“Baby”. Is there a more ubiquitous combination of letters and sounds when it comes to the world of Western popular music? Evidently, yes, there are some challengers. “Love” is the obvious, albeit unfair, riposte. Love is everything; love is all things; love transcends even the rarefied air of pop choruses and stadium singalongs. “Baby”, however? Baby, I love your way.
As I sit down to write this, I patiently await the arrival of my own four-lettered, two-legged combination. In just about a month, life will change forever. In many ways, it already has. In the chaos of trying to prepare for a task which carries with it so many unknowns, between building cots and seeking advice from parents and friends already on this road most travelled, there is a burning question that any self-respecting would-be parent must contend with: at what point do I introduce my child to Led Zeppelin IV?
At the risk of characterising the arrival of a newborn baby as the ultimate form of being passed the aux cable at a party, I have been thinking about artists and songs best positioned to open those tiny ears for the first time, to help shape brand new personalities and drop little pieces of bread like musical memories along the way.
My first memories of discovering music were in my parent’s living room in the mid-1990s. I remember how my attention was caught between taped episodes of Power Rangers when a promotional ad for Michael Jackson’s ‘Earth Song’ grabbed me. It is certainly my first visual memory of popular music. Irish boyband Boyzone’s version of Bee Gees’ classic ‘Words’ would be the first song I remember repeating word for word to, presumably wearied parents. ‘Words’ is a fantastic example of a song with such a simple yet beautiful melody line that it is in borderline lullaby territory; something shrewdly cornered and monetised by pop impresarios such as Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh in their past colonisation of young and developing pre-teen minds.
As I grew older and discovered pop music through the chart hits of the day, I also started to get lost in the trove of cassette tapes and CDs my parents had stashed around the house. Albums like The Pogues’ Red Roses for Me or Eagles’ Best Of made such a lasting imprint on my developing musical mind it seemed to me entirely reckless that there was no rhyme or reason to these arbitrary musical discoveries. What if I had stumbled across a Bay City Rollers album or, worse yet, Status Quo? Would I be living with crippling resentment towards my parents to this day? Very likely.
Another musical touchstone in my young life came at primary school. One of my teachers astutely recognised an enthusiasm for all things music and indulged me graciously as I extolled the virtues of rock acts of the day: Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. As a type of extra circular extension of his chosen vocation, the following day, that same teacher brought to school a copy of Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti and told me to take it home with me. It changed my life like it changed lives before mine. That is the power of music. And of John Bonham’s drumming.
For these reasons, I have been thinking a lot about guiding my new arrival through the mad and wonderful world of music, bands, gigs, festivals, raves, dancing and moving and singing. There is much to discover and little time to waste. So here, I have compiled a list of ten songs that should open up the tiniest of ears and minds. It goes for some adults in the room, too.
Baby, Can I Hold You – Tracy Chapman
The Kids Are Alright – The Who
Baby Love – The Supremes
Children of the Revolution – T. Rex
Father and Son – Cat Stevens
Youth Gone Wild – Skid Row
We’ll Inherit the Earth – The Replacements
In The Ghetto – Elvis Presley
Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone – The Temptations
Baby, I Love Your Way – Peter Frampton
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