21 Comments
Feb 16Liked by Steve Goldberg

Hey Steve, just this morning an amazing whistling track appeared on my Release Radar Spotify playlist.

https://open.spotify.com/track/43YNSCAKcB62JhN7nV7WS0?si=2x-mb7r2QEGubazVk6Cmjw&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A2EaFjK4isYVM689kcpyIAY

I was excited to see Menahan Street Band on the credits as I’ve been a long time fan and was hoping this track heralded a new release by them. What I discovered is that the whistler in the track, Molly Lewis, is the one releasing an album. I’m working my way through it now and it’s lovely!!

Album is here: https://open.spotify.com/album/2EaFjK4isYVM689kcpyIAY?si=8pVMmsQOT3iQEcDMPPwvxQ

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Feb 13Liked by Steve Goldberg

Another awesome piece Steve! I can’t believe it’s been that long since Writer’s Block came out. Damn time flies!

I’ve only ever been an okay whistler but to this day I remember exactly where I was in the playground in third grade when my hopeless blowing actually came out as a whistle for the first time. It’s a vivid and indelible memory for me.

Snapping is a weird one. I can only make any sort of noise snapping with my right hand. Snapping with my left hand is soundless. But the way I snap with my right hand is… Well, let’s call it different. I use my thumb and my ring finger.

I have no idea how or why I do it that way. But probably about a decade ago my wife saw my mom snap her fingers. And would you believe? She used her thumb and ring finger! Although she never taught me, that must’ve been where I picked it up from.

I’ve always been a little jealous of those people that can snap back and forth between left and right hands quickly, playing the beat to a song. But I like your idea of just being a fan of people who can do that.

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Feb 10Liked by Steve Goldberg

Love this issue, and love the song! 😗🎶. You know, I have a whole playlist of songs that I like to whistle to - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5qiTC4DMp0yJai6PAIbfKQ?si=005e90f3f4034051 I don't know how it's possible but I somehow skipped Young Folks there! Thanks for reminding me of it 🫶

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Feb 10Liked by Steve Goldberg

Such a cool piece. I'm a powerful snapper, but unfortunately never mastered the art of whistling

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Feb 9Liked by Steve Goldberg

Great piece, Steve.

I'd always thought snapping was a jazz/scat thing. Then I noticed that some folk singers did it.

For whistling favorites, I'd say G'nR's "Patience," ... Paul Simon's "Me and Julio..." ... the Beatles "Two of Us" ... and of course the Pythons' "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life."

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This is a gorgeous article, thank you so much for sharing.

Being a proper earworm I have always loved the song. Not being a native English speaker I tend to forget about the lyrics of songs. You having given me a whole new appreciation of the song by showing the sweetness of the lyrics. Thanks!

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This was a really fun read. I can snap, but I cannot whistle. I can twist and even turn over my tongue, though. It's funny what we take for granted, isn't it!

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I have only recently lost the ability to whistle. Apparently, this is something you can lose! Much to my dog's chagrin, I can still snap when he's being a little too extra. Great post that I hadn't read yet! I love this song.

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