When Laurel and I first began dating, we made each other a series of mixtapes, not the most original idea, but it was an important part of our getting to know each other. For me, I decided to make a series of four discs BULL WORK BIRD SONG that were both a play on Laurel’s last name (Bastian = bastion = bulwark = BULL WORK) and presented a collection of connected, themed songs.

The first two discs (BULL and WORK) featured only songs about animals (bulls, etc.) and the second two (BIRD and SONG) featured songs about birds and singing, respectively. Here’s the fourth and final disc, SONG:

[Note: The disc also included several songs not featured in Spotify’s library: Regina Spektor’s “I Want to Sing“, The Beatles’ “And Your Bird Can Sing”, Sinéad O’Connor’s “The Singing Bird“, and my friend Jordan’s “Yo, the Lady Who?”.]