A few words about “Chesapeake,” from the wonderful Better Oblivion Community Center album

Can’t stop/won’t stop listening to Better Oblivion Community Center, the collaborative LP from Phoebe Bridgers and Conor Oberst. I’m especially stuck on “Chesapeake,” the sixth of the album’s 10 tracks. It’s an elegant examination of how music is passed from one generation to the next, and how the things that connect us can eventually foster alienation. There’s definitely some bitter mixed in with the sweet here, but the first four lines may be the most beautiful love letter to music I’ve ever read, and they don’t even mention music:

The world will not remember when we’re old and tired
We’ll be blowing on the embers of a little fire
We were the tallest person watching in Chesapeake
You put me on your shoulders so I could see