“Hey Now” by Oasis

One of my favorite bands, Oasis, always has a resurgence in my life over the winter months. Something about the 90s grunge scene, their electric guitars and smoker voices seems to match the bitter cold of the start of winter. “Hey Now!” by the band is my favorite song they’ve ever written – it’s only fair to start a long winter playlist with it.

“Sweet Carolina” by Lana Del Rey

Sweet Carolina is a lullaby I’ll sing with my future children. Winter always brings a sense of calm to me, as does this song.

“November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses

It’s so fitting that a song about standing out in the cold and a take on love’s complexities is called “November Rain.” Not only can love not last forever, but neither can summer. With crazy good guitar riffs and Axl Rose’s classic voice, I find myself listening to this song late at night driving around by myself during winter.

“Break From Toronto” by PARTYNEXTDOOR

“Break From Toronto” sends me into a time warp, throwing me right back to last year’s beginning of winter filled with singing in the car to this song with people I barely know now. I think this song will always take me back and is the perfect R&B interlude from PARTYNEXTDOOR’s self-titled album.

“Bitter Sweet Symphony” by The Verve

I first discovered this song while watching “Cruel Intentions” last winter. With Reese Witherspoon’s hair billowing in the wind as she drove around in a convertible, every time the song comes on it reminds me of the dark-natured movie. A perfect winter day includes a rewatch of the movie along with a perfect “driving around in winter” song.