Half of me breathes in you
May 25, 2012 5:31 AM Subscribe
I'm looking for songs about siblings that don't have words like sister, brother, or family in the title. Help me out.
I've got a few so far:
Murder in the City - Avett Brothers ("Make sure my sister knows I love her/Make sure my mother knows the same/Always remember there was nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name.")
Timshel - Mumford and Sons ("And you are not alone in this/As brothers we will stand and we'll hold your hand.")
Dog Days are Over - Florence and the Machines ("Run for your children, for your sisters and brothers...")
Swim - Jack's Mannequin's ("Swim for your families, your lovers, your sisters and brothers and friends.")
I'm looking for neutral to positive mentions of siblings - I'd love stuff more like Murder in the City and Timshel, rather than passing mentions of siblings.
I've seen this thread but it goes in a different direction; these songs are going to end up on mix CDs, and I don't care about singability or the particular siblings being sung of/to.
If you know a great song that does have a sibling word in the title, that's fine too; I excluded those because they're easier to find.
I've got a few so far:
Murder in the City - Avett Brothers ("Make sure my sister knows I love her/Make sure my mother knows the same/Always remember there was nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name.")
Timshel - Mumford and Sons ("And you are not alone in this/As brothers we will stand and we'll hold your hand.")
Dog Days are Over - Florence and the Machines ("Run for your children, for your sisters and brothers...")
Swim - Jack's Mannequin's ("Swim for your families, your lovers, your sisters and brothers and friends.")
I'm looking for neutral to positive mentions of siblings - I'd love stuff more like Murder in the City and Timshel, rather than passing mentions of siblings.
I've seen this thread but it goes in a different direction; these songs are going to end up on mix CDs, and I don't care about singability or the particular siblings being sung of/to.
If you know a great song that does have a sibling word in the title, that's fine too; I excluded those because they're easier to find.
Is Billy Idol's "White Wedding" too obvious to mention?
posted by .kobayashi. at 5:33 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by .kobayashi. at 5:33 AM on May 25, 2012
Does it have to explicitly mention brothers or sister in the lyrics? I think of The Song That Jane Likes.
posted by mibo at 5:46 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by mibo at 5:46 AM on May 25, 2012
Response by poster: .kobayashi. - nothing's too obvious.
mibo - nope, implied siblings are great. Songs about specific siblings, like Rufus Wainwright's Martha or Jack Mannequin's Katie, also work.
posted by punchtothehead at 5:48 AM on May 25, 2012
mibo - nope, implied siblings are great. Songs about specific siblings, like Rufus Wainwright's Martha or Jack Mannequin's Katie, also work.
posted by punchtothehead at 5:48 AM on May 25, 2012
Cosy Sheridan's beautiful song "Love Is Thicker than Water" is about her relationship with her brother. (No time for link, sorry)
posted by dlugoczaj at 6:00 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by dlugoczaj at 6:00 AM on May 25, 2012
Joanna Newsom's song Emily is about her sister, who also sings backing vocals on the song.
posted by LeeLanded at 6:13 AM on May 25, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by LeeLanded at 6:13 AM on May 25, 2012 [2 favorites]
"Keep it Together" by Madonna
posted by Blue Jello Elf at 6:13 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Blue Jello Elf at 6:13 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
David Lynn Jones, "Peterbilt a Truck for a Man to Drive." It's about the singer's sister becoming a truck driver after leaving her no-good husband.
posted by not that girl at 6:16 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by not that girl at 6:16 AM on May 25, 2012
Lily Allen's Alfie is about her brother. It's not the most positive in the sense that she's trying to get him to shape up and get his life together, but it feels like it comes from a place of love and concern vs. just bashing him.
Oh, and I guess the song must've worked, Alfie Allen is now an actor on Game of Thrones, apparently.
posted by miss_kitty_fantastico at 6:35 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
Oh, and I guess the song must've worked, Alfie Allen is now an actor on Game of Thrones, apparently.
posted by miss_kitty_fantastico at 6:35 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
I once heard that Our Love is Here To Stay was written by Ira, for George, but the Wikipedia page only says that "Ira Gershwin wrote the words after his brother's death, giving the song a special poignancy."
posted by seriousmoonlight at 6:45 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by seriousmoonlight at 6:45 AM on May 25, 2012
Caroline -- Old Crow Medicine Show
"Though we may be a thousand miles apart
A brother and a sister have a single heart
And the beat don't stop for nothin'"
posted by wg at 6:51 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
"Though we may be a thousand miles apart
A brother and a sister have a single heart
And the beat don't stop for nothin'"
posted by wg at 6:51 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
Bambix - Monozygotic (though it's about an unhappy brother-brother relation)
posted by MinusCelsius at 6:56 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by MinusCelsius at 6:56 AM on May 25, 2012
Caetano Veloso is the brother of Maria Bethânia. After the Brazilian dictatorship had him arrested and exiled to England, he wrote a song for her, full of homesickness and anxiety. The same year, Bethânia recorded a song about him (a much more optimistic one) with Jorge Ben.
posted by hydrophonic at 6:58 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by hydrophonic at 6:58 AM on May 25, 2012
Madness' Our House is about growing up with a sister and brother. It's got a lot in common with Come Dancing, I think.
I was going to say ABC's The Look Of Love, but I think the 'siiisters and brothers!' is about metaphorical rather than actual siblings.
posted by mippy at 7:06 AM on May 25, 2012
I was going to say ABC's The Look Of Love, but I think the 'siiisters and brothers!' is about metaphorical rather than actual siblings.
posted by mippy at 7:06 AM on May 25, 2012
Lily Allen's "Alfie" is about her brother (who seems to have come a long way since she wrote it; he plays Theon on Game of Thrones.)
posted by fingersandtoes at 7:43 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by fingersandtoes at 7:43 AM on May 25, 2012
Alexi Murdoch -- Orange Sky
posted by amarynth at 7:46 AM on May 25, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by amarynth at 7:46 AM on May 25, 2012 [2 favorites]
Jens Lekman: "The Opposite of Hallelujah"
posted by to recite so charmingly at 8:25 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by to recite so charmingly at 8:25 AM on May 25, 2012
Oh yeah! Also the song "Driveway" by Hayden... about a time when his brother got him to stick stones up his nose.
posted by to recite so charmingly at 8:32 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by to recite so charmingly at 8:32 AM on May 25, 2012
There's a little known band called The Snake The Cross The Crown (not actually religious music). There's a song called Maps, and it menrions a few relationships, here's where it mentions siblings, twice:
"I recall my brothers; And only brothers never wander far."
And:
"Entombed by the love of my brothers. They'll still be around."
posted by FirstMateKate at 8:59 AM on May 25, 2012
"I recall my brothers; And only brothers never wander far."
And:
"Entombed by the love of my brothers. They'll still be around."
posted by FirstMateKate at 8:59 AM on May 25, 2012
Blue October's "Sweet and Somber Pigeon Wings" is about family relationships, including siblings.
posted by shamash at 10:40 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by shamash at 10:40 AM on May 25, 2012
Martha Wainwright's Laurel & Hardy
posted by Iris Gambol at 10:53 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by Iris Gambol at 10:53 AM on May 25, 2012
Sister Sledge's We Are Family
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:08 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:08 AM on May 25, 2012
Night Ranger's Sister Christian
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:22 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:22 AM on May 25, 2012
Fall of '82 from the new Shins album is the words of a brother reflecting on how his older sister helped him through a tough time when they were young.
posted by matildaben at 12:15 PM on May 25, 2012
posted by matildaben at 12:15 PM on May 25, 2012
Damien Jurado's Medication and I Had No Intentions. Actually, probably a lot of his other stuff as well. Those two just initially come to mind.
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:26 PM on May 25, 2012
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:26 PM on May 25, 2012
Stay Up Late - Talking Heads
Young Turks - Rod Stewart
posted by SisterHavana at 5:33 PM on May 25, 2012
Young Turks - Rod Stewart
posted by SisterHavana at 5:33 PM on May 25, 2012
Bonnie Prince Billy -- I see a darkness
The Shangri-Las - I can never go home again
Billy Idol - White Wedding
Bruce Springsteen - I'm on fire
Pulp - Common People
Smog - Cold-blooded old times
Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:37 PM on May 25, 2012
The Shangri-Las - I can never go home again
Billy Idol - White Wedding
Bruce Springsteen - I'm on fire
Pulp - Common People
Smog - Cold-blooded old times
Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:37 PM on May 25, 2012
Response by poster: I'm still going through these all and they're awesome so far. Thank you all so much.
posted by punchtothehead at 5:38 PM on May 25, 2012
posted by punchtothehead at 5:38 PM on May 25, 2012
(I added "mother" and "father" without realizing you didn't type that, so you can disregard, oh, lots of these)
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:39 PM on May 25, 2012
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:39 PM on May 25, 2012
Sophie B. Hawkins - "California Here I Come"
posted by Iris Gambol at 8:21 PM on May 25, 2012
posted by Iris Gambol at 8:21 PM on May 25, 2012
The Louvin Brothers - I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby
Will Oldham (Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Palace, Palace Music, Palace Brothers, etc.) - Gulf Shores (beautiful song, although it's not positive, or even neutral)
Calexico - Across the Wire
Fleet Foxes - Blue Ridge Mountains
The Who - Tattoo
Elton John - Daniel
Joanna Newsom's "Emily" is for her sister, an astrophysicist, who provided some backing vocals for the song.
posted by hydrophonic at 10:08 AM on May 26, 2012
Will Oldham (Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Palace, Palace Music, Palace Brothers, etc.) - Gulf Shores (beautiful song, although it's not positive, or even neutral)
Calexico - Across the Wire
Fleet Foxes - Blue Ridge Mountains
The Who - Tattoo
Elton John - Daniel
Joanna Newsom's "Emily" is for her sister, an astrophysicist, who provided some backing vocals for the song.
posted by hydrophonic at 10:08 AM on May 26, 2012
REM's Sweetness Follows:
Listen here, my sister and my brother
What would you care if you lost the other?
I always wonder why did we bother,
Distanced from one, deaf to the other
posted by jabes at 11:41 AM on May 26, 2012
Listen here, my sister and my brother
What would you care if you lost the other?
I always wonder why did we bother,
Distanced from one, deaf to the other
posted by jabes at 11:41 AM on May 26, 2012
Stevie Wonder's Living for the City has a verse about the a brother and sister.
posted by jefftang at 1:59 PM on May 31, 2012
posted by jefftang at 1:59 PM on May 31, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Captain_Science at 5:33 AM on May 25, 2012 [1 favorite]