My series on the weather which led to yesterday’s post on ‘Autumn’ prompted me to wonder if there were any songs about the month of October. It must be admitted that October is not exactly the most musical of months but when I investigated, I found that there were indeed a number of songs dedicated to this month and so I thought it was time to share them with you.
“October Song” is a track from the eponymous debut album of The Incredible String Band released in Britain in September 1966 by record label Elektra. It is the only one of the band’s albums to feature the original trio line-up with Clive Palmer, Robin Williamson and Mike Heron.
“October” is the seventh and title track from U2’s 1981 album, October. It is a departure from U2’s classic sound, as it is a quiet, almost instrumental piece. It was included as a hidden track on The Best of 1980-1990 compilation. It is the only track from October included in the compilation. “October” reflects the spiritual turmoil of the band at the time it was written, during which three of the band’s members were wrestling with whether being members of a rock band was consistent with their Christian beliefs.
“October” is a contemporary piece for concert band that was written by Eric Whitacre in 2000. Based on the guidelines as established by the authors of Teaching Music through Performance in Band, October is a Grade 5 piece. Whitacre composed October with the intention of evoking a peaceful musical representation of the month he has called his favourite, and the feelings this month evokes for him. He writes in a programme note: Something about the crisp autumn air and the subtle changes in light always make me a little sentimental, and as I started to sketch I felt the same quiet beauty in the writing. The simple, pastoral melodies and the subsequent harmonies are inspired by the great English Romantics, as I felt this style was also perfectly suited to capture the natural and pastoral soul of the season. I’m happy with the end result, especially because I feel there just isn’t enough lush, beautiful music written for winds.
“October Road” is the title track of singer-songwriter James Taylor’s fifteenth studio album. It was released in August, 2002 in two versions: a single-disc version and a “limited edition” two-disc version, which contains three extra songs, as well as a video presentation. October Road would be James Taylor’s last album of original material until Before This World in 2015. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard with 154,000 copies sold in its opening week, which is Taylor’s best sales week performance for an album in the SoundScan era. The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA in November 2002.
“October Song” is a track from Frank the debut studio album by English singer and songwriter Amy Whitehouse. It was released in October 2003 by Island Records. Production for the album took place during 2002 to 2003 and was handled by Winehouse, Salaam Remi, Commissioner Gordon, Jimmy Hogarth and Matt Rowe. Its title alludes to the nature and tone of Winehouse’s lyrics on the album, as well as one of her influences, Frank Sinatra. Upon its release, Frank received generally positive reviews from most music critics and earned Winehouse several accolades, including an Ivor Novello Award. The album has sold over one million copies in the United Kingdom and has been certified triple platinum by the BPI.
“Before October’s Gone” is a track from Up at Night the debut full-length album by pop music group Cimorellii. The album comes nine years after the group first began posting videos of themselves singing on YouTube, and features fourteen original songs. The album was announced via a live stream on the group’s YouTube channel. The album was released to fans in May 2016, through PledgeMusic.
