Songs About the New Year

New Year's Eve
Santa Cruz 2008

A super short list of favorite songs about the New Year and a question, why are there so many Christmas songs around compared to only a few about the New Year? Such a hopeful holiday and yet so little love from songwriters, I wonder why that's so.

Long December-Counting Crows/Recovering the Satellites
Adam Duritz describes this as a song about hope and the possibilities. What I love about their work is that it always seems to be a deeply personal reflection of all things, the sweet and the sour, as though one can't exist independent of the other.

"Drove up to Hillside Manor sometime after two a.m.
And talked a little while about the year
I guess the winter makes you laugh a little slower,
Makes you talk a little lower about the things you could not show her

And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe
Maybe this year will be better than the last
I can't remember all the times I tried to tell my myself
To hold on to these moments as they pass"


Same Old Lang Syne-Dan Fogelberg/The Innocent Age
As a 70s kid, this was my first favorite contemporary holiday song. It saturated the airwaves this time of year when I was growing up. The lyrics read like a diary entry:

"Met my old lover in the grocery store

The snow was falling Christmas Eve

I stole behind her in the frozen foods

And I touched her on the sleeve

She didn't recognize the face at first

But then her eyes flew open wide

She went to hug me and she spilled her purse

And we laughed until we cried."


New Year Song-U2/War
My age is showing with this mini song selection, I'm sure of it...but really it seems to me that there are so few songs out there on this subject. Can you think of any others? Prince 1999 did occur to me but I was thinking of New Year songs in general, and not so specific to a given year since New Year's Eve in my opinion is about that feeling of anticipation for what's to come. Anything is possible. With that said, I adore this song because although a new year on the horizon often brings to mind change...this song reaffirms what we all wish to remain a constant...Love.

"All is quiet on New Year's Day.
A world in white gets underway.
I want to be with you, be with you night and day.
Nothing changes on New Year's Day.
On New Year's Day."

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