Life is something, right? When I conceived of my latest mix for my LYL Radio show, I wanted to capture a certain spirit: that of gently percolating music that bubbles at the edges but never quite reaches a boiling point. My thought was, “On certain trying days, we all need music that consoles us, that bundles us in its warmth.” Listening to it now, I realize I hadn’t expected it to function as a balm for a certain somber feeling hovering in the air after the U.S. elections.
Looking back, listening to this mix, I now see how much inspiration I drew from Jennifer Warnes’s “Rock You Gently.” In it, I heard an echo of Marvin Gaye’s “Sexual Healing,” transformed into something more universal – a kind of guide for how we might heal all sorts of broken hearts.
With its smoothed-out pitter-patter of bass and snare, Jennifer soulfully sings to the truth of the situation: it takes time to fix what’s broken. There’s this idea that intimacy’s strength doesn’t have to live only in the bedroom – that closeness can be harnessed to better heal all sorts of hurt. That finding the right words, the right pace, can help us all repair.
In these uncertain times, when it feels like ‘life is never easy,’ I find myself discovering hope in what is, ultimately, vulnerable music—a quality I believe you’ll find within it, too.
Rock You Gently (優しく揺らして)
Tracklist:
Ikko (川井郁子) – Peace And Harmony
Lily Lee (李麗芬) – Heart Talk With Lily
McAlmont – A Little Communication
Akina Nakamori (中森明菜) – 黒薔薇 (Black Rose)
Zelda (ゼルダ) – Eternal Land
Jennifer Warnes – Rock You Gently
Faye Wong (王菲) – 分裂 (Split)
Shoko Minami (南翔子) – Whispers of the Goddesses
Junko Hirotani (広谷順子) – 時の漂泊 (Drifting In Time)
Jam & Spoon – Secret Kind Of Love
Kuo Heng Chi (郭子) – 兩心 (Two Hearts)
Marcia Salomon – Mares