Aurora Borealis will pop its little green glow up tonight and through Saturday and you need the right playlist to listen to while watching them in awe!

First Things First: When Is The Aurora Going To Be Viewable?

The geo-magnetic storm from the sun that causes the green flickers known as the Northern Lights will be in full effect the next two nights, giving West Michiganders the best shot at seeing them.

You're gonna have to get out of the city a bit to get the full effect, but for the most part, West Michigan should get some action. I would recommend the Lakeshore as the best place for viewing Thursday night into Friday morning.

So Let's Get The Music Cranked For Some Hot Northern Lights Action!!

The songs I've found about the Northern Lights cover a wide berth of musical styles, from the folk stylings of Canadians Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, to the rumbling punk rock of Nirvana, to the odd, jazzy riffs of Frank Zappa, to the classically trained, and troubled lyrics of Tori Amos. Have fun, and

1. 'Pocahontas' -- Neil Young

Let's start with Neil Young's touching, and brutally honest ode to Native American life in North America, 'Pocahontas' which opens with the line:

'Aurora Borealis, the icy sky at night...'

 

2. 'Gallons Of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through...' -- Nirvana

Are all songs about the Aurora dark? Not all, but here's another downer about, well, I'll leave that up to you. There are bad words in this song, so the red NSFW flag is up.

Here's the lyric:

Somebody else already used the word Aurora Borealis
She was tied up in chains, and Sam had helped her in the freezer
She's only five weeks late
But I haven't had a date forever
Ever, ever
Forever

3. 'Little Green' -- Joni Mitchell

Finally, a nice, pretty song about the flickering lights that dance across the northern skies, written by one of pop music's most prolific poets, Canada's Joni Mitchell. The song is about a daughter Joni gave up for adoption in the '60s.

Just a little green
Like the color when the spring is born
There'll be crocuses to bring to school tomorrow
Just a little green
Like the nights when the northern lights perform
There'll be icicles and birthday clothes
And sometimes there'll be sorrow

 

4. 'Don't Eat The Yellow Snow' -- Frank Zappa

Believe it or not, this jazzy and strange effort form the king of odd rock actually charted for a minute back in 1974. Zappa's story about an eskimo avoiding the 'where the huskies go' so as not to be blinded by the yellow snow crystals, is just as weird today as it was then.

Well, I turned around and I said "Ho-Ho"
And the northern lights commenced to glow
And she said (Buh-buh-dodo), with a tear in her eye

 

5. ‘Amber Waves’ – Tori Amos

The esoteric Tori gives us this ode to a troubled lass who seeks solace in the gleam of the green lights on the horizon,  only to see them as troubled as her:

You said, "He's got a healing machine
It glows in the dark, glows in the dark"
You say, "There's not a lot of me
Left any more, just leave it alone
But if you're by and you have the time
Tell the Northern Lights to keep shining
Lately it seems like they're drowning"

Later, our narrator comforts her by telling her that the lights are actually not drowning but waving:

So I went by 'cause I had the time
Told the Northern Lights to keep shining
They told me to tell you they're waving

 

 

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