Music Heals! Anyone who has had their heart broken knows this, and now there is scientific evidence to support the theory. For those of you making a living writing, producing, playing and working in the business of music, keep on keepin’ on, because you are providing some of the best holistic, non-invasive medicine in the world!
The notion that Music Heals dates back to the writings of Plato and Aristotle. More recently, JAMA reported in 1914 that phonographs played in recovery and operating rooms increased positive outcomes for patients, and we now know that musicians played at the bedside of wounded soldiers in both World Wars to help ease physical and emotional trauma. The idea that Music Heals is nothing new. What is new is that evidence-based medicine and modern science now support what musicians, patients and star-crossed lovers have known for centuries, that Music Heals.
What is it about music that actually heals? Music is a form of sensory stimulation that triggers the pleasure system of the brain. According to brain-imaging studies music is processed throughout both brain hemispheres activating the areas that are responsible for language, listening, motor skills, emotion, memory and creativity. “We believe music can cause neurochemical changes in specific parts of the brain,” says Mark Jude Tramo, neurology professor at Harvard Medical School and director of the Institute for Music & Brain Science in Boston. “Music is a powerful auditory stimulus.” So powerful in fact that it causes the release of dopamine, which is responsible for motivation and feelings of happiness. These endorphins also suppress pain. Current studies similarly link music to the release of immunoglobulins, which help fight disease. Music as a clinical therapy is now used all over the world in many ways: pain management, mood and mobility improvement for patients with Parkinson’s disease and brain trauma, medication reduction after surgery, anxiety relief, hospital stay reduction for children and adults, nausea reduction after chemotherapy, treatment for depression, enhanced concentration and creativity, and for lowering blood pressure. Music offers a nonthreatening treatment tool that is attractive to doctors and patients alike. There is essentially no downside that’s any more serious than a misplayed chord.
What songs cause that dopamine release for music makers? What are the songs that make people in the music business feel good? What songs lift the spirits of those immersed in lyrics, melodies and the business of music day in and day out? Throughout last year I asked music industry friends and associates to answer these questions. I received almost 1000 responses. From these responses I compiled a list of the . . .
Top 100 “Feel Good Songs” from the Makers of Music:
- “We Must Believe In Magic” – Performed by Johnny Cash, Written by Cowboy Jack Clement
- “Three Little Birds” – Performed by Bob Marley
- “What A Wonderful World” – Performed by Louis Armstrong
- “Ode To Joy” – Written by Beethoven
- “Day O” – Performed by Harry Belafonte
- “Ob-La-De, Ob-La-Da” – Performed by The Beatles
- “Fishin’ In The Dark” – Performed by The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
- “These Arms Of Mine” – Performed by Otis Redding
- “I Wouldn’t Have Missed It For The World” – Performed by Ronnie Millsap
- “I’ll Be There” – Performed by The Four Tops
- “Your Are The Sunshine Of My Life” – Performed by Stevie Wonder
- “Good Ole Boys” – Performed by Waylon Jennings
- “Wild World” – Performed by Cat Stevens
- “You Look So Good In Love” – Performed by George Strait
- “Tiny Dancer” – Performed by Elton John
- “Soulshine” – Performed by The Allman Brothers
- “Strawberry Wine” – Performed by Deana Carter
- “White Lightening” – Performed by George Jones
- “You Are My Sunshine” – Performed by Ray Charles
- “Start Me Up” – Performed by The Rolling Stones
- “Tangled Up & Blue” – Performed by Bob Dylan
- “Junior’s Farm” – Performed by The Wings
- “Leavin’ On a Jet Plane” – Performed by John Denver
- “Here You Come Again” – Performed by Dolly Parton
- “The Most Beautiful Girl” – Performed by Charlie Rich
- “I Love A Rainy Night” – Performed by Eddie Rabbit
- “King Of The Road” – Performed by Roger Miller
- “Rhinestone Cowboy” – Performed by Glen Campbell
- “Let It Be” – Performed by The Beatles
- “If I Had A Boat” – Performed by Lyle Lovett
- “Feel Alright” – Performed by Steve Earle
- “Rainbow Connection” – Performed by Willie Nelson
- “Crusin” – Performed by Smokey Robinson
- “Movin’ On Up” – The Jefferson’s Theme Song, Performed by Ja’net Dubois
- “Great Day To Be Alive” – Performed by Travis Tritt
- “Imagine” – Performed by John Lennon
- “Proud Mary” – Performed by Tina Turner
- “Call Me Al” – Performed by Paul Simon
- “Have A Little Faith In Me” – Performed and Written by John Hiatt
- “Western Skies” – Performed & Written by Chris LeDoux
- “You Shook Me All Night Long” – Performed by AC/DC
- “Good Bye Earl” – Performed by The Dixie Chicks
- “Here Comes The Sun” – Performed by The Beatles
- “C’mon Get Happy” – Performed by The Partridge Family
- “Puff The Magic Dragon” – Performed by Peter, Paul & Mary
- “I Say A Little Prayer” – Performed by Aretha Franklin
- “Jolly Mon” – Performed by Jimmy Buffet
- “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin” – Performed by Michael Jackson
- “I Will” – Performed by Allison Krauss
- “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” – Performed by James Basket/Uncle Remus
- “Shower The People You Love” – Performed by James Taylor
- “Fly Me To The Moon” – Performed by Frank Sinatra
- “Love Theme from St. Elmo’s Fire” – Performed by David Foster
- “Beautiful Day” – Performed by U2,
- “Cheers Theme Song” – Performed by Gary Portnoy
- “Better Together” – Performed by Jack Johnson
- “The Gambler” – Performed by Kenny Rogers
- “A Change Will Do You Good” – Performed by Sheryl Crow
- Amazing Grace – All Versions Performed
- “Hammer & A Nail” – Performed by The Indigo Girls
- “Love at The Five & Dime” – Performed by Nancy Griffith
- “It’s The End Of The World” – Performed by REM
- “This Hard Land” – Performed by Bruce Springsteen
- “You’re In My Heart” – Performed by Rod Stewart
- “Devil Went Down To Georgia” – Performed by Charlie Daniels
- “Change The World” – Performed by Eric Clapton
- “Kiss An Angel Good Morning” – Performed by Charlie Pride
- “She’s In Love With The Boy” – Performed by Trisha Yearwood
- “God Only Knows” – Performed by The Beach Boys
- “Sweet Caroline” – Performed by Neil Diamond
- “Ocean Front Property” – Performed by George Strait
- “The Chair” – Performed by George Strait
- “Walk This Way” – Performed by RUN-DMC featuring Aerosmith
- “Pretty Woman” – Performed by Roy Orbison
- “Orinico Flow” – Performed by Enya
- “What The World Needs Now” Performed by Jackie DeShannon
- “Feelin’ Groovy Song” – Performed by Simon & Garfunkel
- “Fortunate Son” – Performed by CCR
- “Your Love Keeps Liftin Me Higher” Performed by Jackie Wilson
- “It’s Your Thing” – Performed by Isley Brothers
- “Linus & Lucy” – Performed by Vince Guardaldi Trio
- “Groove Is In The Heart” – Performed by Dee-Lite
- “Joy To The World” – Performed by Three Dog Night
- “Take On Me” – Performed by Ah-ha
- “Kyrie” – Performed by Mr. Mister
- “Pancho & Lefty” – Performed by Merle Haggard & Willie Nelson
- “Coming Around Again” – Performed by Carly Simon
- “Take Me Out To The Ball Game” – Performed by Billy Murray
- “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” – Performed by Tears for Fears
- “Roll To Me” – Performed by Del Amitri
- “Easy Like Sunday Morning” – Performed by Lionel Ritchie
- “The Scientist” – Performed by Willie Nelson
- “Blitzkrieg Bob” – Performed by The Ramones
- “Little Red Corvette” – Performed by Prince
- “In Your Eyes” – Performed by Peter Gabriel
- “No Easy Way Out” – Performed by Robert Tepper
- “Roll On” – Performed by Alabama
- “I’m Comin’ Out” – Performed by Diana Ross
- “East Bound & Down” – Performed by Jerry Reed
- “Freebird” – Performed by Lynard Skynard
The music you are making each day has an impact much greater than a chart position or Sound Scan report. As music makers you are helping Kenneth, a stroke survivor, learn to speak again, and you are giving Deanna, a fourteen year-old with cancer, a reason to keep fighting. Great music inspires us, relaxes us, energizes us – in short, great music heals us and keeps us well. So instead of taking two aspirin, listen to a little “We Must Believe In Magic” before going to bed — because Music Heals.