Mother's Day 2024 comes very literally on the heels of becoming a mother myself, so this post feels super special to me as I'm getting to experience this holiday as a mom for the very first time. Below is the 2024 Audio Aesthetics Mother's Day Playlist - the full master playlist can, as always, be found on Apple Music by following @audioaesthetics. Let's jump in and see what's up this year!
Girls Just Want to Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper (written by R. Hazard)
Featured on Lauper's 1983 album She's So Unusual, this song has been an absolute favorite of mine for almost my entire life thanks largely to my own personal mom. Not only does the narrator's mom get a shoutout in Verse 1, my mom put this song on a mixtape she made me when I was like 5 of her favorite "oldies" songs and I've been hooked ever since. This song is iconic in every sense, no notes needed.
I come home in the mornin' light/My mother says, "When you gonna live your life right”/Oh Momma Dear, we're not the fortunate ones/And girls, they wanna have fun/Oh, girls just wanna have fun/The phone rings in the middle of the night/My father yells, "What you gonna do with your life”/Oh Daddy Dear, you know you're still number one/But girls, they wanna have fun/Oh girls just wanna have/That's all they really want/Some fun/When the workin' day is done/Oh girls, they wanna have fun/Oh girls just wanna have fun
Coat of Many Colors by Dolly Parton (written by D. Parton)
Featured on Parton's 1971 album Coat of Many Colors, this song is such an important lesson in self-worth and self-image, but also the depth of a mother's love for her children. If you know Parton's backstory, she grew up in a very loving household stricken with poverty, and the image of her mother working so hard with literal fabric scraps to make her daughter something new to wear is just beyond sweet. We actually also have the children's book version written by Parton for our daughter as well, and I can't read it without tearing up.
Back through the years, I go wonderin' once again/Back to the seasons of my youth/I recall a box of rags that someone gave us/And how my momma put the rags to use/There were rags of many colors, but every piece was small/And I didn't have a coat and it was way down in the fall/Momma sewed the rags together, sewin' every piece with love/She made my coat of many colors that I was so proud of/As she sewed, she told a story from the Bible she had read/About a coat of many colors Joseph wore and then she said/"Perhaps this coat will bring you good luck and happiness"/And I just couldn't wait to wear it, and Momma blessed it with a kiss/My coat of many colors that my momma made for me/Made only from rags, but I wore it so proudly/Although we had no money, I was rich as I could be/In my coat of many colors my momma made for me
Mother Knows Best by Donna Murphy (written by A. Menken, G. Slater)
Featured on the soundtrack to the 2010 Disney film Tangled, I think everyone can agree Mother Gothel is the absolute opposite of a good mom. However, this is, in my humble opinion, the absolute best song in the whole movie, thanks largely in part to Donna Murphy's incredible acting. This song is also a huge joke between my own mother and myself, so it's always fun for me to listen to.
Mother knows best, listen to your mother/It's a scary world out there/Mother knows best, one way or another/Something will go wrong, I swear/Ruffians, thugs, poison ivy, quicksand/Cannibals and snakes, the plague/Also large bugs, men with pointy teeth, and/Stop, no more, you'll just upset me/Mother's right here, Mother will protect you/Darling, here's what I suggest/Skip the drama, stay with mama/Mother knows best
Not While I'm Around by Edward Sanders & Helena Bonham Carter (written by S. Sondheim)
Featured on the soundtrack for the 2007 film adaptation of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, this song is a beautifully tender moment between Toby and Mrs. Lovett right before the show gets even darker than it already has towards the end. Mrs. Lovett isn't Toby's biological mother, but they take to each other so sweetly in the show that it can be hard to forget. I love this song as a classic lullaby even, and think it's for sure a top Sondheim pick for me.
Nothing's gonna harm you, not while I'm around/Nothing's gonna harm you, no sir, not while I'm around/Demons are prowling everywhere nowadays/I'll send 'em howling, I don't care, I got ways/No one's gonna hurt you, no one's gonna dare/Others can desert you, not to worry, whistle, I'Il be there/Demons'll charm you with a smile for a while, but in time/Nothing can harm you, not while I'm around
Come To Mama by Lady Gaga (written by E. Haynie, J. Tillman, S. Germanotta)
Featured on Gaga's 2016 album Joanne, this song is one of many great tracks that I think people may have missed out on by viewing this album as mid. Having been christened Mother Monster long ago by her fans, Gaga has always been very protective and loving towards her fanbase, and I think it'd be easy to see her be the same way in her personal relationships. The lyrics here are very motherly, wanting to ease a loved one's pain and encouraging love and peace amongst each other.
Everybody's got to love each other/Stop throwin' stones at your sisters and your brothers/Man, it wasn't that long ago we were all living in the jungle/So why do we gotta put each other down/When there's more than enough love to g-g-go around/Come to mama/Tell me who hurt ya/There's gonna be no future/If we don't figure this out
Hurricane by Lin-Manuel Miranda (written by L. Miranda)
Featured in Act 2 of the Broadway musical Hamilton, the second verse of this song touches on the deep love Alexander Hamilton clearly had for his mother. Her tragic death when he was just a preteen definitely impacted Hamilton both in the musical and in real life, as it would just about anyone. Her love for him was just as strong, hoping for him to heal from his own sickness knowing she likely wouldn't recover from her own.
In the eye of a hurricane, there is quiet/For just a moment, a yellow sky/I was twelve when my mother died, she was holding me/We were sick and she was holding me, I couldn't seem to die/I'll write my way out/Write everything down, far as I can see/I’ll write my way out/Overwhelm them with honesty
Soon You'll Get Better by Taylor Swift ft. The Chicks (written by J. Antonoff, T. Swift)
Featured on Swift's 2019 album Lover, this simple, beautiful song is an ode to Swift's own mother and her journey of watching her deal with a cancer diagnosis. Anyone who's watched a loved one suffer through an illness can probably relate to this song, but even considering watching this happen to my own mom is heartbreaking. Her fear, exhaustion, and hope for healing are tangible throughout the lyrics, and the simplicity of the instrumentation really works perfectly with the whole song.
The buttons of my coat were tangled in my hair/In doctor's office lighting, I didn't tell you I was scared/That was the first time we were there/Holy orange bottles, each night I pray to you/Desperate people find faith, so now I pray to Jesus, too/And I say to you/Ooh-ah, soon you'll get better/Ooh-ah, soon you'll get better/Ooh-ah, you'll get better soon/‘Cause you have to
I hope you found some sweet music to check out this week, and I hope you're able to spend some time with the mother figures in your life this weekend. Happy listening, and see ya'll next week!
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