Last Saturday marked the first day of spring: a season of warmth, growth and beginnings. Finally being able to feel the sun again is an incomparable feeling, especially upon reflection of the past year. Progress has been made, yet we are still in a very challenging, difficult and draining period of life. This spring, a one-year mark of the pandemic, reasonably holds a more delicate aura.
Even so, the season persists in being associated with change, blossoming and subtle warmth. Folk rock encompasses these spring feelings, serving as the perfect genre to represent the season.
Themes of folk rock songs play into spring with ease. Nature, a prime element in spring, is also a prime element represented in folk rock music themes. John Denver’s “Annie’s Song,” a ‘70s folk rock ode to love, paints pictures of spring pieces. “You fill up my senses / Like a night in a forest / Like the mountains in springtime / Like a walk in the rain / Like a storm in the desert / Like a sleepy blue ocean / You fill up my senses / Come fill me again.” In “Wildflowers,” Tom Petty writes, “You belong among the wildflowers / You belong somewhere close to me / Far away from your trouble and worries / You belong somewhere you feel free.” Folk rock depicts nature gorgeously, accurately representing the beauty of nature that is prevalent in spring.
The instrumentation found in folk rock music is also successful in spring imagery. Warm acoustic guitars found in folk rock mimic soft sunshine that is only able to be found in spring. “Dance with Me'' features this soft and sweet acoustic, solely filling the first 20 seconds of the track. The chosen instruments in this track provide delicacy. They are soft in category, as is the season of spring. America’s “Ventura Highway” also swims straight into acoustic guitar. Added folky instrument choices such as the harmonica found in Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold” also instill that comfortable feeling that spring inspires.
When also paired with lyrics noting newfound warmth and sunshine, folk rock music sums spring right up. “Here Comes The Sun” may be folk rock’s spring gem. “Little darling, the smile's returning to their faces / Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here / Here comes the sun / Here comes the sun, and I say / It's all right.”
Folk rock represents spring. Its themes, instruments and elements intertwine with those that spring stimulates. Folk rock assesses themes of nature, weather and beauty, and it does so in a warm fashion. The season of spring brings about warmth and displays nature. Feeling the sun upon your skin again and watching nature perform as experienced during spring are best depicted by folk rock: warmly and beautifully.
Lauren Patterson is a sophomore studying journalism. Please note that the views and ideas of columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Lauren? Tweet her @lpaatt.
