Music reaches us in ways that nothing else can. Some great rock songs often have great messages that are quite deep and therapeutic. Here are just a few...
"I don't need a doctor.
I don't need a pill.
Any other treatment
Babe, would only make me ill.
I need rock therapy! I need rock therapy! I need rock therapy!
Oh give it to me! Oh give it to me! Oh give it to me!"
—"Rock Therapy" by The Johnny Burnette Rock and Roll Trio, 1956
24/52 Rock Therapy: "Execution of the Cheater" Pledge to Honor Your Relationship
For years I have said that relationships will no longer tolerate sloppiness nor carelessness. Cheating is short-lived enjoyment that destroys too much. It's like burning down a cathedral just to fry an egg. It's time to "execute cheating" and put an end to cheating. I know we can't eradicate cheating from the world, but YOU can choose. It's time to take a stand and PLEDGE TO HONOR YOUR RELATIONSHIP. Honor used to mean something. It still can. Be a man of honor. Be a woman of honor. There is glory in honor. Let's bring honor back. Listen to this song and like this page.
23/52 Rock Therapy: Parenting Tip — "Children Will Listen,” sung by Mandy Patinkin
Careful the things you say
Children will listen
Careful the things you do
Children will see and learn
Children may not obey,
but children will listen
22/52 Rock Therapy: Any Dad's Relate to the Work of the Woman, the Craft of the Father?
"I stand outside this woman's work. Now starts the craft of the father."
—Kate Bush, This Woman's Work, from the movie She's Having a Baby
21/52 Rock Therapy: Affair Recovery via BNL's "Call and Answer"
“Call and Answer” is one of the best songs I've heard about the tenuous nature of the work of affair recovery from the perspective of the one who has been cheated on but trying to trust.
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: 4 Epic Versions of "Seven Nation Army"
See four amazing versions of The White Stripes’ iconic song, Seven Nation Army. THEN ADD YOUR FAV covers or versions YOU FAV songs in the Facebook post’s comments section. GO!!
20/52 Rock Therapy: 67 Doggie Songs & 12 Reasons Dogs are Good Medicine!
Dogs are good medicine! I’ve collected 67 doggy songs here for you, along with 12 therapeutic benefits of dogs as they help us with our physical health, anxiety, depression, stress, and/or trauma.
19/52 Rock Therapy: Haters Gonna Hate, Naysayers Gonna Nay! 3 Anti-Hater Songs :-)
I am SOOOO bored with negative, critical people. See my Letter to The Critics and Naysayers of the World here that I wrote many years ago. Conversely, I am thoroughly interested in those who creatively negate the negators… such as the following three examples:
18/52 Rock Therapy: 7 CBT Lessons from "Help Is On Its Way" by The Little River Band
Let’s use this song to do a little rock therapy to help with anxiety… No hurry, no worry. Practice "thought-stopping.” When we worry, we trigger anxiety, which triggers adrenaline, which in turn triggers the fight/flight reaction. This quick and powerful cascade of thought to emotion to physical reaction is called the "emotional hijack."
17/52 Rock Therapy: "Mental Illness" with special interview with Kerry Courtney on writing this song
If you've experienced mental illness, or have a loved one who has, you'll appreciate this song...
"Mental Illness" song by written and sung by Kerry Courtney. I’ve been listening to this amazing song almost obsessively. I was so moved by it that I reached out and contacted the singer/songwriter, Kerry Courtney. Happily, he replied back. First, the song (lyrics below) and then our conversation.
16/52 Rock Therapy: "You Are Not Alone" by Mavis Staples
"Every tear on every face tastes the same."
Suffering is the human common denominator. We are all in this together. So let's, please, be there for one another.
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: 151+ Groovy VW Songs
Why VW songs for Rock Therapy? Okay, that's pretty obvious: Vintage VW's are super chill. The VW Bug and Bus are cultural icons of the ideal of "peace, love and happiness, baby!" And the wonderful irony is that the Volkswagen was started by the polar opposite of that ideal, Adolf Hitler. He wanted an affordable people's car. Fortunately, he's gone and this car for the people was co-opted by the hippie movement (a group of people that he would have despised! Ha!). These songs all capture what the Bugs and Buses have come to represent to so many: "Peace, love and happiness.' They are vehicles you drive because you are in no hurry, have minimal ego, don't mind getting dirty fixing it up, and aren't afraid to figure out how to wrench on it a little... because for a long time it was poorer people (the people's car) who couldn't afford a "nicer" car. Funny thing is that these cheap little cars, weren't cheap in quality, and their design (in both form and function) was simple, elegant and brilliant. That's why they are still around, sought after, and universally enjoyed by owners and fans alike.
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: "Rumble Shimmie" and Other Bandless Band Names
This is my ongoing list of made-up band names. Now if I only had a band to go along with the name...
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: 5 Rap Songs Conversion Challenge
Do YOU hate rap? If so, why? Do YOU love rap? What 5 rap songs would you have picked instead?
In a recent post a friend and colleague stated he didn't like rap. Fair enough. Like what you like, of course. I stated that I would attempt a full-on conversion to which he said, "Challenge." The challenge I accepted was to convert him to rap in just 5 rap songs. I concede that I may not succeed at that task. People like what they like. There are certainly plenty of rap songs I don't like either. But maybe I can at least increase his appreciation a bit. My objective is 1. to make much more of this than is necessary ;-) and 2. that people (not just him) won't discount an entire genre because of not liking some of what's been heard.
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: Fav Love Stinks Songs... GO!
Two days ago I started a "Fav Long Songs... GO!" list on FB. To provide balance, Yin Yang, and "opposition in all things," I now request YOUR...
15/52 Rock Therapy: Lessons from 15 "Rock Royalty"
Greatness is earned, not given
AC/DC sang, "It's a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll." The great lesson we learn from Rock royalty is simply that: In music, as in life, greatness isn't handed out just because you want it. Examine the rock royalty below and think of the long road each took to rise to the top of an often impossible industry. They worked hard, sacrificed and practiced long, long, long hours, usually for years before they "made it" and became "overnight sensations." They will all tell you that none of it happened "overnight."
14/52 Rock Therapy — "Work It Out" Jurassic 5 (feat. Dave Matthews)
People often hit the wall where there is no way out--the get discouraged, pessimistic, fatalistic. These mindsets are understandable when life gets hard and it feels like you've exhausted every avenue. I love to teach my clients possibility thinking...
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: Stupidest Love Song Ever... GO!
One night while working in the garage I heard the "If you like pina coladas" song and the more I listened to it I thought, "Man, that is THE stupidest love song ever." Then I thought, "Is it? Could there possibly be a contender who could take on such a stupid song for the title?" And so I whipped up a quick graphic and posed the question on Facebook. See their contenders and please feel free to add yours below (or on my FB page).
*Bonus* Rock Therapy: #ChalkBus Cruisin' Playlist with Molly & Her Friends
These are my daughter Molly and her friends and cousin's fav songs while they hang out, talk, laugh and dance in the #ChalkBus while we cruise the main streets of all the towns in Northern UTah COunty. We call it the #ChalkBus NUTCO Tour.
14/52 Rock Therapy: "Amazing" by Aerosmith
I first heard this song when I was a new substance abuse counselor working in rehab. A client shared it with me and we discussed its significance in her life. It really touched me, for her sake, as well as for my own as it resonated with my own struggles. The song, while tied to addiction, clearly is applicable to the human condition and the change process, addicted or not: we are all weak and screwed up at one time or another. We all get caught in "stinkin' thinkin'". We all get short-sighted or think we are stronger than we are. All too often our pride and ego must be stripped from us before we can see clearly, and that usually involves hitting bottom.