Happy holidays everyone! One thing I used to do years ago for the holidays was hand out themed compilation CDs of music people couldn’t buy anywhere to give them something special and unique and wonderful to listen to over the holiday season (and beyond). They did not contain holiday music or anything which, for me, tends to get old after a short while – just unique music that is nice to listen to for something different. I was always very particular and intentional about the themes I came up with and always ordered the tracks in such a way to ensure they created a wonderful musical experience and a smooth flow from one track to the next. I used to do this year-after-year up until the widespread use of I-tunes, media players, Spotify and such. So, I started to realize CDs were probably a waste of time and effort. Well, the last few years I decided to recreate some of those CDs as Playlists on Spotify.
For this year I am giving the gift of art! Art for the ears, art for the heart, art for the mind, and art for the soul! I have created a lengthy playlist of what has been my very favorite kind of music over the past few years – indie pop. This music sounds fresh, fun. and new each and every time you listen to it because none of it is mainstream or overplayed in any way. It is artistry at its finest. It always makes me smile when I listen to this or discover new songs, and I hope it will make you smile as well. Just give it a listen when you get the chance and continue on down the playlist wherever happen to leave off – or just use random play. It will be a wonderful musical experience for you overall. Here’s the playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0tCdR6QZV0t6hbLuD8R3ff?si=0ad6fc80464441b2. The best indie pop stations I regularly listen to on streaming are WPRK 91.5 FM (Winter Park Florida – the Rollins College Radio Station) and Indie617 Boston – so, if you want to discover new music to add to your playlist the way I do, well, you can simply start with those.
My favorite artists I discovered during my indie pop phase are Darksoft (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5bLX9Ya3zZHPJfQa0Y4Gr9?si=9f86d0fb07514e8f) and Tame Impala (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2ntTOD7Ffi5MNXjFZYme7t?si=43de693a2e6248bb). My favorite songs of theirs are contained in the above two playlists.
I hope you will enjoy this as much as I do. Feel free to modify the playlist to make it your own including adding some of your favorites.
Below is the complete set of playlists I have provided so far over the past few years (including the above one). So, feel free to check each of these out as well over the holidays (and beyond):
1. Classical Gems (nice and soothing classical music): Classical Gems – playlist by Joe Brennan | Spotify
2. Candlelight Classic Jazz I (mainly old classic vocal jazz): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1R0tZBB8MOZUJgA01LrK2C…
3. Candlelight Classic Jazz II (mainly old classic instrumental jazz): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/10ZO5Mrv5fF2Uns7QEzWVT…
4. New Age (Morningtide-Eveningtide): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5S0Re0yHvQma9WMai20w36…
People really seemed to love this one for helping them to relax and even sleep. One song (What a Beautiful Sunset by Angelwing) was not available on Spotify but I encourage you to check out this excellent song as well: https://youtu.be/pXgjQPgh4bM?si=ovRvGhgp3V_G47JI . You can add this wonderful track if you create your own playlist outside of Spotify.
5. Acoustic Tracks: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4rjwsNOCPfWZJFK72cKvji… This is a playlist that I love to listen to around the start of Autumn. For some reason the music really seems to fit at that time. None of the Joni Mitchell songs were on Spotify but tracks such as: the acoustic live version of “People’s Parties” (my very favorite: https://youtu.be/NktbeZiMYfA?si=dV0LcJEL6uo1aTbJ), “Urge for Going” (https://youtu.be/ZvSvTRhAJxg?si=hKeMtJUa95dTLGUk), “Little Green” (https://youtu.be/HTxUrDtoPP0?si=fo0yREfcqCIxaznn), “A Case of You” (https://youtu.be/0YuaZcylk_o?si=hwbPrgdwdmxUYHlM), “Court and Spark” (https://youtu.be/_1Z6I62yvfg?si=irKLbee4rBS5evAI), and “That Song About the Midway” (https://youtu.be/O9R82TThjdw?si=jA4wsRNPDVaNUJXo) are excellent. So add the above tracks if you create your own playlist outside of Spotify.
6. Smooth Sailing 50s/60s (old 1950s &1960s pop songs): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3x0UnPJDMQqXcgxDIemCep?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR3RHM9yqOIQOjrOnqISFry887itxeznZ0d2wZ0XQrgwCmPqzIi_nOfYXyQ_aem_r18OoHjvhW4nyAOVmuw-ag I heard some old music on a radio station a couple of years ago when driving around in New Smyrna Beach and I loved it so much that, for something different, I made a whole playlist to share with everyone. So, check it out when you get the chance: Some of the lyrics are outdated for these modern times but the music is Wonderful. Also, the Sue Raney version of the second song (Till There Was You – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEoG1TYLBWI) is much better than the Peggy Lee version but Spotify didn’t have the Sue Raney version. I encourage you to check that out and replace the Peggy Lee version with the Sue Raney version if you create your own playlist outside of Spotify. It’s so much better than the Peggy Lee version and fits in well with this playlist.
7. Laid Back Lounge (chill-out lounge/cafe music): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5szvQk9eJlHix5KRs9TcL2?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR1K6jE_L8fFaRFD7xH6y8sdSDw4mGtEJKQ47FhkGM9gOxQadwvITpHlJ5U_aem_bDKXVL4R48UPfwfUmu8oQQ. One song missing (not available on Spotify) is the Cafe del Mar version of Kalliope’s Lunar Landing (Here it is on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7X-Rg13QyTE ). I encourage you to check that out and insert it just after the track 13 (Blank & Jones: Desire – Ambient Mix) if you create your own playlist outside of Spotify. It fits in well with this playlist.
8. Indie Pop (fresh, new sounding music every time you play it): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0tCdR6QZV0t6hbLuD8R3ff?si=0ad6fc80464441b2 . Also, my favorite artists I have discovered during my indie pop phase are Darksoft (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5bLX9Ya3zZHPJfQa0Y4Gr9?si=9f86d0fb07514e8f) and Tame Impala (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2ntTOD7Ffi5MNXjFZYme7t?si=43de693a2e6248bb). My favorite songs of theirs are contained in the above two playlists.
Enjoy this music over the holiday season (and beyond) and feel free to share with anyone else who might enjoy these or could use a positive thought and a smile to brighten up their day.
And just in case it might be helpful to you (or others in your life), here’s a guaranteed way to improve and boost perspective: Nothing matters today other than the fact that you are here. So, rejoice, celebrate, love, appreciate, and cherish your life today (and every day), and do something special, wonderful, and amazing. Because you are here. And nothing else matters. The reason you are special because you have won the lottery of life – the odds are 1,000,000,000+ to 1 for you NOT being here at all (you can read about that here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/an-amazing-thought-guaranted-to-improve-perspective-you-are-special/). So, anytime you (or anyone else in your life) need a perspective boost, please remember this.
Lastly, from a financial perspective, be sure to get into the practice of saving a minimum of 20% of everything you earn. Here are some finance/investing tips which might be helpful to you and others in your life: 1) https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/category/financial-planning-management-and-investing-related-posts/ 2) https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/how-to-create-a-brighter-financial-future-for-years-and-decades-to-come/, and 3) https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/how-to-invest-well-and-create-a-brighter-future-with-minimal-effort/ . If you take these steps, you may still experience stress and negativity in your life, but finances won’t be one of them. And that can be a wonderful place to get to in your life. So, do this for yourself if you can.
I hope the above will be helpful to you or to others in your life.
Happy Holidays everyone! May 2026 be the best year of our lives EVER! 🙂
#selfimprovement #selfhelp #selfdevelopment #intention #fulfillment #success #inspiration #happiness #mindfulness #peace #joy #positivethinking #balance