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Literature for Our Time

The Soundtrack 2011-12
This page lists the songs played during the break in the Literature for Our Time lectures at the University of Toronto. The general idea is to playfully question the division between high and mass culture through popular music that evokes subjects, themes, or images similar to those found in the literature we're exploring in class that day. It's not exam material. If you have suggestions for specific songs to accompany past or upcoming books, feel free to email them to me at nick.mount@utoronto.ca.

 

Fall Term / Spring Term

Introduction

Intro: Factor, "Lawson Graham"; Aloe Blacc, "Green Lights"; Regina Spektor, "Fidelity"

  1. The Decemberists, "Don't Carry It All," The King Is Dead (Capitol, 2011)

  2. Iron & Wine, "Walking Away from Home," Kiss Each Other Clean (Warner, 2011)

T. S. Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"

Intro: The Beatles, "Nowhere Man"; CocoRosie, "Animals"

  1. The Weeknd, "Wicked Games," House of Balloons (independent, 2011)

  2. The National, "Anyone's Ghost," High Violet (4AD, 2010). Live at the Brooklyn Academy.

  3. Pixies, "Debaser," Doolittle (GAD, 1989).

T. S. Eliot, The Waste Land

Intro: PJ Harvey, "Let England Shake"; The Who, "Baba O'Riley"

  1. Sarah Slean, "Eliot," Sarah Slean EP (Atlantic, 2001)

  2. Arcade Fire, "Wasted Hours," The Suburbs (Merge, 2010)

  3. The Hood Internet, "Sprawl of Glass" [Arcade Fire v. Blondie], (thehoodinternet.com, 2011)

Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

Intro: Cracker, "Hallelujah"; DJ Topcat, "Folsom Prison Gangstaz"

  1. Basket of Figs, "Send Your Youth," Dead Language (independent, 2009)

  2. This Mortal Coil, "Song to the Siren," It'll End in Tears (4AD, 1984)

  3. The Cat Empire, "Miserere," Two Shoes (Virgin Australia, 2005)

Charlie Chaplin, Modern Times

Intro [for To the Lighthouse]: Beatdown, "Take Me Out"; Death Cab Cutie, "Codes and Keys"

  1. Friska Viljor, "Passionseeker," The Beginning Of The Beginning Of The End (Crying Bob, 2011)

  2. Against Me! "Those Anarcho Punks Are Mysterious," The Acoustic EP (Sabot, 2001)

  3. Mumford & Sons, "Little Lion Man," Sigh No More (Island, 2009)

Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot

Intro: Nine Inch Nails, "Every Day Is Exactly the Same"; Factor, "Ain't Nothing Gonna Change"

  1. John Lennon, “God,” Plastic Ono Band (Apple, 1970)

  2. Norah Jones, "Waiting," The Fall (Blue Note, 2009)

  3. Chad VanGaalen, "Willow Tree," Soft Airplane (Flemish Eye, 2008)

Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart

Intro: The Matthew Good Band, "The Fine Art of Falling Apart"; K'naan, "Take a Minute"

  1. Nneka, "Heartbeat," No Longer at Ease (Yo Mama's Recording Company, 2008), an album and a title inspired by Achebe's second novel.

  2. The Mountain Goats, “Yam, the King of Crops,” Yam, the King of Crops (independent cassette, 1994)

  3. Bob Marley, "Crazy Baldhead," Rastaman Vibration (Tuff Gong, 1976)

  4. Roots with Erykah Badu, "You Got Me," from Things Fall Apart (MA, 1999), an album and title inspired by Achebe's first novel.

Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita (1)

Intro: Miniature Tigers, "Lolita"; Cults, "You Know What I Mean"

  1. Serge Gainsbourg, "Pauvre Lola," Gainsbourg Percussions (Philips, 1964)

  2. Faithless, "Dirty Old Man," Reverence (Arista, 1997)

  3. The Big Pink, “Velvet,” A Brief History of Love (4AD, 2009)

  4. Tegan & Sara, "Not Tonight," If It Was You (Superclose, 2002)

Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita (2)

Intro: Martha Wainwright, "Lolita"; Dirty Beaches, "Lord Knows Best"; Lana Del Rey, "Diet Mtn. Dew"

  1. The Sugarcubes, "Birthday," Life's Too Good (Elektra, 1988)

  2. Air, "Playground Love," The Virgin Suicides soundtrack (Astralwerks, 2000)

  3. Aidan Knight, "Altar Boys," Versicolour (Adventure Boys Club, 2010)

Gabriel García Márquez, Leaf Storm and Other Stories

Intro: Josh Ritter, "The Curse"; Feist, "Cicadas and Gulls"

  1. Molotov, "Gimme Tha Power," ¿Dónde Jugarán las Niñas? (Polygram Latino, 1997)

  2. Shakira, "Quiero" Pies Descalzos (Columbia Latino, 1995)

  3. The Tallest Man on Earth, "Where I Thought I Met the Angels," King of Spain single (Dead Oceans, 2010)

Sylvia Plath, Ariel (1)

Intro: Moby, "Victoria Lucas"; Johnny Cash, "Hurt" 

  1. Damien Rice, "9 Crimes," 9 (Heffa, 2006)

  2. Crystal Castles, "Suffocation," Crystal Castles II (Fiction, 2010)

  3. Amy Winehouse, "Back to Black," Back to Black (Island, 2006)

Sylvia Plath, Ariel (2)

Intro: Bon Iver, "Blood Bank"; Erykah Badu, "Window Seat"  

  1. Spice Girls, "Wannabe," Spice (Virgin, 1996)

  2. Janis Joplin, "Cry Baby," Pearl (Columbia, 1971)

  3. Laura Marling, "Night Terror," Alas I Cannot Swim (Virgin, 2008)

  4. First Aid Kit, "When I Grow Up," Ghost Town [single] (Wichita Recordings, 2010)

 

 

Spring Term
Intro; John Cameron Mitchell, Hedwig & The Angry Inch

  1. Eleanor Friedberger, "My Mistakes," Last Summer (Merge, 2011)

  2. Rich Aucoin, "It," We're All Dying to Live (Sonic, 2011)

  3. Handsome Furs, "Serve the People," Sound Kapital (Sub Pop, 2011)
John Cameron Mitchell, Hedwig & The Angry Inch

Intro: Spoon, "Tear Me Down"; Antony & The Johnsons, "For Today I Am a Boy"; Lou Reed, "Walk on the Wild Side"

  1. Peaches, "Inch," Fatherfucker (XL, 2003)

  2. Blur, "Girls and Boys," Parklife (Food, 1994)

  3. Gotye, "Somebody That I Used to Know," Making Mirrors (Eleven, 2011)
Lynn Crosbie, Missing Children

Intro: Bruce Springsteen, "The River" and "Born to Run"

  1. Neko Case, "Things That Scare Me," Blacklisted (Bloodshot, 2002)

  2. Gram Rabbit, "Devil's Playground," Music to Start a Cult To (Stinky Records, 2003)

  3. Whitehorse, "I'm on Fire," Whitehorse (Six Shooter Records, 2011)
Heather O'Neill, Lullabies for Little Criminals (1)

Intro: Leonard Cohen, "Lullaby"; Sia, "Lullaby"

  1. Bedouin Soundclash, "12:59 Lullaby," Street Gospels (Dine Alone, 2007)

  2. Strange Birds, "Searchlights," Breadcrumbs [EP] (independent, 2011)

  3. The Weepies, "Little Bird," Hideaway (Nettwerk, 2008)
Heather O'Neill, Lullabies for Little Criminals (2)

Intro: Cat Power, "Babydoll," Tom Waits, "Rains on Me"; Low, "Try to Sleep"

  1. Birdy, "Skinny Love," Birdy (Atlantic, 2011)

  2. Brandon Flowers, "Only the Young," Flamingo (Island, 2010)

  3. The Kills, "Baby Says,"  Blood Pressures (Domino, 2011)
Michael Winter, The Architects Are Here (1)

Intro: The Sheepdogs, "Learn & Burn"; The Hold Steady, "The Sweet Part of the City"

  1. Classified, "Breaking Up," Self Explanatory (Halflife, 2009)

  2. The Black Keys, "Lonely Boy," El Camino (Nonesuch, 2011)

  3. Jamie Woon, "Lady Luck," Lady Luck [digital single] (www.EARMILK.com, 2011)
Michael Winter, The Architects Are Here (2)

Intro: Zachary Lucky, "Sins of My Father, Sins of Mine"; Justin Rutledge, "Be a Man"

  1. Steve Earle, "The Kind," Jerusalem (E-Squared, 2002)

  2. Dan Mangan, "Road Regrets," Nice, Nice, Very Nice (Arts & Crafts, 2009)

  3. Shad, "Rose Garden," TSOL (Black Box, 2010). Seriously great video.

  4. Tom Jones, "Whatcha Gonna Do," It's Not Unusual (Parrot, 1965)
Michael Lista, Bloom (1)

Intro: Paul Simon, "Rewrite,"; Fissunix & Colatron, "Moonlight Sonata Mashed"

  1. Bedouin Soundclash, "Brutal Hearts," Light the Horizon (Pirates Blend, 2010)

  2. Beck, "Nobody's Fault But My Own," Mutations (Geffen, 1998)

  3. New West, "Cult of Youth," Cult of Youth (Sacred Bones, 2011)
Michael Lista, Bloom (2)

Intro: Bedouin Soundclash, "Hush"; Mary Margaret O'Hara, "Body's in Trouble"

  1. Sheldon Allman, "Radioactive Mama," Folk Songs for the 21st Century (Hi-Fidelity, 1960)

  2. April March, "Chick Habit," Chick Habit (1995)

  3. Miracle Parade, "The Dying Physicist,"  Hark and Other Lost Transmissions  (Little Record, 2011)

  4. Wolf Parade, "I'll Believe in Anything,"  Apologies to the Queen Mary (Sub Pop, 2005)
Jon McGregor, If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things

Intro: The Beatles, "A Day in the Life,"; Frightened Rabbit, "The Loneliness and the Scream"

  1. We Were Promised Jetpacks, "This Is My House, This Is My Home," These Four Walls (Fat Cat, 2009).

  2. The Middle East, "Jesus Came to My Birthday Party," I Want That You Are Always Happy (Spunk, 2011). The remarkable, beautiful video.

  3. The Cure, "The Last Day of Summer," Bloodflowers (Fiction, 2000).

Conclusion

Intro: Sarah Slean, "Get Home"; Tune-Yards, "Powa" 

  1. The Weakerthans, "Left and Leaving," Left and Leaving (G7 Welcoming Committee, 2000).

  2. Florence & the Machine, "Dog Days Are Over," Lungs (Island, 2009)

  3. Alabama Shakes, "Hold on," Alabama Shakes EP (independent, 2011).

Outro: FemBots, "Count Down Our Days"

 

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