Songs for skydiving

April 18, 2008 7:58 AM

I need songs about falling and/or flying, but not in a metaphorical sense.

So I'm going skydiving in a month, and have a 45-minute drive to the site. Thus, I decided that I need a good 'skydiving' playlist. Can the hive mind help me find some good songs? I want songs that are explicitly about flying, or falling, excluding things like "I'm falling in love", or "leaving on a jet plane".

I've already figured out Flying-Living Colour, Free Fallin-Tom Petty, Around the Sun-Edwin, Learn to Fly-Foo Fighters. What am I missing?

posted by Lemurrhea to media & arts (44 comments total)

"Glider" by Captain Beefheart
posted by thomas144 at 8:02 AM on April 18

Would The Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds be appropriate?
posted by neilkod at 8:03 AM on April 18

Learning to Fly - Pink Floyd

Flying - Beatles [instrumental]

Parachute Woman - Rolling Stones [a joke, I think ]
posted by Freedomboy at 8:03 AM on April 18

Another really obvious one (to me anyway) would be Joni Mitchell's "This Flight Tonight."
posted by thomas144 at 8:09 AM on April 18

And how could I forget: "Coming into Los Angeles"
posted by thomas144 at 8:11 AM on April 18

The Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walkure.
posted by grobstein at 8:15 AM on April 18

Defying Gravity from Wicked
posted by milestogo at 8:15 AM on April 18

Hey hey hey/ HEY-HEY-HEY-HEY/ hey hey hey-hey-heyyyyyyyy!
posted by kittyprecious at 8:19 AM on April 18

Barenaked Ladies have a ballad about a window washer called When I Fall.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 8:23 AM on April 18

Jonathan Richman - Tandem Jump
Liz Phair - Stratford-on-guy
posted by burnmp3s at 8:25 AM on April 18

'Uncle Harvey's Plane' by The Devil Makes Three.
posted by Pecinpah at 8:26 AM on April 18

"falling" - Ben Kweller
(say hello to the ground...)
posted by gursky at 8:26 AM on April 18

Dave Matthews Crash
posted by Sassyfras at 8:28 AM on April 18

Flying Sorcery - Al Stewart

With your photographs of Kitty Hawk
And the biplanes on your wall
You were always Amy Johnson
From the time that you were small.
No schoolroom kept you grounded
While your thoughts could get away
You were taking off in Tiger Moths
Your wings against the brush-strokes of the day
Are you there?

On the tarmac with the winter in your hair
By the empty hangar doors you stop and stare
Leave the oil-drums behind you, they won't care
Oh, are you there?

Oh, you wrapped me up in a leather coat
And you took me for a ride
We were drifting with the tail-wind
When the runway came in sight
The clouds came up to gather us
And the cockpit turned to white
When I looked the sky was empty
I suppose you never saw the landing-lights

Are you there?
In your jacket with the grease-stain and the tear
Caught up in the slipstream of dare
The compass roads will guide you anywhere,
Oh, are you there?

The sun comes up on Icarus as the night-birds sail away
And lights the maps and diagrams
That Leonardo makes
You can see Faith, Hope and Charity
As they bank above the fields
You can join the flying circus
You can touch the morning air against your wheels

Are you there?
Do you have a thought for me that you can share?
Oh I never thought you'd take me unawares
Just call me if you ever need repairs
Oh, are you there?
posted by carmicha at 8:29 AM on April 18

Learnin' to Fly - Tom Petty again.
posted by subajestad at 8:30 AM on April 18

Arlo Guthrie's "Motorcycle Song"
posted by Reverend John at 8:33 AM on April 18

Maybe Distant Fingers - Patti Smith.
posted by subajestad at 8:36 AM on April 18

touch the sky -- kanye west
posted by als129 at 8:37 AM on April 18

"Sky Pilot" by the Animals.
posted by thomas144 at 8:37 AM on April 18

One of the greatest songs that involves skydiving (probably a small musical category) is D.B. Cooper by Todd Snider, about the famous skyjacker.

I also recommend the Thermals, St. Rosa and the Swallows.
posted by otolith at 8:42 AM on April 18

Here's a video of a solo performance of the D.B. Cooper song. A full band version of the song from one of his records should be available somewhere.
posted by otolith at 8:45 AM on April 18

believe it or not, i'm walking on air!
posted by jammy at 8:47 AM on April 18

I Can't Fly -- Dr. Dog
Fly Like the Wind -- Meat Puppets
Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss -- Built To Spill
A Good Flying Day -- The Sadies
Come Fly With Me -- Frank Sinatra

As I Fall -- Alejandro Escovedo
Fallin' -- Alicia Keys
Friend, You've Got to Fall -- Husker Du
Watch Me Fall -- Uncle Tupelo
All Falls Away -- The Silos
We Will Fall -- The Stooges
posted by BitterOldPunk at 8:49 AM on April 18

While perhaps not exactly what your looking for, Rocket's Tail by Kate Bush is nonetheless a cool song and has David Gilmour (of Pink Floyd) on guitar, from her album 'The Sensual World'. Dont watch the link, its dumb, just listen.

And just for inspiration but not a song I add:

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long delirious, burning blue,
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew -
And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod
The high untresspassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

John Gillespie Magee

Have fun!
posted by elendil71 at 8:55 AM on April 18

What about the Kinks "Captain America":

"I bailed you out when you are down on your knees
so won't you catch me now I'm fallin...faaaaaaaallin"
posted by spicynuts at 8:59 AM on April 18

Landed - Ben Folds
posted by bryanzera at 9:04 AM on April 18

The Who - Glow girl
posted by SurrenderMonkey at 9:05 AM on April 18

White Bird by It's a Beautiful Day
posted by thomas144 at 9:09 AM on April 18

MegaDeth - High Speed Dirt
posted by Wolfdog at 9:11 AM on April 18

a most glorious song: Tonight We Fly - The Divine Comedy (it's even been used as an Airbus advert!)
posted by scody at 9:11 AM on April 18 [1 favorite]

and, umm, y'know... fly like an eagle

youtubery:
steve miller, 1973 style
seal (caution! space jam content!)
wake up, you astronauts you!
acapella

posted by jammy at 9:21 AM on April 18

ashes to ashes by david bowie
posted by snofoam at 9:25 AM on April 18

oops. i meant major tom by peter schilling.

Earth below us
drifting, falling.

etc.
posted by snofoam at 9:28 AM on April 18

Long ago my roommates at the time went skydiving, and got to choose the music for the video. The first song was Ride The Wild Wind by Queen from their Innuendo album. Ever since I've associated that song with skydiving.
posted by dr. fresh at 12:08 PM on April 18

Where You Fly by the awesome band Fury in the Slaughterhouse.

"If I could see where you fly
Where you go to in your dreams
I would follow you for miles
And then maybe I'd believe"
posted by Ostara at 12:22 PM on April 18

Eight Miles High — The Byrds
Fifty Mission Cap — The Tragically Hip
posted by timeistight at 1:56 PM on April 18

I have seen about 50 skydiving videos that are all set to Danger Zone by kenny loggins.
posted by brent_h at 3:04 PM on April 18

Courtney Love - Fly (was a b-side for Mono and on international versions of America's Sweetheart)
posted by disaster77 at 3:08 PM on April 18

"I'm Flying" from the broadway show "Peter Pan
posted by Melismata at 3:28 PM on April 18

Songs about Flying
posted by Locative at 3:51 PM on April 18

A320 by Foo Fighters

"I'm afraid of aeroplanes, even though i love the way it feels to be a person in the sky"
posted by tomble at 4:10 PM on April 18

Violent Femmes - Out the Window
posted by whatzit at 4:49 PM on April 18

"The Drop" by Peter Gabriel.

"Moving down the fuselage
Toward the open door
Catch you looking down outside
To see what lies ahead"

It's a beautiful song, but you'll probably like it more on the drive back.
posted by Cobalt at 4:51 PM on April 18

"Pants on Fire" by Buck65
"A Plane Scraped its Belly on a Sooty Yellow Moon" by Soul Coughing and Roni Size
posted by JonnyRotten at 5:39 PM on April 18