An upbeat blend of tunes from the 60’s-90’s for a diverse cocktail hour. A little over an hour because we all know 30 minute ceremonies actually take 20. Photo by Sparrow + Lace

October was a busy month for me and I forgot to post the playlist. To save time during the busy season, I smushed October & November together. Here is the most eclectic playlist yet. Enjoy! This playlist is NSFW.

Young Dumb & Broke is every high schoolers quiet anthem and its easy to think back to those days and remember “the struggle” which now seems so simple. “Punk Rock Girl” by The Dead Milkmen is a song I’ve known for sometime but never knew it was them! Henry Jamison is an artist that I discovered this month. He is a mix of Iron & Wine and Ryan Lewis. Folk music but with the bass lines and drums normally reserved for hip hop. “Blood On The Leaves” is one of my favorite Kanye West songs. “For No One” by The Beatles is also one of my favorite songs. I saw a documentary this month on the production of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and it was during watch the show that I was reminded of this song. 

By accident, this is the most cohesive monthly playlist that I’ve created to date. It’s pretty darn chill. First off we have what may be my favorite Talking Heads song, “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody). Something about that track makes me long for home. “Starlight” is a song I stumbled upon by chance and I’m so glad I did. My most listened to song this month was likely “Mexico” by James Taylor. The lyrics really crack me up! Lastly, if you make it this far into the playlist, “Peace Piece” by Bill Evans (my favorite jazz musician, btw) is perfect. For me, jazz, specifically Bill Evans, and rainy weather go hand in hand. I listen to him play and it takes me back to my childhood bedroom, sitting on the bed and playing Animal Crossing on the Gamecube with my Mom. I loved those days and still miss them.

Kicking off this month’s playlist is one of my favorite songs by The Police! I LOVE the baseline to “Spirits In The Material World.”  I can never have enough of David Bowie and I rediscovered “Fame” this last month. “Shawty Is Da Sh*!” was in a mix by Four Color Zack that Kelsey and I were listening to. Kelsey knew all of the words. “Yeah Right” by Vince Staples is my hip hop song of the month. I don’t know much about him but when I first heard the song I knew that the beat was produced by Flume or Cloud 9. It was Flume. Then the surprise verse from Kendrick Lamar. “Yeah Right” is like a hip hop dream for me…. albeit Vince Staples. I hope you enjoy the majority of oldies that the playlist is composed of this month! Let me know which song is your favorite and be sure to follow me on Spotify to creep on what I’m listening to everyday. 

I really loved so much of the music I listened to this month.  Paramore’s new album “After Laughter” is a bright fusion of post 2000s alternative and 80’s pop. “Bucket’s Of Rain” by Bob Dylan has become one of my favorite songs by the singer/songwriter. “May I Have This Dance” confused me at first because I thought it was Phil Collins. Nope! Francis and the Lights… No idea who they are! (Music discovery achieved!) The club banger “Lasers” is a fun beat that I hope to drop at a few Pro-EDM weddings. Hope you love this month’s mix of music.

Have a song that you think I should listen to? Let me know in the comments or on INSTAGRAM! 

Honestly, I wanted to put the entire Kendrick Lamar album on here but that wouldn’t fully demonstrate what I listened too, it would only represent how much I listened to it. I’m also pumped about Mayer Hawthorn’s cover of “Everybody Wants To Rule The World.” Last month I rediscovered The White Stripes. It’s been a long time since I’ve listened to Jack White and I’m so glad I started listening to him again. About 2/3 of the way day is one of my favorite Queen songs, “In Only Seven Days.” It never received any radio play but its shows how diverse their massive catalog is and I love it. Lastly, you can never go wrong with Chance The Rapper. Perhaps I’m hopping on the bandwagon but he is one of my favorite rappers currently, probably top 5.

Another eclectic mix for April covering what I listened to last month. Starting off with my favorite John Mayer track off of Wave 2, “Helpless” is a pop-blues-funk reminiscent of “Miss You” by The Rolling Stones. “Love Be With You” is by my Dad, Steven Courtney. It’s one of my favorite songs of all time. Nine times out of ten when I see a sunset I sing “Love Be With You” and it reminds me of my childhood. “Slide” by Harris, Ocean and Migos is the song that I’ve been playing on repeat. I’m excited to see how parties react to it this year. Further down the mix is a tune called “Bambi” by Jidenna, the same guy that did “Classic Man”. Lastly, a few days ago The Gorillaz put out a few new tracks and I’ve been bumping to “Saturnz Barz”. Hope you like these songs as much as I do and be sure to follow me on Spotify and Instagram @bringonthebash.

While growing up, I wasn’t fond of Christmas music. I thought it all sounded the same and was boring. Worst of all the songs always got stuck in my head. Luckily, since being with Kelsey, she has shared her love of Christmas music and after several years I’ve warmed up to it. 2016 will go down as the first year that I truly enjoyed Christmas music. The following 12 songs are a combination of some of our favorites. Hit play, follow me on Spotify and go decorate your tree!

Have a funky introduction and jam out to “Love Like That” by Mayer Hawthorne. Hawthrone reminds a lot of Steely Dan! Vaya Con Dios translates to “Go With God”. A beautiful reminder of how many desire to live in their marriage. “Open & Close” by Fela Kuti has been my JAM recently and I hope more couples request this type of music for cocktail hour! “Funky Side Of Town” is a great James Brown deepcut that will get all generations wigglin’ on the dance floor. Lastly, Run-DMC’s “It’s Tricky” is a party classic that doesn’t tread into being cheesy, which can be rare for songs from the 80’s. 

Hopefully this playlist gave you some inspiration, if so leave a comment, share this playlist and follow me on Spotify!