Mother’s Day is upon us for 2020, and while this year’s edition will be a Mother’s Day like no other, there are still ways to celebrate.
Despite current social distancing restrictions, you are still allowed to go and visit your mum for Mother’s Day in most states.
In New South Wales, Tasmania and the ACT, households are allowed two visiting guests, while that number is five for Queensland and ten for Western and South Australia. There is no limit on visitor numbers for the Northern Territory, but in Victoria, households aren’t allowed social visitors at all.
However you are choosing to spend Mother’s Day this year, here are ten songs to help you pay tribute to your mum, whether you can visit her or not.
‘Mother’ – John Lennon
Lennon’s heartbreaking ode to his mother, who was killed in a car accident before The Beatles’ rise to fame, is as beautiful a maternal tribute as you’ll find anywhere.
‘Mama’ – Spice Girls
While none of the Spice Girls were mothers when this song came out in 1997, it’s a beautifully boppy take on the mother-daughter relationship that is distinctly ‘90s.
‘Happy Mother’s Day’ – Gillian Welch
Released earlier in the week, Gillian Welch wrote this track while on tour in the early 2000s. Rolling Stone reported on Friday that the singer-songwriter called her mother after writing ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ and played it for her answering machine.
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‘Mamma Mia’ – ABBA
To be honest, most mums would probably be fine with a Mother’s Day playlist entirely comprised of ABBA songs.
‘9 to 5’ – Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton’s tribute to the working woman is among her best-loved songs. Written for the 1980 film of the same name, ‘9 to 5’ went on to inspire a stage musical, which was due to have its Australian premiere this year.
‘Dear Mama’ – 2Pac
One for all the hip-hopping mums out there. The candour of this 1995 track is probably what makes it so special. 2Pac details the turbulent, though never waning, relationship he had with his mother, and his appreciation for her as an adult.
‘She’s Always A Woman’ – Billy Joel
This track’s specific link to Mother’s Day is a little more tenuous, but lyrically, it’s too good not to include. This 1977 turn is among Joel’s shiniest gems.
‘The Perfect Fan’ – Backstreet Boys
Even if you’re not a Backstreet Boys fan, you can’t deny that their heart was firmly in the right place on this 1999 power ballad.
‘Mom’ – Meghan Trainor (feat. Kelli Trainor)
Meghan Trainor is famously close with her piano-playing father, Gary, but this track proves that the ‘All About That Bass’ singer doesn’t play favourites with her parents.
The soundtrack from the end of ‘Mother Simpson’
If ya know ya know. ‘Mother Simpson’, the episode in which Homer is reunited with his long-lost mother, falls firmly in The Simpsons’ golden era. The final scene is a tearjerker, due in no small part to this gorgeous instrumental piece.
Check out the ending to ‘Mother Simpson’
