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Dancing In The Dark: 30+ Songs To Enjoy During The Solar Eclipse

Solar eclipse as seen on Nov. 13, 2012, from the northern tip of Australia.
Romeo Durscher/NASA Goddard Space Center/Flickr
Solar eclipse as seen on Nov. 13, 2012, from the northern tip of Australia.

This Monday, the sun will be completely eclipsed by the moon. For those who choose to watch, a "partial solar eclipse will be visible everywhere in the contiguous United States," NPR's Rebecca Hersher reports, "but to see the total solar eclipse, you'll need to be in a sash of land that cuts from Oregon to South Carolina."

The total eclipse will start on Aug. 21 at 1:16 p.m. ET in Lincoln Beach, Oregon, ending at 2:48 p.m. ET near Charleston, South Carolina. NASA will be live-streaming the eclipse beginning at 11:45 a.m. ET. Those who miss it will have another chance to see a solar eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023, and April 8, 2024.

To enhance the experience, we've put together a musical playlist for your solar eclipse watching (and listening) pleasure. Pink Floyd, Yusuf/Cat Stevens, Bonnie Tyler, Death Cab for Cutie and TV On The Radio bring us songs about the moon and the sun; as well, we have Carly Simon's classic song about a self-absorbed lover who flew a Learjet to Nova Scotia "to see the total eclipse of the sun." You can plan your eclipse party here; however, just like eclipse glasses are a must, be sure to have this solar eclipse playlist ready! Listen below.

A Solar Eclipse Playlist:

Copyright 2017 XPN

Bruce Warren is assistant general manager for programming of WXPN in Philadelphia. Besides serving as executive producer of World Café, Warren also contributes to Paste magazine and writes for two blogs: Some Velvet Blog and WXPN's All About The Music Blog.