Songful Style Link Party #34: “Follow the Sun” by Xavier Rudd

An appropriate song choice when the sun is no where in sight, eh? If I can find the sun, I will surely follow it! After taking a short holiday break, we are back with a new year of music that will be inspiring us to get creative in our closets. Anyone is welcome to join us and play along!

About Songful Style

Songful Style is an ageless style challenge series hosted by Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge, Marsha of Marsha in the Middle, and Suzy of Suzy Turner, The Grey Brunette (formerly The Grey Brunette).

Each month we will share a song with the lyrics and video and we invite you to use whatever aspect of the song that inspires you to create an outfit. 

It is similar to Style Imitating Art where we use artwork to inspire our outfit creations. Except Songful Style gives you lyrics, music, video, and album artwork to inspire your fashion creativity. You may even find inspiration in a memory triggered by the selected song. It is all open to your own personal interpretation and just a fun way to discover new music and get a little bit more creative with your wardrobe.

Anyone is welcome to join us on a permanent basis or you can just play along without any obligation to do anything other than feel inspired. We are flexible and fun and just want to find more ways to play dress up because it’s what we enjoy doing! 

We will be posting on the last Monday of each month and will announce our song choice for the following month at the end of each post. You are welcome to style your own song inspired outfit and add it to the link party or link anything that you want to share even if it has nothing to do with the song. 

It was Suzy’s turn to choose our inspiration song and she delivered something special. This song and artist are new to me and I am genuinely grateful for the introduction because I really dig this guy and his music. Suzy chose this song because she finds it beautiful with a lovely meaning that many people could benefit from during the long gray winter days of January. It is uplifting and can bring light into the darkest shadows, for sure.

Would you like to hear it?

The Lyrics

Follow, follow the sun
And which way the wind blows
When this day is done
Breath, breath in the air
Set your intentions
Dream with care
Tomorrow is a new day for everyone
A brand new moon, brand new sun

So follow, follow the sun
The direction of the birds
The direction of love
Breath, breath in the air
Cherish this moment
Cherish this breath
Tomorrow is a new day for everyone
Brand new moon, brand new sun

When you feel love coming down on you
Like a heavy wave
When you feel this crazy society
Headin' to the strand
Take a straw to the nearest waters
And remember your place
Many moons have risen and fallen long, long before youve came
So which way is the wind blowin'
And what does your heart say?

So follow, follow the sun
And which way the wind blows
When this day is done...

About the Artist

Xavier Rudd is an Australian singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist who was born on May 29, 1978. One of seven children, he grew up in Jan Juc, which is a suburb of Torquay, Victoria, in Australia. He attended St. Joseph’s College in the Geelong suburb of Newton, Victoria. His maternal grandfather was a Dutch immigrant who relocated from the Netherlands to Australia. One of his grandmothers was from an Irish potato farming family who grew up in Victoria, Australia, and one of his great-grandmothers was an Aboriginal Australian. Rudd claims to be of Irish, Scottish, Dutch, and Aboriginal heritage, particularly from the Wurundjeri people, who are recognized as the traditional owners of the Yarra River Valley in present day Melbourne.

Rudd exhibited an early interest in music. During his primary school years, he used his mother’s vacuum cleaner as a makeshift didgeridoo and he also began playing his brother’s guitar as well as the clarinet and saxophone. In his youth, Rudd also ran a small business where he repurposed and recycled wood into furniture. Immediately after graduating from high school, he traveled to Fiji where he lived all around the country for nine months before returning to Australia at the age of 19.

In 1998, Rudd formed the band ‘Xavier and the Hum’ and released his debut album, To Let, in 2002. His first solo album, Solace, was released in 2004. Rudd played all of the instruments himself on this album including didgeridoos, slide guitars, stomp boxes, djembe drums, slit drums, and the harmonica. During his live shows, Rudd has come to be recognized for his ‘one-man band’ performances.

Over his 27 year career, Rudd’s music has become known for its socially conscious themes such as spirituality, environmentalism, and humanity including the rights of indigenous Australians. He has released 10 studio albums, 8 live albums, and 1 EP. He is a regular on the festival circuit playing events such as Bonnaroo Music Festival, the High Sierra Music Festival, and moe.down. He has been nominated for various music awards, winning the APRA award for “We Deserve to Dream” and the Environmental Music Prize for “Stoney Creek” in 2023. Our inspiration song, “Follow the Sun”, was shortlisted in the “Song of the Year” category for an APRA award in 2013.

Not only is Rudd an extremely talented and hugely successful musical talent, he also enjoys off-roading in his Toyota Landcruiser, surfing, and snowboarding (one of the few activities that he wears shoes for).

In 1999, Rudd met Marci Lutken, a Canadian artist, on a backpacking trip in Victoria. She got pregnant, they married, and ultimately had two sons before divorcing in 2009. Rudd married a second time to Ashley Freeman-Rudd, an Australian model, dancer, and holistic wellness trainer. They currently live in Shire of Noosa with their two children.

About My Outfit

This was a tricky challenge since the song and the video are so very summery and we are in the deep cold heart of winter right now. At first, I had contemplated wearing bright yellow to represent the sun that I desperately would love to follow right now. I figured bright yellow would look lovely with my fabulous new purple hat. In fact, despite its nature as a felted wool winter hat, this whimsical cap still gives me all sorts of sunshiney vibes. The hat also reminds me of the very whimsical hat that Xavier Rudd wears in the video for this song and his tee shirt is the same shade of purple. So my hat was the perfect starting point for this difficult challenge.

Then I had an idea that was much more meaningful for this song and I ditched the bright yellow concept, going with this purple and black outfit instead. I recently wore one iteration of this look to the memorial service of Jean Foust, an incredibly wonderful woman who lived a long life full of color and joy.

To honor her beautiful life and memory, I decided I was not going to wear all black to her service. That seemed much too morbid for such a lovely and loving human. But I still wanted to be appropriate so I started with a preloved black knit turtleneck dress and tall black platform boots. Then I added splashes of bright cheerful colors in purples, teals, and golds including this gorgeous silk Kantha Bae kimono style jacket that was in Daenel‘s big box of beautiful that she sent to me in the spring. I just adore all the rich colors and the stunning print. I added a recently thrifted turquoise statement necklace and the funky green snake earrings that Archie gave to me for Christmas and topped it off with my purple hat and my purple Kantha Bae coat.

For the actual service, I did not wear my new purple hat because I totally forgot it on top of my Christmas tree. I wore my black felt floppy hat instead and I tied the jacket at the waist as you can see in the first set of photos. I added my rainbow belt to the dress and left the jacket open as an after thought when taking photos. I can’t decide which way I like it better. Which do you prefer: the dress belted with the jacket untied or the jacket tied with no belt?

At the service, there were a few other women wearing bright cheerful colors but almost everyone else was in dark and drab funeral colors. At one point, someone was trying to find me in the crowd before the service began and was told to “look for the burst of color in the sea of gray.” That made me smile and also validated my choice to wear purple to a funeral. Plus, I think Jean would have appreciated the few bursts of joyful color at her service!

As for the song, I think it can easily be interpreted and applied to the end of one’s beautiful life on earth. In fact, I think I might like this song played at my funeral.

So follow, follow the sun
And which way the wind blows
When this day is done...

Isn’t this a beautiful song? How did I do with style challenge part of it?

I hope you will check out how my friends have styled their outfits inspired by Xavier Rudd’s “Follow the Sun.”

• Marsha of Marsha in the Middle
• Suzy of Suzy Turner, The Grey Brunette

Featured Favorite from Songful Style Link Party #33: “Pink” by Aerosmith

If you enjoyed our musically inspired outfits for this round, please come back on February 24, 2025, to see how we style Marsha’s next song choice, “Pleasant Valley Sunday” by The Monkees. I freaking love the Monkees and this song! And the video is full of amazing sartorial inspiration for me, particularly Davy’s and Peter’s outfits. Hopefully, some of you will be inspired to join us in February!

Keeping it on the edge, 

Shelbee

Link Parties to Join!