Music has a way of capturing the moments that words alone can’t quite catch. Following the success of our “The Photos That Define Us” feature, staff writers Neva Cosentino and Andrea Weisser asked: Which songs matter to us?
From lyrics that offer comfort following heartbreak, to melodies that remind us of life’s simple joys, these selections reveal the diverse voices—and the complex emotions—that make up the heartbeat of our school. This isn’t just a random playlist—it’s the soundtrack to our lives, capturing the specific memories and moments that matter most.
Without further ado…here are “The Songs That Resonate With Us” as compiled by Neva Cosentino and Andrea Weisser
Brandi Carlile – “The Story”
Submitted by: Ms. Brenda Barner – Eighth grade ELA teacher
“The Story” by Brandi Carlile came out in 2007, the year my mother passed from a long battle with cancer. The song’s theme of acceptance and gratitude resonated with me as I navigated caring for her in her last months.
The “story” refers to someone’s life, including all its highs and lows. The first two stanzas explain it simplistically:
All of these lines across my face / Tell you the story of who I am / So many stories of where I’ve been / And how I got to where I am / But these stories don’t mean anything / When you’ve got no one to tell them to / It’s true, I was made for you / Iclimbed across the mountain tops / Swam all across the ocean blue / I crossed all the lines, and I broke all the rules / But, baby, I broke them all for you / Oh because even when I was flat broke / You made me feel like a million bucks, you do / I was made for you
Although this song could be a love story, the great thing about art is that it is open to interpretation. My mom was a single mother who struggled, and her kids were her life. The line that states: “…these stories don’t mean anything when you’ve got no one to tell them to” reminds me of how important family is. So the lines were viewed through my perspective on her life as a whole and on how much she sacrificed and gave to her loved ones. As far as the emotion and tension in the song, Brandi sings it with such intensity that many people cry upon hearing it for the first time. The juxtaposition between the ballad parts with a single guitar, and the crescendo with rock guitars captures the song’s feeling.
Zach Bryan – “November Air”
Submitted by: Ms. Dawn Vaughn – Health and physical education teacher
A song that resonates with me is “November Air” by Zach Bryan. The song is about the love and sacrifice mothers make for their children, often going without so their children can grow up happy, safe, and healthy. I was raised by a single mother, and I am so thankful for everything she did to prepare my brothers and I for this life.
This song reminds me that by doing her job well, a mother ultimately prepares her children to live and flourish in this world without her. The song tells the story from the perspective of a loving son who recognizes the many sacrifices his mother made throughout his childhood. He sings:
Two kids ’bout twenty-three / And the sunsets you’ll never see / You were yellin’ “supper” from the yard / And they grew old and sailed away / Called you on phones from far away / Wrote you novels on postcards
This shows how she allowed her children to enjoy all the wonders of life and poured everything she had into them, knowing they would eventually grow up and leave her. But she was not regretful or sad; she was proud and accepting of the fact that this is how life works.
The message of the song is evident in the chorus:
Dear Ma, how’s it goin’? / Was the weather fair last week? /Dear Ma, they were wonderful, all the sights you’ll never see. / And dear Ma, if I could hold you, I’d grab you by the arms and tell you what it means. / How you could take a worthless, poor boy from the flats and make him mean something.
Moms create miracles, and even when they have nothing, they still manage to make their children feel like they have it all.
Jason Isbell – “Letting You Go”
Submitted by: Mr. Brian J. Duermeyer – Seventh grade ELA teacher
Jason Isbell’s “Letting You Go” is about a father’s love and fear as he watches his child grow up. Isbell writes from the perspective of a parent who wants to protect his daughter from pain, mistakes, and the harsh parts of the world—but knows he cannot.
The song highlights the tension between holding on and letting go, and loving someone deeply while accepting that they must live their own life. It is emotional, honest, and realistic, showing that real love sometimes means stepping back, even when it hurts.
An emotional tone is established immediately in the opening lines:
The nurse helped us buckle the seat in the car / and she sent us on our way / I drove home so slow / We had no instructions, the first days were hard / but there’s things about babies a woman just knows / Three in the morning, I lay my hand over / Your heart just to know you were safe in your sleep / When you started walking I fight back the urge /To stay right there beside you, keep you on your feet.
Children are blessings that give life purpose. I love you, Veda.
Big Fish – “How it Ends”
Submitted by: Ms. Jenny Birch – Professional writer & teacher
Predictably, my most resonant songs are theatre songs! At this stage in my life, I’m really drawn to songs that talk about how we live our lives, how we make an impact, and how we can be sure we are doing good – for our families, certainly, and also for the world.
Recently, songs like “Throwing in the Towel” from The Outsiders, and “The Choices We Make” from A Bronx Tale, have frequently been on my playlists. But the song I keep coming back to is “How It Ends” from Big Fish.
Big Fish is a (very undervalued, in my opinion) 2013 Broadway musical, based on the novel and movie of the same title. It explores the long-strained relationship between a father (played in the original production by the inimitable Norbert Leo Butz) and his adult son as the two seek closeness and healing in the wake of devastating medical news. “How It Ends” is the second-to-last song of the show, the father’s sung soliloquy as he reflects on his life and his choices, and ponders the legacy he leaves for his son and the grandchild he will never get to meet.
The song is by turns funny, fantastical, and heartfelt. It is a bittersweet turning point: the father and son have reconciled just as their time together in this life is ending. The father expresses, through Andrew Lippa’s deceptively straightforward and simple lyrics, his appreciation for the joy and imagination he embraced throughout his entire life, as well as the deep love and eternal devotion he has for his wife and son – even when they didn’t necessarily understand him:
I know I wasn’t perfect / I know my life was small / I know that I pretended that I knew it all / But when you tell my story / And I hope somebody does / Remember me as something bigger than I was / It ends with sons / It ends with wives / It ends with knowing when the pavement bends we find our lives / So let it come / And let me go / Show me the waves / And let them flow / It all ends well / This much, I know
This song brings me to tears every time I listen to it (and I’ve listened to it hundreds of times). It expresses the hope I have for my life, for my relationships with my children and husband, for the impact I’ll have on this world. To live life not perfectly, but well. To leave behind memories and stories that matter. To help the people I care for create their own memories and live their lives well, too.
Chumbawamba – “Tubthumping”
Submitted by: Mr. Scott Heller – Eighth grade ELA teacher
Put me down for the classic tune “Tubthumping” by Chumbawamba because it serves as a personal reminder that setbacks are temporary and resilience is a collective effort.
The song’s main theme centers on undying persistence in the face of adversity, presented from the perspective of a resilient man who refuses to let life’s hardships dampen his spirit. There is a tension between the “knocking down” of the verses and the explosive, triumphant release of the chorus, creating an emotional arc of defiant optimism.
This tone is perfectly captured in the iconic lyrics:
I get knocked down / but I get up again / You’re never gonna keep me down / I get knocked down/ but I get up again / You’re never gonna keep me down
The song transforms a simple struggle into a universal rallying cry for anyone fighting to stay on their feet.
Regina Spektor – “Laughing With”
Submitted by: Ms. Christine Hlad – seventh grade ELA teacher
Despite the borders we draw between us—identity, faith, or origin—there is a common thread in our human experience. We all find ourselves questioning the same mystery at one time or another: Is there a greater power at work in our universe?
Regina Spektor’s song, “Laughing With,” compels us to look inward at this existential question.
This song implores us to look at our own unique, individual relationship with religion or spirituality, and to consider that, in times of horror, fear, hopelessness, and grief, all of humanity has a shared need for comfort and hope.
Spektor writes in the second verse:
No one laughs at God when the doctor calls after some routine tests / No one’s laughing at God when it’s gotten real late and their kid’s not back from that party yet.
As we age, these worries become universal, and the song creates a deep, empathetic feeling of both wonder and fear. Spektor’s lyrics, vocal style, and melancholy piano accompaniment create a foreboding, sorrowful tone, and the composition evokes a mood that can bring a person to tears and to introspection simultaneously.
The artist also creates tension in the song between a “serious” or “real” God we hope for in times of despair and a laughable, fictitious God when life is uncomplicated. She sings:
God could be funny / When told he’ll give you money if you just pray the right way / And when presented like a genie who does magic like Houdini / Or grants wishes like Jiminy Cricket and Santa Claus / God could be so hilarious.
In this way, Spektor is challenging us to look at our own cynicism and spiritual shortcomings. Do we only care about “God” when we are broken? Is it human nature to fall into the pattern of insensitivity or complacency when our lives are easy? For me, these are the questions this song evokes. It is a masterful piece of music that serves as a stark reminder to be thankful, humble, and compassionate in a world laden with both love and tragedy, regardless of religious affiliation or spiritual belief.
The Rolling Stones – “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”
Submitted by: Ms. Jill Millard – Librarian
Quoting The Rolling Stones surprises me just as much as you. My heart belongs to a different English rock band (Coldplay), but Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were on to something when they wrote:
You can’t always get what you want / But if you try, sometimes / Well, you might find /You get what you need.
There is little else about the song I know or even like, but this refrain often comes to mind. On the one hand, it sounds depressing. Why can’t we get what we want? Is wishful thinking wrong?
The song continues with a string of tentative language using the words but, if sometimes, well, might. I hear hopefulness. What happens next is an invitation or a challenge. Try. Find.
While The Stones are not prescriptive, they do suggest that we may need to modify our perspective. Are we really looking for the right thing?
Sometimes we get fixated on a single idea or goal and become blinded to other possibilities. This song reminds me to widen the lens – think outside the box – look elsewhere. Be open to surprises. Even though it sounds as if the Stones are yelling (okay, they always sound like they are yelling) when they sing, “You get what you need,” I find it reassuring.
There is comfort in knowing that the universe has much to offer if we are open to change.
The Grateful Dead – “Peggy-O “
Submitted by: Ms. Maria Swartzbaugh – seventh grade ACC. Math teacher
A song that resonates with me is by The Grateful Dead, a band known for many ballads that are set hundreds of years ago. This is an old Scottish song called “The Bonnie Lass o’Fyvie” that the Dead called “Peggy-O”.
It is about a ship captain, William, who falls in love with a lady on his ship. Her name is Peggy, but her nickname is Pretty Peggy-O. William asks Peggy to marry him, but Peggy knows that her family won’t permit the marriage because William isn’t affluent enough. William goes off to war to make money and prove to her family that he is worthy of Peggy’s hand in marriage:
Come stepping down the stairs, combing back your yellow hair; bid a last farewell to your William-O.
The song highlights the social constraints of the time and the lengths we will go to for the ones we love. As you listen to “Peggy-O”, you hope so badly that William comes home safely with guineas in his pocket and marries his Pretty Peggy-O. However, the lyrics say, “Sweet William he is dead, and he died for a maid,” and we realize he was killed in battle.
Although this song is sad and Jerry Garcia’s guitar is mournful, it is beautiful. It holds a special place in my heart because I sang it to all three of my children when they were babies.
Deva Premal & Miten – “The Gayatri Mantra”
Submitted by: Kristi Coleman – Guidance counselor
The Gayatri Mantra has traveled with me for years. I first heard it during my yoga practice and later in yoga teacher training, and it continued to weave its way into my life through countless classes, performances, and long road trips. It was familiar and grounding—always there—but for a long time, I listened with my ears rather than with my full attention and awareness.
The Gayatri Mantra is a universal prayer and meditation, an invocation of the sun as a source of illumination and wisdom. It calls for the removal of darkness—not only in the world, but within ourselves—so that we may see more clearly and live with intention and integrity. More than a song, it is an invitation to reflect, to ask, and to reconnect with something steady and enduring.
It wasn’t until I experienced a live performance by Deva Premal and Miten that the mantra reached me more deeply. In that space, surrounded by voices, breath, and stillness, the song became more than sound—it became a shared experience. The stage was washed in deep blue and violet light, the words of the Gayatri Mantra glowing behind them like a quiet prayer suspended in the air. As the music began, time seemed to soften. The words I had heard for years—on yoga mats, in studios, in moments of searching—now moved through the room with depth, presence, and intention. I wasn’t just hearing the mantra; I was experiencing it fully, through a call-and-response setting that made it both deeply personal and collective.
From that moment on, the Gayatri Mantra was no longer just what I practiced yoga with—it became something I carried with me daily. Each live performance felt like a reunion, familiar yet new, meeting the same melody in a different version of myself. Over time, the mantra became a marker in my life—a reminder of how music can shift from background sound to meaning, from repetition to resonance, and from a song into something that quietly guides the way forward, shaping how I listen and how I move through the world.
The Smashing Pumpkins – “1979”
Submitted by: Teddy Grzybowski – Grade 8
This 1995 carefree anthem brings nostalgia and longing for a decade (the late ’70s) that no middle schooler was alive to witness. It describes the experience of growing up without fear and how quickly it all goes by. The Pumpkins capture a time when they were young and free in the song’s iconic chorus:
And I don’t even care to shake these zipper blues / And we don’t know just where our bones will rest to dust / I guess forgotten and absorbed to the Earth below / Double-cross the vacant and the bored / They’re not sure just what we have in store /Morphine city slippin’ dues down to see/ That we don’t even care as restless as we are /We feel the pull in the land of a thousand guilts / And poured cement
Sabrina Carpenter – “Lie to Girls”
Submitted by: Mia Belajac – Grade 8
Sabrina Carpenter’s 2025 hit resonates mainly because I am a people pleaser, and I have a weird way of manipulating my mind into thinking someone is great when they’re not, which is what this song is about.
You don’t have to lie to girls / If they like you, they’ll just lie to themselves / Like you, they’ll just lie to themselves / You don’t have to lie to girls / If they like you, they’ll just lie to themselves / Don’t I know it better than anyone else?
The Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Around the World”
Submitted by Emma Smith – Grade 8
This Chili Peppers‘ song resonates because my parents used to play it on the way home from camping. This was before I had my own headphones, so I couldn’t listen to my own music. Anytime I hear the lyrics, I immediately tie the song to camping trips I have taken with my parents.
I know, I know for sure / That life is beautiful around the world / I know, I know it’s you / You say “Hello” and then I say “I do“
Frank Sinatra – That’s Life (1966)
Submitted by: Camilla Waskiewicz – Grade 7
I feel connected to this song because it’s about getting back up after being knocked down and embracing life’s inevitable ups and downs. It inspires me to keep trying, no matter what happens.
That’s life (that’s life) / That’s what all the people say / You’re riding high in April, shot down in May/ But I know I’m gonna change that tune / When I’m back on top, back on top in June / I said that’s life (that’s life) / And as funny as it may seem / Some people get their kicks Stomping on a dream / But I don’t let it, let it get me down / ‘Cause this fine old world, it keeps spinnin’ around.
Lydia the Bard – “Joan”
Submitted by: Emily O’Brien – Grade 8
Joan talks about how her story was never hers to choose, and that historians change how she is perceived, which makes me think about how history is defined by the winners. I feel connected to it mostly because she reminds me of what’s happening today, all around the world, with the persecution of minorities.
Joan, she’s sick, a saint, maybe a witch / Too late to choose, now that your temper’s lit / The devil spy she’s infiltrated / or a prophet from god here to be our saviour / Seize a white dove by her feet / Paint her wings in black
