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One of the many recommendations you’ll get for baby’s big welcome to the world day is to play music during labour.

Now, I know everyone says that classical music is wonderful in that it relaxes you and elevates the senses, and I’m sure that’s true for many. I love classical music – I love listening to it, seeing it performed, and having it play while I enjoy a delicious dinner and glass of wine. But I think given the task at hand, ethereal compositions from history’s greatest may be lost on me. Death metal might be more the ticket – but potentially not a welcome aural addition to the ambience at Hornsby Hospital or other Mums going through labour at the time.

So I’ve started to put together the playlist for the big day and thought I’d share, and wondered if others would like to do the same. My labour soundtrack comes with this disclaimer: I never claimed to be fashionable in my music tastes. I like what I like.

• Untitled – Interpol
• Street Fighting Man – The Rolling Stones
• Psycho Killer – Talking Heads
• Learning to Fly – Tom Petty
• Lock It – Falling Joys
• Goodbye – The Sundays
• Jungle – Emma-Louise
• Charlotte’s on Fire – Cocosuma
• 8 Ball – Underworld
• Intro – The xx
• Heart Skipped a Beat – The xx
• Here’s Where the Story Ends – The Sundays
• Marlene on the Wall – Suzanne Vega
• Stewart’s Coat – Ricky Lee Jones
• Nothing New – The Waifs
• London Still – The Waifs
• Chariot – Page France
• Keepsake – State Radio
• Sleep – Azure Ray
• In the Waiting Line – Zero 7
• For the Widows in Paradise – Sufjan Stevens
• Holland – Sufjan Stevens
• Forever – Ben Harper
• Silver Lining – David Gray
• Rinse Me Down – Bombay Bicycle Club
• Fairytale Lullaby – Bombay Bicycle Club
• Word by Word – Bombay Bicycle Club
• Cotton – The Mountain Goats
• Just Like Honey – The Jesus and Mary Chain
• Suzanne – Leonard Cohen
• Labour of Love – Frente!
• Plans – Birds of Tokyo
• Caring is Creepy – The Shins
• My Fear #2 – Cloud Control
• New Slang – The Shins
• Meditation Song #2 – Cloud Control
• Weird Fishes – Radiohead
• High and Dry – Radiohead
• Gagging Order – Radiohead
• House of Cards – Radiohead
• Heartbeats – Jose Gonzales
• I giorni – Ludovici Einaudi
• Reverie – Ludovici Einaudi
• Reckoner – Radiohead
• Shiny Happy People – R.E.M.
• Planet Telex – Radiohead
• Careless – Paul Kelly
• Air a Danser – Penguin Café Orchestra
• Tiny Dancer – Elton John

I’m missing a few here that really could lighten the mood methinks, like Fleetwood Mac. Or the Beastie Boys actually might be more appropriate. Any suggestions welcome.

PS: I am well aware that it is hilariously naïve to even think for one minute that I’ll remember to pop on the CD in the birthing suite when the time comes, but hey, you’ve got to go in with your hopes held high.