Green including the chart topper “Crazy” |
| Suspicious Minds | Fine Young Cannibals | A cool cover my mother wanted to include in this playlist. It does fit the bill very nicely. |
| California Soul | Marlena Shaw | You will realize this playlist holds a bunch of songs about the different states you can cross on a transcontinental. And this one is a perfect example of what I mean. |
| Woman of the ghetto | Marlena Shaw | Same as above with emphasis on differences between geographical/poverty amongst Inner cities compared to american suburbia. It is the complete opposite in France ! Rich inner cities, poor suburban that surround major cities. |
| Symphatique | Pink Martini | Classic french vocal by Pink Martini and that hottie out of Harvard University ! |
| Daniel (World Cafe Live) | Bat For Lashes | Cinders and Rain. That just made my day. Hence the inclusion in the Cloudspotting playlist. I heard for the first time last year on the way back from Paris after some well deserved break of a hectic month at work. |
| Family Reunion | Jill Scott | Jill Scott, how could describe her art ? Well just the perfect kind of track to sum up a brilliant week off in Wales, United Kingdom! |
| Pretty Babies | Karen Elson | Now, this woman is an ex-model. From manchester, has married Jack White who happens to be my favourite artist of all time. So it was only natural to include her “Pretty Babies” song part of her Debut album “The Ghost Who Walks” which I can only recomment for some of the best folk/country/quirky grooves you will hear this year ! She invited two of us to her bizarre showcase in a abandoned squat in the middle of Paris last September ! |
| Bitter Sweet Symphony | The Verve | TUNE! That is all. |
| Way Down In The Hole | Tom Waits | Tom Waits pulls it off again ith this track. It also happens to be the theme for the opening credits of The Wire. Which is one of my favourite series of all time (and probably the only one that got me hooked). GO go go Baltimore ! |
| J’ai demandé à la lune | Indochine | A classic bedtime lullaby from a now classic French band. Perfect to learn basic french and impress any french seat neighbor. He will recognize instantly and it is a great way to break the ice with your surroundings ! |
| Le Vent Nous Portera | Noir Désir | Another French classic rock band doing in the simple, soft song. The lead singer was charged with murder 7 years ago and recently has been released from prison. It is our french Johnny Cash ! |
| Crazy in Love | Antony & the Johnsons | We are bang on in the darkest part with our playlist. The lovers get us into some states sometimes … pffffff |
| Supreme I Preme | Finley Quaye | Some cool funky tune another pick from Mother Of Sodwee ! |
| Madame Hollywood | Felix da Housecat | This is one for you Los Angeles arrival. Tried & Tested by yours truly ! |
| La Vie En Rose | Grace Jones | Piaf by Jones, Grace Jones none the less. Brilliant piece of music here ! Instant Classic. That gal has bloddy voice and a perfect french accent ! |
| Mr. Intentional | Lauryn Hill | Acoustic guitar, voice, Lauryn from The Fugees. What more would you like. It goes perfectly with the next song too, one after the other ! Recorded live for MTV Unplugged. It is one of the best sessions they’ve broadcast so far. |
| Oh Jerusalem | Lauryn Hill | The finger tricks she comes up, the banter. Makes for a perfect song ! |
| 2 Hearts (Studio Version) | Kylie Minogue | Kylie Minogue proves once more that you could be the Queen of pop but still produce some decent, or even real good tracks. This one is one of them. The build up magical and produced to high standards. |
| Massive Fear | Massive Attack vs Lily Allen | This track is a mashup I never saw coming. But I can tell you they do marry very well together ! The instrumental serves those vocals brilliantly. |
| Creep (Radiohead Cover) | Scala & Kolacny Brothers | The Social Network. This Chorus. Zuckerberg. He takes control of all those weird people around you in that plane. |
| Fade Into You | Mazzy Star | Pretty Much the same reason why I chose to include the Air France Hotline waiting theme. Soft, it cuddles your brain and makes jelly out of it. It does for me anyway! |
| On My Shoulders | The Dø | It’s is ever so rare to have a local (french) band to sing in english, but most importantly : sing well. That anytime you can namedrop their track “On My Shoulders” you do. It was a summer hit 2 years ago amongst those parisian hipsters. Needless to say that’s the only song they managed to get on top of the charts. |
| Braided Hair | 1 Giant Leap | This is world music at it’s best. Braided Hair will fly you anywhere exotic you might have in mind. Crank the sound up, turn on the noise canceling on your headphones, recline the seat you’re in and indulge with a G&T. |
| Skin of The Night | M83 | This band was a late recommendation from Deon who works in Dubai for Emirates as Cabin Crew. Perfect song |
| Big Jet Plane | Angus & Julia Stone | This band was a recommendation from Melissa who works in Dubai for Emirates as Cabin Crew. Perfect song |
| Taxi Cab | Vampire Weekend | This band was a late recommendation from Deon who works in Dubai for Emirates as Cabin Crew. Perfect for a taxi ride from the airport after a long day… |
| Misread | Kings Of Convenience | This band was a late recommendation from Deon who works in Dubai for Emirates as Cabin Crew. How could I possbly forget about these guys ??! |
| Ready Or Not | The Fugees | Lauryn Hill Again ! |
| Feeling Good | Nina Simone | You cannot get away from Nina’s enchanting voice. You’ve had a stressful day at work. This awesome will soothe your soul big time ! |
| Paper Aeroplane | Angus & Julia Stone | This band was a recommendation from Melissa who works for Emirates as Cabin Crew. Fits the bill perfectly with the those vocals ! Thanks Mel !! |
| Je Me Souviens (NightWaves reMix) | Walter Sobcek | Recently discovered. A real good song for a final approach in your hometown |
| Portland Oregon | Loretta Lynn | Queen of country Loretta Lynn and Rock God himself (Jack White) together on a mesmerizing country ballad that Miss Swift should take a few lessons from althought I hear she is doing pretty well. Sales wise. |
| La Bonne Étoile | -M- | The song starts with the one word that describes everyone one earth expect you and your fellow travellers onboard : Terriens (Earthians). This track is effective like a lullaby. Although in French. Sorry. |
| Police And Thieves | Junior Marvin | We are getting towards the end of journey, ladies and gentlemen. The remainder of this playlist is more focused on “end of flight” wake up anthems ! So to get you mentally prepared. Mother Of Sodwee wanted to include Police & Thieves in a gentle reference to the Border Patrol… Good on ya mama! |
| Jealous guy (John Lennon cover) | Bryan Ferry | Sweet Mother selectahhhhhhhh |
| Lost week-end | Lloyd Cole & The Commotions | And because you’ve spent soo much time in that TSA line getting the pat down or being nuclear beams accross your body in that scan, Mother suggested this “Lost Weekend” track. |
| White Sky | Vampire Weekend | Looking back at all the songs above I think this song sums it up quite perfectly. |
| 505 | Arctic Monkeys | ULTIMATE taxi ride track going to your hotel room after that exhausting but surprisingly relaxing flight you just spent Cloudspotting with Heather Poole and Sodwee |
| Don’t Look Back | Télépopmusik | Greaat song. As is any Telepopmusik albums by the way! Trippy stuff |
| Toxic (Britney Spears cover) | Yael Naim | Toxic fumes, Britney as a Flight Attendant. You get the picture. |
| Pure shores | All Saints | Track from The Beach movie soundtrack is an instant classic when yuo finally reach the sight of any ocean ready to take a dip on that first day well, and far away from any kind of hustle and bustle of the big cities. |
| On The Road Again | Katie Melua | I’d really never thought I’d add her to the playlist but the tune she pulls off on this one is quite surprising. |
| On Melancholy Hill | Gorillaz | Don’t you wish you were still Cloudspotting through that aircraft window ? That is the feeling this song bring to me ! |
| It’s Probably Me | Sting | Passengers, I it was your fault for once ? |
| Poupées Russes | Les Poupées Russes | You’ve just shared space with over a hundred other souls in that confined environment. L’Auberge Espagnole comes to mind after each flight don’t why. Maybe it’s just a sign. |
You might ask why Coldplay, Beethoven and consorts never made this playlist ? Well my straight answer to this question is : Too Obvious! Yeah I know they’ve got good relaxing tunes in their respective discographies, but the whole point of this is to turn you on to the not so obvious, suggesting other artists that you might otherwise not thought directly of. Turn you onto other bands that could replace the obvious popular choice.
Anyway that’s it from me… Back to you Heather and thanks ever so much for trusting me in my music selection. Maybe too many french songs in there. Not sure !
[columns_row width=”half”] [column]
Get the compilation for free: click here to start download.
[/column] [/columns_row]
Big Jet Plane by Angus & Julia Stone was topping the australian charts on the 26th of January for Australia Day celebrations !
And you got it here first hand : Thanks Melissa!
fab !!!!!
Great songs! I shared it with my fans too.
thanks ever so much Beth !