The Hood Museum’s Spotify Wrapped
We stayed very busy at the welcome desk this year, engaging with visitors and playing music in the atrium all the way through. Here are the top five songs from our Spotify Wrapped, along with a bit of information about how they ended up there. The visitor services guides are streaming music nearly every day, so follow us there if you want to listen along!
1. “Feeling Good,” Nina Simone
This iconic track by Nina Simone was the first song on the playlist curated by Alisa Swindell for her exhibition And I’m Feeling Good: Relaxation and Resistance. This playlist included two other songs that were featured in our top five as well (“Respect” by Aretha Franklin and “Am I Black Enough for You?” by Billy Paul). Swindell notes, “The Nina Simone song [celebrates] simple, beautiful moments in the natural world that capture positivity and joy.”(1)
2. “Movement (Originally performed by Hozier) [Instrumental],” Vox Freaks
The appearance of this song comes as no surprise. Hozier is a hot topic amongst the visitor services guides, who shared their music tastes earlier this year. “Movement” was one of the lead singles off Hozier’s 2019 record Wasteland, Baby, and it was an immediate hit with fans. This instrumental cover features the claps and organ that are signature parts of Hozier’s music. Like many of Hozier’s songs, “Movement” is an ode to a lover that feels both specific and grand in its scale.
3. “Respect,” Aretha Franklin
Originally written by Otis Redding and beautifully rendered by Aretha Franklin, this track was created the same year as “Feeling Good” and eventually became a feminist anthem. Franklin rewrote some of the words, adding the context of her own personal experience. All the lyrics are direct address as she serenades her beloved and articulates her own needs at the same time. Franklin’s dynamic voice shows listeners that they can have it both ways.
4. “Am I Black Enough for You?,” Billy Paul
This track is just as relevant today as it was in 1972 when it was released. Paul is known for “Me and Mrs. Jones,” the Grammy-winning track released immediately before this one. At the time, music was broadly discovered through radio play, and musicians were dependent on the whims of those who managed the stations. A track that was explicitly about Black pride was not widely embraced, either by radio station managers or White listeners. Still, Paul’s influence has been noted by artists such as Questlove: “[Paul is] one of the criminally unmentioned proprietors of socially conscious post-revolution ’60s civil rights music.”(2)
5. “Kluk Jako Buk,” Trio Karla Růžičky
This is certainly one of the more niche picks to appear on the playlist. It is the first track off this Czech jazz trio’s album Mini Jazz Klub, Vol. 4. It’s hard to catch due to the language barrier, but this group is the brainchild of Czech pianist Karel Růžička. He is best known for his work as a solo artist, but his trio with Petr Kořínek and Josef Vejvoda features bouncy Latin American–inspired jazz compositions. The music is utterly joyful and easy listening for a cozy night in.
We have an exciting year ahead of us, so keep coming back to the Hood Museum for thought-provoking exhibitions, engaging events, and euphonic music. We’ll see you soon!
This post was authored by: Sean DuMont, Visitor Services Guide
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sinclair “Sean” DuMont joined the Visitor Services Guide team at the Hood Museum in September of 2023, just after graduating from Cornell University with a BA in Literatures in English. Before this, Sean worked as a researcher at Ithaca College and the University of Chicago. Sean’s experience engaging with the topic of Posthumanism as a researcher drew them to museum spaces which celebrate the vibrancy of objects and their capacity to tell stories autonomously. He is thrilled to be a part of the team.
Sources:
1. Swindell, Alisa. Exhibition brochure for And I’m Feeling Good: Relaxation and
Resistance. Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth, 2024.
https://hoodmuseum.dartmouth.edu/sites/hoodmuseum.prod/files/hoodmuseum/publications/331663_hood.pdf
2. Chappell, Bill. “Beyond ‘Mrs. Jones’: Billy Paul’s Music You Might Not Have Heard.” NPR, 2016. https://www.kcur.org/2016-04-25/beyond-mrs-jones-billy-pauls-music-you-might-not-have-heard.
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