The Playlist of Gwee Li Sui

Nothing screams love like pairing good music with good books; this time, instead of asking our authors for book recommendations, we seek curated playlists—the very songs that belong in their heads the same way their favourite verses do. This month, we get gweek to tell us of the few songs that occasionally interrupts his silent life. 

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Except for a ceaseless ringing in one ear, my world is relatively silent. This task of coming up with a playlist is therefore unnatural to me. But, whenever I do have music, it isn’t something just rolling in the background. I sit up to listen, engage my whole being in it, perhaps much more than when I read.

This may be why I can’t – and don’t – listen too much. Middling music bores me to tears. Bad music exhausts me, and both are everywhere nowadays. Worse, I seem to like too many old songs, which leave me with even less to say to you. So, without further ado, here’s my personal romantic playlist. Happy Valentine’s Day!

1. Nature Boy, Nat King Cole

2. Stardust, Hoagy Carmichael

3. Caramel, Suzanne Vega 

4. It’s Only a Paper Moon, Ella Fitzgerald

5. Jacqueline Among Her Flowers, Kelvin Tan

6. Suzanne, Leonard Cohen

7. I Loves You, Porgy, Nina Simone

8. As Time Goes By, Frank Sinatra

Gwee’s books, Telltale and Fear No Poetry are available for purchase on our website and in all good bookstores.