I’ve got a pretty extensive playlist on my IPod aptly labeled “Jogging”. It contains 314 songs clocking in at 20 hours and 38 minutes. That means I could jog for an extended period of time without hearing the same song multiple times. It also means that if I was to be so bold, I could jog continuously for 20 hours and 38 minutes just to experience the entirety of that playlist. That would be getting into absurd territory – nearing the Forrest Gump level of nonsensical motivation. Cocaine and a bad batch of gummy bears would have to be involved in that decision.
This playlist is played only when I run, and at no other time – that’s a hard and fast rule – and thankfully my IPod is still alive and kicking these days. It’s going and going, a bit like the Energizer Bunny, although I see that battery life slowly dissipating over the months and it has me kind of concerned. Nevertheless, it is still a trusted friend with a near preternatural ability to pick songs at the perfect time. I can’t tell you how many times I have had this playlist on shuffle and it has landed on the exact song I needed to close out the run. When I start to huff and puff like Tony Soprano getting out of his Suburban, those legs start to lock up, and I can see the vultures circling overhead, I can always rely on one of my favorite “jog jams” to push me through.
The following are three of the greatest “jog jams” ever created. Although I doubt any of these artists intended for their songs to be considered as such, I mean, I don’t think any rocker ever dreams of making a song “to get all those joggers out there going”, it doesn’t change the fact that there is something about them that just naturally works in the cardio environment. I’m not exaggerating when I say that these three songs have played at least a half dozen times when I was thinking to myself, “I could use an epic motivation song right about now.” When that metaphysical connection I have with my Ipod kicks-in and I get one of these gems, it’s basically bliss. Then I make a face similar to the one in the photo above. Who knows, maybe it was one of those moments.
sONG #1 – SILVERSUN PICKUPS – COMMON REACTOR
I am eternally grateful to my friend John Wolf for allowing me to “burn” this CD way back when “burning” a CD was still a plausible way of sharing music. Those nascent college days when I was learning about so much music and architecture and not much else, those were pretty good days. A lot of Black Keys and My Morning Jacket was being exchanged, but it was the album Carnavas (2006), the debut studio album from Silversun Pickups, that really jumped out at me. I think this album is a masterpiece for the way it seemed to take some sonic queues from the Smashing Pumpkins, add a level of crisp precision that comes with Math Rock legends like Rush, and mix it all up with the raucous joy of garage rock. The whole album is fantastic – one which I have played in it’s entirety on jogs. However, the clear cut winner for most inspirational “jog jam” is “Common Reactor”, the last track on the album and a closing opus that has finished out many of my runs in rather serendipitous fashion. Just the way the drum kicks in to start the song and the long wail of the guitar echoes around for the entire six minutes of the song – it’s all that I require to get into that upper gear. A close second in terms of great Silversun Pickup songs to run to is “Panic Switch”, which can be seen below.
sONG #2 – tame impala – LET IT HAPPEN
So you can probably tell from the shirt I am wearing in my infamous Colfax Marathon photo above that I am a big fan of Tame Impala, especially when I lace up those running shoes. This song has everything required to make a great “jog jam”. 1) It has to be long enough for one to get lost in the driving force of the song as well as the overall tone of the song, 2) Needs a rhythm section that gallups 3) Needs several interludes that add a sense of adventure 4) Needs a penultimate rise in the energy of the song, almost like the climax to an epic movie. AND OH MY GOSH DOES THIS SONG HAVE THAT EPIC CLOSE. Once that synthesizer kicks in at the 5:05 mark and then that insanely wicked and nasty guitar lick breaks in at the 6:15 mark, dear lord am I reaching runner’s nirvana! I mean seriously, that guitar riff is the illest thing I’ve heard in a while. It’s both velvety and nasty at the same time, and belongs on some list of wickedest guitar riffs of all time (maybe a future post). This song comes from Tame Impala’s third studio album, Currents (2015), and is the opening track to another stunning album from the genius mind of Kevin Parker. I often have had this song play early in a run, which helps me gain some momentum, but it is equally as effective towards the end of the run (which is what happened today, and yes, I finished strong!). A close second within Tame Impala’s catalogue is “Be Above It”. It’s instantly identifiable as a “jog jam”, from the way the affirmative lyrics start the song and then the manner in which the music builds to a level of histrionics that belongs in sporting events worldwide. The percussion certainly “gallups”, one of the main criteria of a “jog jam”, and then when the words begin to circulate in the runner’s mind, well, you can see what I mean.
sONG #3 – wolf parade – i’ll believe in anything
This one probably requires the most patience, however, it pays off in a big way at that 2:22 mark. This is what I call my “Great Jogger’s Opus”. Not only are the lyrics irresistibly uplifting, but it’s also a song that manages to pair the vocals with the music in the most epic of ways. The splashes of percussion are perfectly synced with the end of every stanza of vocals, and you can feel the energy of the song rising, the music quickening in pace, and the pent up emotion in Spencer Krug’s voice just pleading to be unleashed. AND THEN 2:22 HAPPENS. The guitar drops in like an atomic bomb and places the song on a whole new level of transcendence. Words like anthem, and power ballad, and opus can be tossed around, though I rarely use these words to describe songs. Yet, it’s clear to me that this song deserves all of these labels and probably one better – this might be the greatest indie rock ballad of all time. Now the Modest Mouse fans can throw rocks at me, but I will not renege.
Please feel free to share your favorite “jog jams”. I would love to hear other suggestions. Maybe it will be a song I’ve never heard before! And remember, we don’t have to make this feel exclusive to runner’s. Share what you bike, yoga, swim (wait, is that safe?), speed walk, jump rope, or whatever else to!
