jeremy loops

DON'T THINK TWICE IT'S ALRIGHT

This was one of the first songs I tried to learn on the guitar. I listened to it over and over. Trying to get the finger picking just right. The song became so engrained in my head that I can recite the smallest details, even now just thinking about it. I love a lot of Dylan’s work, but there’ll always be a special place in my heart for this song.

PRESSURE DROP

I listened to this song and others by Toots, during my first big adventure to the Carribean when I was 18. I had just finished high school, and spent 56 days crossing the Atlantic Ocean on a little sail boat. I had just a few cd’s with me, and this was one of them. Toots and his band were very influential in the reggae scene in the islands, so it felt apt to get into the rhythm of it all. I’ve since seen and performed alongside Toots on multiple occasions which always feels like a dream. Funny the way life works sometimes.

I QUIT MY JOB

This song found me at a time when I really needed to hear it. As the name suggests, it’s a song about quitting your job in search of a better life. In pursuit of your dreams, even if that means you have to live on rice and potatoes. I was dreadfully unhappy at the time. Working a job that was going nowhere and I wanted out. This song helped me find the courage to quit and move back to South Africa in search of my own musical dreams. I still listen to it often, especially when I need reminding that I can shape my own destiny if I am not afraid to change things and be a little uncomfortable.

KODACHROME

The opening verse of this song was everything to me. Rebellious and uplifting. The way I like a lot of my music. It was on that same adventure to the Caribbean that I found this song, and the words really resonated with the younger vagabond in me. I got myself in all sorts of trouble during those first two years abroad. Paul Simon, for better or worse, was often a part of that.

SONG FOR ZULA

I think a good heartbreak song becomes such when you can hear the song writer is legitimately torn apart. When the lyrics and the music are almost secondary to the tone and depth in the vocals. The sadness. I’ve had my fair share of heartbreak, and this song was such a healing presence in my search for resolution.​