Ah, October — beacon of pumpkin spice lattes, cinnamon-scented candles, Gilmore Women reruns and Halloween decor. It’s the time of the yr when autumn lastly feels prefer it’s kicking into excessive gear.
And it’s no surprise why the tenth month has been a muse to so many musicians over the a long time, from tried-and-true twentieth century songwriters to fresh-faced Gen Z artists. October love additionally is aware of no style bounds; everybody from Eric Whitacre to Deadmau5, James Taylor and Alessia Cara have turned in tributes to the coziest, spookiest, most colourful 31 days of the yr, spanning classical, electro home, folks rock, pop and past. Merely typing “October” into Spotify’s search discipline yields tons of of outcomes.
Much more huge is the canon of songs dedicated to autumn itself, from Sinatra classics corresponding to “Autumn Leaves” to Taylor Swift’s “All Too Nicely” (“Autumn leaves falling down like items into place”), or Ed Sheeran’s total 2023 album, Autumn Variations. There’s additionally loads to be mentioned concerning the subgenre of music devoted to Halloween alone, though you received’t see “Monster Mash” or “Spooky Scary Skeletons” on this listing – this story is just for tracks with “October” within the identify, odes to the month as a complete in all its versatility and heat.
With the change of seasons, it’s time to present playlists a refresh, too. Queue up these 15 tracks centered across the month of October, from an indie-pop providing by Woman in Pink to an alt-rock throwback from Yellowcard, and benefit from the season:
-
U2, “October”
Picture Credit score: Anton Corbijin 12 months Launched: 1981
Style: Rock
That Fall Feeling: “October and the bushes are stripped naked/ Of all they put on/ What do I care?”Pay attention right here.
-
Barry Manilow, “When October Goes”
Picture Credit score: Nicholas Hunt/GI for Michael Kors 12 months Launched: 1984
Style: Vocal jazz
That Fall Feeling: “And when October goes/ The snow begins to fly/ Above the smokey roofs”Pay attention right here.
-
Eric Whitacre, “October”
Picture Credit score: Marc Royce 12 months Launched: 2000
Style: Classical
That Fall Feeling: “October is my favourite month,” Whitacre wrote of his six-minute live performance band composition. “One thing concerning the crisp autumn air and the refined change in gentle all the time makes me a little bit sentimental, and as I began to sketch I felt that very same quiet magnificence within the writing.”Pay attention right here.
-
Yellowcard, “October Nights”
Picture Credit score: SGranitz/WireImage 12 months Launched: 2001
Style: Punk rock
That Fall Feeling: “Tear me off a bit of blanket/ Maintain me heat and we will make it/ Right here’s my coronary heart, I’ll allow you to break it”Pay attention right here.
-
James Taylor, “October Highway”
Picture Credit score: Gary Gershoff/GI for James Taylor 12 months Launched: 2002
Style: Nation
That Fall Feeling: “Let the solar run down proper behind the hill/ I understand how to face there nonetheless until the moon stand up proper behind the pine/ Oh, Lord, October highway”Pay attention right here.
-
Amy Winehouse, “October Music”
Picture Credit score: Chris Christoforou/Redferns 12 months Launched: 2003
Style: R&B
That Fall Feeling: “With dread, I woke in my mattress/ To taking pictures pains up in my head”Pay attention right here.
-
Damaged Bells, “October”
Picture Credit score: James Minchin 12 months Launched: 2010
Style: Indie rock
That Fall Feeling: “See the celebs aligned and depart you behind … I come by gentle of an autumn moon”Pay attention right here.
-
deadmau5, “October”
Picture Credit score: Michael Tullberg/Getty Pictures 12 months Launched: 2012
Style: EDM
That Fall Feeling: The plinking staccato notes close to the two-minute mark completely emulate regular raindrops touchdown on sidewalks lined by fallen leaves.Pay attention right here.
-
The Helio Sequence, “October”
Picture Credit score: Astrid Stawiarz/GI 12 months Launched: 2012
Style: Rock
That Fall Feeling: “Be mindful the final time you go away at evening/ Be mindful the final time however don’t ignore the primary”Pay attention right here.
-
Ron Pope, “October Timber”
Picture Credit score: Nicole Mago 12 months Launched: 2012
Style: Rock
That Fall Feeling: “I as soon as beloved your grace, and the innocence that/ Fell from you want leaves spiral off October bushes”Pay attention right here.
-
Icarus, “October”
Picture Credit score: Courtesy Picture 12 months Launched: 2016
Style: Digital
That Fall Feeling: Dissonant notes and an eery layer of near-constant wind sounds give this monitor a barely spooky edge, excellent for the build-up to Halloween.Pay attention right here.
-
Woman in Pink, “We Fell in Love in October”
Picture Credit score: Jonathan Kise 12 months Launched: 2018
Style: Indie pop
That Fall Feeling: “We fell in love in October/ That’s why, I really like fall”Pay attention right here.
-
Mumford & Sons, “October Skies”
Picture Credit score: Gavin Batty 12 months Launched: 2018
Style: People rock
That Fall Feeling: “I’m blinded by the lights/ Of October Skies/ These postcard reminiscences/ Evade my eyes”Pay attention right here.
-
Alessia Cara, “October”
Picture Credit score: Shervin Lainez* 12 months Launched: 2019
Style: Pop
That Fall Feeling: “The nerve of autumn time, days flyin’ by, each dawn healin’ me/ And we’re OK, we’ll dwell this manner ’til it’s executed/ I’m gonna miss this when it’s over/ I hope we by no means see October”Pay attention right here.
-
Yebba, “October Sky”
Picture Credit score: Francesco Carrozzini 12 months Launched: 2021
Style: Various R&B
That Fall Feeling: “So we fell by the door just like the autumn leaves/ And I wrestled my brother right down to his knees/ Simply to observe as her rocket shot into the October sky”Pay attention right here.
