Tuneful April Fools - A YouTube Playlist (link)
Since we're all a little edge these days and, in the minds of many, 2020 has already been a bad joke of a year, the suggestion that April 1's normal round of pranks and practical jokes be put off untl 2021 isn't a bad one. Sure, it's a tradition that dates back a few centuries or so, but if we can put everything else on hold for the sake of our health (if not our sanity), maybe we can give April Fools' Day a rest too.
Instead, how about a musical tribute to all things foolish and foolhardy, the human tendency to turn a blind eye and blithely hope that things aren't what they seem? OK, it's not a great trait, but it's fine fodder for songwriters, starting with Rufus Wainwright's ode to the day itself and continuing on through soulful contributions from Aretha Franklin and Jully Black, Frank Sinatra crooning a Johnny Mercer classic, a hit full of regret from Tegan & Sara, a mix of '80s pop and '70s yacht rock from World Party and the Doobie Brothers, and finally, a Beatles classic performed live by the luminous Annie Lennox.
