A Little Dar Williams Playlist

Blog by Sumana Harihareswara, Changeset founder

02 Jan 2025, 15:25 p.m.

Annually, the last week of the year, singer-songwriter Dar Williams plays at a concert here in New York City. I really loved the one I attended in 2017, when I wrote,

“She does this show in Brooklyn the last week of every year, and I'm going to try to go now that I know that. 2018, 2019, 2020 -- something to look forward to in every year. I could use that.”

— 29 Dec 2017.

I tried going to that concert in 2022, and it was crowded with poor ventilation and I was one of the very few wearing a mask; I think I spent most of it sitting in the foyer just outside the room, listening to the muffled music, balancing my COVID caution with my desire to hear. In 2023 I stayed home.

I longingly considered going to the 2024 concert, but realized I'd probably have a similar experience as I'd had in 2022. Instead I asked a friend who also enjoys her music if he'd listen to a playlist with me. He doesn't much care for End of the Summer and mostly has her earlier work; here's what we put together and appreciated together on New Year's Eve. Fourteen songs, 56 minutes. A lot of heartstring-pullers, as I realized partway through.

Song	Album
1. When I Was a Boy	The Honesty Room
2. Cold Missouri Waters	Cry, Cry, Cry
3. Go To The Woods	Promised Land
4. The Babysitter's Here	The Honesty Room
5. The Blessings	Mortal City
6. Lord, I Have Made You a Place in My Heart	Cry, Cry, Cry
7. Iowa (Traveling III)	Mortal City
8. By Way of Sorrow	Cry, Cry, Cry
9. New York is a Harbor	Emerald
10. February	Mortal City
11. What Do You Hear In These Sounds	End of the Summer
12. The Ballad of Mary Magdalen	Cry, Cry, Cry
13. The Christians and the Pagans	Mortal City
14. Family	Mortal City

I am in that maudlin mood that hits at the turn of the year. I've been listening to her work for more than half my life, and there are lines that just reach in and wrench my heart -- "I'll join them now" from "Cold Missouri Waters", "their stumbling and their mumbling / And their calling out just like me" from "What Do You Hear In These Sounds", and probably 80% of "The Christians and the Pagans". And I wanted to be in a room with her and with an audience, together, singing along, crying together. But instead my friend and I sat in our homes, far from each other, and hit Play at the same moment, then Signal-text-messaged each other about particular bits that caught us, or resonances we noticed.

And it was something, to share that with him, and to mark the turn of the year.

“Lighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old, and Making sense of history and drawing warmth out of the cold.”

— "Christians And Pagans".

Boundaries and Regulations

An Unsolicited Email That Made Me Laugh Like …

Comments

Lisa Martincik
22 Jan 2025, 12:33 p.m.

Excellent playlist!!! I love Dar and have seen her a few times. Seeking her in Iowa is a trip, because she always plays Traveling III and asks us all to sing along. I imagine she’s as disappointed as we are with the direction the state has taken. I have loved every one of her performances, but the most memorable for me was show she played with Richard Shindell one or two days after the 2016 election. Listening to their music was like eating nourishing food. “When I Was a Boy” always makes me cry. I hope you’re as well as you can be, and to someday see you again.