| August 7th, 2005 06:21 AM |
|
|
| Ten Thousand Motels |
Rock-and-roll is dead: Let it be
Thane Tierney
is a record-label executive living
in Los Angeles
Philadelphia Enquirer August 7, 2005
Here's an excellent way to celebrate rock-and-roll's 50th birthday: Pull the plug and give it the proper burial it deserves.
Rock has been in a persistent vegetative state for more than a decade, and it shows no signs of coming back. Ever.
Want evidence? Look at the top-15-grossing pop (very broadly defined) tours from last year. The top five were Prince, Celine Dion, Madonna, Metallica and Bette Midler, all of whom have been recording in excess of 20 years. Ditto all the rockers in the next 10 (Elton John, Rod Stewart, Van Halen, Jimmy Buffett, et al), with the exception of Dave Matthews, who has been around a mere dozen years. (Just for reference, a dozen years is the span of time between Elvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel" and the Beatles' "Hey Jude.")
Look at the top-albums chart. Three rock records in the Top 20. Three. That's only three more than you have, and you don't make records.
Cue the howls of protest.
"If only your harebrained correspondent knew about (insert band name here), he'd play a different tune."
"I just got the new album by (insert band name here), and it's the best thing since (insert classic rock-band name here)."
"That moron doesn't know anything about real rock. Rock lives!"
Uh huh. So does Elvis.
As long as there's a Disneyland, there will be barbershop quartets. As long as there are cruise ships, there will be swing bands. As long as there are electric guitars, there will be rockers. So what?
To its credit, rock lived a good long life. Like an old bluesman, though, it seems to have lost its birth certificate. Various reports have it born in 1951, when Jackie Brenston recorded "Rocket 88," or 1949, when Roy Brown cut "Good Rockin' Tonight." Its birth date is most commonly given as 1955, the year when Bill Haley & The Comets' "Rock Around the Clock" hit No. 1.
In its adolescence, rock not only articulated the angst of a disaffected youth, it also shaped language, style, clothing and politics. It sought to raise consciousness, from Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" to John Lennon's "Imagine." Even apolitical Elvis got into the spirit with "In the Ghetto." Rock abdicated its primacy in those roles to hip-hop and rap years ago, and rock's audience largely abandoned it; just ask any record company for the figures.
Endless recycling, not only of riffs but of the music itself, sapped rock of its vitality. Time was, oldies were dragged out of retirement solely on holidays for the inevitable Top 100 Countdown of Your All-Time Favorites. No longer. Fleetwood Mac's "Rhiannon," Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama," and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" have all been in continuous rotation on radio for more than 30 years, especially on networks such as Clear Channel and Infinity Broadcasting. Had this been the case in the '60s, we would have grown up listening to golden oldies by the likes of Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians, the Ink Spots, and the Paul Whiteman Orchestra.
Historically speaking, rock had a great run. Dixieland flourished for about 30 years; big-band swing lasted about half that long. As those styles ran out of gas, their most talented practitioners retired or led the charge to the next big sound. Rock stars, however, seem locked into the same old tired groove.
When are these guys going to hang up their rock-and-roll shoes anyway? Eric Clapton is 60. Mick Jagger is 62. Paul McCartney is 63. Ringo Starr is 65. Chuck Berry is 79. Anybody who says any of them is just as good now as he or she was then either wasn't there, or has been huffing glue for the last 40 years.
I can't blame rock fans for being stuck in the denial phase of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross' five stages of grief. But it's time to move on, before rock's carcass begins stinkin' up the joint.
Sure, filling out rock's death certificate is problematic. It's as hard to attach a specific date to its demise as it was to affix one to its birth. Some would place it at disco's ascendancy in the late '70s; others would say punk's arrival spelled the death knell for substance, replacing it with fashion.
Personally, I would point to 1992, when Eric Clapton's Unplugged album turned rock's most eloquent cri de coeur, "Layla," into a lounge-lizard anthem. It might not have been the actual agent of rock's death, but it was a potent indicator: The soul of rock's greatest living guitarist had been snatched by Bill Murray.
So let's light the birthday candles one last time, drag out the family album(s) and tell each other the stories we've heard endlessly for the last half-century. Then blow the candles out... and leave them out.
Roll over Beethoven, and tell Bruce Springsteen the news.
|
| August 7th, 2005 07:15 AM |
|
|
| corgi37 |
And whats the alternative, smart ass? Some Danish dance act? Akon? Crazy Frog? We need the Stones more than ever.
Christ on a stick, i hate wanker journos like this one.
And, fancy dissing the Ink Spots! |
| August 7th, 2005 09:29 AM |
|
|
| egon |
what's scary is that this guy/women (Thane?) is
a record-label executive
|
| August 7th, 2005 09:47 AM |
|
|
| gimmekeef |
One suits opinion....some validity though...The bigger point to consider or write about was how this hip hop shit was marketed by guys like this and how the public lapped it up....? |
| August 7th, 2005 09:48 AM |
|
|
| gimmekeef |
One suits opinion....some validity though...The bigger point to consider or write about was how this hip hop shit was marketed by guys like this and how the public lapped it up....? |
| August 7th, 2005 10:55 AM |
|
|
| Martha |
Our culture is dead what is happening or not happening in music only reflects that spiritual truth. |
| August 7th, 2005 01:10 PM |
|
|
| CraigP |
Rock is not dead, obviaoulsy.
People like this have been saying the same shit since after rock started. |
| August 7th, 2005 03:06 PM |
|
|
| keithriffhard |
no genre of music has ever died, people listen or sing that music some where at all times, ya know. and especially rock hasn't died, go join another message board this one isn't for you. |
| August 7th, 2005 03:09 PM |
|
|
| jb |
quote:
Martha wrote:
Our culture is dead what is happening or not happening in music only reflects that spiritual truth.
Thanks to Bush and the religious right, we will soon be living in a totalitarian state with ally way abortions and Corporations running your lives..................the world is close to extinction.......................................> |
| August 7th, 2005 03:18 PM |
|
|
| Taptrick |
The Killers, Louis IVth, Franz Ferdinand, Modest Mouse, The White Stripes, Hot Hot Heat, Godsmack, Foo Fighters, Jack Johnson, and on and on - I hope that executive isn't getting paid too much. Maybe he shouldn't be paid at all. Sure there are new and more diversified markets. That's unavoidable in our global instant market world but there is obviously a demand. I just saw jack Johnson last night with 17,500 people crammed onto a football field with no stands. Talk about blind to potential income.
|
| August 7th, 2005 09:47 PM |
|
|
| Soldatti |
The rock is dead as commercial style, but LIVE, is the main business of the music. |
| August 8th, 2005 02:59 AM |
|
|
| Ten Thousand Motels |
quote:
corgi37 wrote:
And whats the alternative?
RAP!!!!  |
| August 8th, 2005 08:48 AM |
|
|
| corgi37 |
That aint no alternative for me. I'll still listen to SF, Exile, Let it bleed, Ink spots, - A Bigger Bang perhaps?
Throw in a touch of Who's Next and Quadrophenia, a dash of Ragged Glory, Rust never sleeps and Decade, a sprinkle of L.A Woman, maybe even a sprig of Iron Maiden. A pinch of Led Zep 2 perhaps? A couple of shakes of Mellencamp (with Kenny Aronoff on drums). That'll feed me for life.
Fuck the world, i wanna get off.
I'll stay in the past, where its nice and warm then.
Aint having no "Pimp" tell me how many 'ho's he's shanked. Bet i've shanked more, anyway. |
| August 8th, 2005 09:49 AM |
|
|
| Water Dragon |
Ahhh Monday, and now for something completely different than one person's opinion, this seems like just the thread and no time better than a Blue Monday, for this little funny:
Subject: How To Write/Sing The Blues
Most Blues begin, "Woke up this morning..."
"I got a good woman" is a bad way to begin the Blues,
unless you stick something nasty in the next line like,
"I got a good woman, with the meanest face in town."
The Blues is simple. After you get the first line right, repeat it. Then find something that rhymes... sort of: "Got a good woman with the meanest face in town. Yes, I got a good woman with the meanest face in town. Got teeth like Margaret Thatcher, and she weighs 500 pounds."
The Blues is not about choice. You stuck in a ditch,
you stuck in a ditch-ain't no way out.
Blues cars: Chevys, Fords, Cadillacs and broken-down trucks.
Blues don't travel in Volvos, BMWs, or Sport Utility Vehicles. Most Blues transportation is a Greyhound bus or a southbound train. Jet aircraft and state-sponsored motor pools ain't even in the running. Walkin' plays a major part in the Blues lifestyle. So does fixin' to die.
Teenagers can't sing the Blues. They ain't fixin' to die yet. Adults sing the Blues. In Blues, "adulthood" means being old enough to get the electric chair if you shoot a man in Memphis.
Blues can take place in New York City. but not in Hawaii or any place in Canada. Hard times in Minneapolis or Seattle is probably just clinical depression. Chicago, St. Louis, and Kansas City are still the best places to have the Blues. You cannot have the Blues in any place that doesn't get rain.
A man with male pattern baldness ain't the Blues. A woman with male pattern baldness is. Breaking your leg because you were skiing is not the Blues. Breaking your leg 'cause an alligator be chomping on it, is.
You can't have Blues in an office or a shopping mall.
The lighting is wrong. Go outside to the parking lot or sit by the dumpster. Good places for the Blues:
a. highway
b. jailhouse
c. empty bed
d. bottom of a whiskey glass
Bad places for the Blues:
a. Bloomingdales
b. gallery openings
c. Ivy League institutions
d. golf courses
No one will believe it's the Blues if you wear a suit,
unless you happen to be an old ethnic person, and you slept in it.
Do you have the right to sing the Blues?
Yes, if:
a. you're older than dirt
b. you're blind
c. you shot a man in Memphis
d. you can't be satisfied
No, if:
a. you have all your teeth
b. you were once blind but now can see
c. the man in Memphis lived
d. you have a 401K or trust fund
Blues is not a matter of color. It's a matter of bad luck.
Tiger Woods cannot sing the Blues. Sonny Liston could.
Ugly white people also got a leg up on the Blues.
If you ask for water and your darlin' give you gasoline, it's the Blues. Other acceptable Blues beverages are:
a. cheap wine
b. whiskey or bourbon
c. muddy water
d. nasty black coffee
The following are NOT Blues beverages:
a. Perrier
b. Chardonnay
c. Snapple
d. Slim Fast
e. Starbucks Frappuccinos
If death occurs in a cheap motel or a shotgun shack, it's a Blues death. Stabbed in the back by a jealous lover is another Blues way to die. So is the electric chair, substance abuse and dying lonely on a broken down cot.
You can't have a Blues death if you die during a tennis match or while getting liposuction.
Some Blues names for women:
a. Sadie
b. Big Mama
c. Bessie
d. Fat River Dumpling
Some Blues names for men:
a. Joe
b. Willie
c. Little Willie
d. Big Willie
Persons with names like Michelle, Amber, Debbie, and Heather can't sing the Blues no matter how many men they shoot in Memphis. Make your own Blues name Starter Kit:
a. name of physical infirmity (Blind, Cripple, Lame, etc.)
b. first name (see above) plus name of fruit (Lemon, Lime, Kiwi, etc.)
c. last name of President (Jefferson, Johnson, Fillmore, etc.)
For example: Blind Lime Jefferson, Jakeleg Lemon Johnson or
Cripple Kiwi Fillmore, etc. (Well, maybe not "Kiwi.")
It doesn't matter how tragic your life:
if you own a computer, you cannot sing the Blues.
|
| August 8th, 2005 10:42 AM |
|
|
| Taptrick |
fuuny post....but I feel the blues is very happy. It's about overcoming all those struggles. It's paying homeage to life's difficulties as you get past them.
It's nice to stray outside the formula too:
we used to ride baby....ride around in limousines...
Interesting....as I post this Wild Ox Moan just came on my player.
|
| August 8th, 2005 11:06 AM |
|
|
| Trey Krimsin |
Rock 'n Roll isn't dead, it evolves from band to band and generation to generation.
Besides, as long as someone still buys and listens to The Stones, Zeppelin, Ramones, and others, the spirit of rock 'n roll is still alive. As long as rebellion and alienation exist, so does rock 'n roll. |
| August 9th, 2005 01:13 AM |
|
|
| stonedinaustralia |
quote:
Water Dragon wrote:
Some Blues names for women:
a. Sadie
b. Big Mama
c. Bessie
d. Fat River Dumpling
Some Blues names for men:
a. Joe
b. Willie
c. Little Willie
d. Big Willie
Persons with names like Michelle, Amber, Debbie, and Heather can't sing the Blues no matter how many men they shoot in Memphis. Make your own Blues name Starter Kit:
a. name of physical infirmity (Blind, Cripple, Lame, etc.)
b. first name (see above) plus name of fruit (Lemon, Lime, Kiwi, etc.)
c. last name of President (Jefferson, Johnson, Fillmore, etc.)
For example: Blind Lime Jefferson, Jakeleg Lemon Johnson or
Cripple Kiwi Fillmore, etc. (Well, maybe not "Kiwi.")
Deaf Apple Carter
Smelly Feet Banana Nixon
does it have to be physical infirmity??
Manic Depressive Strawberry Roosevelt
|
| August 9th, 2005 02:11 AM |
|
|
| exile |
quote:
corgi37 wrote:
And whats the alternative, smart ass?...Akon? Crazy Frog? We need the Stones more than ever.
Whats with this Crazy Frog thing, No.1 in Australia?
Hundreds of struggling Rock bands still playing in garages
Jet only got their start because the Stones picked them to be support. no one had heard of them before
Australian music excecs have musical taste up their ass I reckon
|
| August 9th, 2005 02:22 AM |
|
|
| corgi37 |
The trouble here Exile, is it aint music execs anymore. Its advertising execs. People like Gudinski are gone. It's all up to shonky shows like Idol & Pops stars. The big winners are the ad companies, the record companies and the associated hangers-on. The big loser is the artists. And, of course, us.
It's all image, and no substance. It's always been there. Pat Boone, Monkees, Kiss - a thousand trendy one hit wonders as well. All gloss and dross. But, it was always only a small part of it.
Now, its the main part. Any one can make music in their bedroom. No instruments needed. Thats good and bad. Me? I love making dance music. Not because i like it, but because its so frigging easy.
As a one man band, with a mate as an occasional ring-in, making "live" music is bloody hard. Play my drums. Put it on computer. Mix it. Fix it. Add guitar. Add another. Repeat. Separate. Add vocals. Compress.
Phew, takes for ever. But, Allah, i love it!
But, ahhh, just get on Fruity Loops on the computer, and make a trance song. Takes 5 minutes.
And some prick some where is making milions doing just that! While...
What the fuck is this about? Sorry. |
| August 9th, 2005 03:01 AM |
|
|
| stonedinaustralia |
yeah you're talking in circles a bit corgi - but you still made some valid points
and you forgot to mention poker machines - i remember back in the '70s - 80s - fri and sat night the main form of entertainment was to go and see a band (or play in one) at one of the (literally)hundreds of local pubs
now evrybody goes out to stuff their cash in and stare glass eyed at these computerized games - still some gigs around but they're hard to get and even if you do if you don't bring your own crowd there won't be much of an audience
and exile i know you'll think i'm crazy but i think that Crazy Frog thing is hilarious |
|
