I’ve never been very good at waking up. From those dreaded school mornings through to, well, some days ago, I’d sleep until the last possible second, rush about in a bit of a frenzy, then eventually make it to wherever I needed to be with a few seconds to spare.
Most recently I rolled out of bed just before a driving lesson, and suffice to say I did not drive to the best of my abilities (sorry Steve), which was particularly disappointing as I had prepared dilligently in all aspects other than sleeping appropriately. It was the straw that broke the camels back; I bravely decided that from that moment on I would begin each day more promptly.
I should stress I actually very much enjoy being awake, it’s just my sleeping routine is a bit skew-whiff; and those extra few minutes of sleep in the morning are intoxicating. Daft problem to have at 26 years old (27 this week) I know, but there you go. What I needed was something to look forward to the moment I woke up, something I did habitually… and a coffee addiction was off the table. Caffeine makes me shake like an earthquake.
Enter an unlikely ally – CD’s. My partner and I have curated quite the collection from various charity shops over the years. We like to play them in the car, ‘Brothers in Arms’ by Dire Straits being a particular favourite road trip record of ours. Still, I haven’t quite managed to listen to them all yet, nor some as many times as I’d like. Also, I cancelled Spotify Premium a couple months back, and the free version is WOEFUL, so there’s been a bit of a music-listening hole in my day… does anyone spy two birds?
Last week I threw the stone – every morning I put a CD on the moment I woke up. Specifically:
Monday:
‘Reanimator’ – Everything Everything
Tuesday:
‘In Between Dreams’ – Jack Johnson
Wednesday:
‘Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?’ – The Cranberries
Thursday:
‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’ – Arctic Monkeys
Friday:
‘These Streets’ – Paolo Nutini
I didn’t plan ahead of time which one I’d pick, I just went with whatever I fancied each morning. I should also mention that I didn’t just lie there and listen the whole length of each album, it would be more ambient at points as I was up and about doing stuff. Regardless, it worked like a charm; it was the first thought that popped into my head when I woke up, and it was rather nice being played into each day – it felt like opening credits music. The cherry on top is that I had my best driving lesson yet on Friday. Thanks Paolo.
Alas, I haven’t been able to keep it up these last three days as I’m at my folks. Clearly I need a CD player here too… with its very own collection of discs… I digress. The important thing is I do genuinely think I’ve found something to help me along with what has long been a thorn in my side; and I get to listen to music more often. It feels good to focus more on my everyday well-being. I live in the future too often.
Speaking of which – some updates! I never did release a Christmas song despite my hopes in this previous post, but I did help my friend Frankie with a Christmas song she had started writing, and that was sounding great where we left it. So if all goes to plan we will live off the revenue from that song forever come Christmas 2025.
Until then, I have another proper single that’s coming along nicely, with the aim to release it this month. I’m also working on some rougher recordings for a demo CD; keeping it nice and simple, just vocals and some minimal instrumentation. I need something tangible to hand out to promoters, festivals and venues to get my name out there. Failing that it might at least help someone wake up more easily.
P.S. as it happens, I wrote something as part of a songwriting challenge years ago about waking up late. You can listen to it here. I’ve finished the song since; you’ll be able to hear the updated version of ’12:30′ on the CD – coming to all people that both want it and are within touching distance of me.