Eight songs Goldie Hawn couldn’t live without
Goldie Hawn started her career go-go dancing in New York before earning small television roles as a typecast dumb blonde. Just a few years later, the actor bagged an Academy Award for ‘Best Supporting Actress’ after landing her first proper film role in Cactus Flower. Proving herself to be a multi-faceted talent, Hawn shot to success, becoming one of America’s most coveted female stars.
From The Sugarland Express to Death Becomes Her, Hawn has enjoyed a successful film career, even foraying into music with a country album called Goldie, released in 1972. The actor once appeared on Desert Island Discs to select the songs she loves most, revealing a penchant for The Beatles, Amy Winehouse and classical music.
Her first pick was The Rolling Stones’ ‘I Can’t Get No (Satisfaction)’, the band’s first number one single in the United States. It remains the Stones’ signature hit, and for Hawn, it reminds her “of a time in my life that I was full of concert-going, and I remember the night I was backstage with them, and we had such a great time. It’s one of those pieces of music that I just lift my hands up [to] and just have the best time.”
In keeping with the British Invasion theme, Hawn also selected The Beatles, opting for their 1970 single ‘Let It Be’ from their final album of the same name. Her reasoning for picking the song was simple: she “likes its message,” explaining: “Try not to push too hard. Then you’ll be able to see the light.” Hawn picked out a John Lennon track, too, going with his iconic 1971 song, ‘Imagine’. Offering some reason, she explained, “Imagine is probably what I would be doing on the desert island, looking up at the sky and all the things that are unseen.”
Lennon released ‘Imagine’ the year after The Beatles split, and its popularity – it reached number three on the Billboard charts – helped to establish the musician’s imminent solo career. It is one of his most beloved compositions, exploring a world full of peace and love, free from the demands of oppressive structures such as capitalism.
Another song that Hawn highlighted was ‘Back to Black’ by Amy Winehouse. The piece appeared on her final album of the same name, released five years before the singer sadly passed away. Touching on themes of infidelity and heartbreak, the track is one of Winehouse’s finest and most emotionally-stirring. Hawn explained, “She moved me. She was a star. Her light went out too soon.”
John Barry’s ‘I had a farm in Africa’ from the movie Out of Africa also made Hawn’s list. Acting as the opening track to the 1985 film directed by Sydney Pollack, Hawn called it “one of the most extraordinary success stories of putting the right sound, the right melody, the right instrumentation, to the images of vast and beautiful Africa.”
The film, starring Robert Redford and Meryl Streep, was a massive success. Its soundtrack is considered one of Barry’s best, earning him his fourth Academy Award. He took home ‘Best Original Score’ for his work, which Hawn has been enamoured by since she first heard it, emphasising, “I love this piece.”
Goldie Hawn’s favourite songs:
- ‘I Can’t Get No (Satisfaction)’ – The Rolling Stones
- ‘The Overture to Romeo and Juliet’ – Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
- ‘Let It Be’ – The Beatles
- ‘Imagine’ – John Lennon
- ‘Back to Black’ – Amy Winehouse
- ‘Fly Me to the Moon’ – Frank Sinatra
- ‘I had a farm in Africa’ – John Barry
- ‘Volare’ – Gipsy Kings
