The Random iTunes Fairy is giving us a little sneak peek at one of next week’s featured artists.
Josh Rouse’s The Happiness Waltz is a breezy, sun-drenched album full of songs just like this one. Most of them take the perspective of a man who has lived a full but troubled life and finally arrived at a place of peace and (as the album title suggest) happiness.
I don’t know if this is based on Rouse’s own experience or that of somebody who inspired him during his world travels, but he wears it well.
Another song from this album will appear on my best-of countdown next week. In the meantime, enjoy this one.
Pictures on the mantelpiece
A walk around the garden
Stephanie lays right next to me
Tells me all her fantasies
She’s never one to burden
I never seem to care
And we throw our arms up in the air and say
Ooh, you’ve seen a lot of bad times
Ooh, right now would be a good time
To turn it around, and start up a family
It happened all so suddenly
We moved to a place on Henry Street
With a beautiful view of the garden
I’m working on my masterpiece
One of these days I’ll get some sleep
She’s picking out the curtains
My hair has turned to grey
But it doesn’t matter anyway, we say
Ooh, we’ve seen a lot of bad times
Ooh, right now would be a good time
To turn it around, and start up a family
So we go through history
Pictures on the mantelpiece
The kids are in the garden
Ooh, we’ve seen a lot of bad times
Ooh, right now would be a good time
To turn it around, so turn it around
Ooh, we’ve seen a lot of bad times
Ooh, right now would be a good time
To turn around, and start up a…
Family, family, family.
Meet Me In Montauk 
Lovely song.
What would you have done if the iTunes fairy had landed on the song you intended to feature next week?
I would have skipped to another song. Because I’ve already scheduled that one, it would be a repeat.
In fact, for that very reason I usually put placeholders up months in advance for songs I think might end up on my year-end list.
Very sweet song 🙂