Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Qatar was just named the best airport in the world in the 2024 Skytrax awards, knocking 12-time winner Singapore Changi Airport down to second place.
04.04.2024 - 00:09 / atlasobscura.com / Atlas Obscura
Even celestial events need a backing track—and the April 8 total solar eclipse is no different. Whether you’re road-tripping down to Hot Springs, Arkansas for Atlas Obscura’s Ecliptic Festival or flying over to Cleveland, Ohio, you’ll undoubtedly need some tunes to get you in the mood.
That’s why, as part of our ongoing Countdown to the Eclipse series, we asked readers on our Facebook page to tell us what songs get them thinking about totality and the grandeur of the universe. We compiled some of the most thoughtful (Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring”), funny (“Da-Doo” from Little Shop of Horrors), and wonder-inspiring (Mark Lettieri’s “Supernova”) responses below. If you’d like to join the conversation, watch for more opportunities to share on our Facebook page. We can’t wait to hear from you!
“It depends on how you want to experience the eclipse. I played the soundtrack from 2001: A Space Odyssey during the Oregon eclipse last time; it was about the right timing for that totality. For this eclipse, I’ll be in Missouri and maybe ‘Time’ by Hans Zimmer or Samuel Barber’s ‘Adagio for Strings.’ If you want something upbeat, ‘Sandstorm’ by Darude!” —Karen Hagele Duns, Cape Girardeau, Missouri
“Pink Floyd’s ‘Eclipse.’ I will never forget being 18, riding in a car full of friends in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, one of the most beautiful places in the world. We were on Skyline Drive when we drove into a deep fog. We had to stop the car for fear of driving off a cliff. Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, ending with ‘Eclipse,’ made that mountain adventure such a mystical experience.” —Selene Carroll, Cincinnati, Ohio
“I did Little Shop of Horrors in high school, so I hear the ‘Da-Doo’ song from that. In the song, Seymour says, ‘When suddenly, and without warning, there was this total eclipse of the sun.’ And the ladies repeat ‘total eclipse of the sun.’ I can’t unhear it. So now it’s just always stuck in my head when the eclipse comes up.” —Malorie Mackey, Los Angeles, California
“There’s a song that isn’t about an eclipse, but it reminds me of an eclipse every time I hear it. Back in the late 1970s, a few high school friends and I skipped our morning classes to experience a full eclipse outdoors. We stood in a parking lot near Main Street (HWY 101) in Forks, Washington, and watched day turn into night for a while. We smoked some Lebanese blond hash in a small metal pipe throughout the morning, which made it all the more magical. So whenever I hear Weezer’s song ‘Hash Pipe,’ I immediately remember that morning of the total eclipse.” —Alan Hall, Forks, Washington
“The Alan Parsons Project song ‘Eye in the Sky’ reminds me of the fact that most total solar eclipses resemble the pupil and iris of an eye
Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Qatar was just named the best airport in the world in the 2024 Skytrax awards, knocking 12-time winner Singapore Changi Airport down to second place.
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