| 11th October 2006 06:38 AM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
Keith: Rockers turn to country because ‘rock ’n’ roll is dead’
By MARK BROWN, Scripps Howard News Service
Published: Sunday, Oct. 8, 2006
Nashua Telegraph
“I’m not saying this to be facetious, but it’s true and it’s sad: Rock ’n’ roll is dead,” he said. “I never thought I’d live long enough in my life to hear that.”
Keith says songwriters and singers are having to gravitate toward country music to get anything heard.
“You’ve got so many artists trying to move to Nashville and find their format,” he said. “Sammy Hagar is a good friend of mine, and when he puts an album out, he has to call it ‘classic rock’ because there’s no rock ’n’ roll format to send it out to. There’s a big void.”
And country might be able to fill that.
“The new Bob Seger album – I haven’t heard it yet, but if it’s anything like he did before like ‘Fire Lake’ or ‘You’ll Accompany Me,’ that’s the kind of stuff that plays on country now,” he said of Seger’s “Face the Promise.”
One problem: “Country won’t play you,” he said. “Bon Jovi has to do a duet to get on there. There’s a huge void in the listening world that country can fill.”
Keith finds himself in a unique position. He has won awards for his songwriting, singing and albums, he sells in the millions and he left the major labels behind at the height of his powers to release his music on his own record label, Show Dog Records.
And he wonders whether, in that position, he can help get music to fans in a way that goes beyond the usual demographic marketing to which commercial radio is a slave.
Still, having his own record company for both his own music and that of artists he has signed is liberating, Keith says.
And music isn’t all that’s going on; his first feature role in a film ws playing a broken-down country singer in “Broken Bridges,” which was released in early September.
He thought a movie would be no sweat. He has never had a problem staring down a camera.
“I’d done 50 videos and about that many commercials,” Keith said. “I always sell right down the pipe.”
When he found out he’d play a country singer, “First thing I said right off the bat is ‘This isn’t much of a stretch.’ ”
His acting coach told him he couldn’t be more wrong; the character in the film abandons his family and spirals downward.
“This guy’s unsuccessful,” Keith said. “He has never taken care of his kids. He ran away from responsibility. He drank himself into a career coma.”
And when he got to the set, he found a whole new set of differences: “The camera becomes a fly on the wall,” he said. “Other people have lines besides you. You have to let go of what you really do and be true to the script.”
Still, he was able to draw on his background – years of moderate hits before becoming a superstar – to inform his role.
As a country artist who has a song called “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)” as one of his biggest hits, Keith often gets pigeonholed. But the truth is more complex.
He’s a lifelong registered Democrat who voted for Bill Clinton and later voted for George W. Bush. He gets mad when the media says things such as, “Most of his money was made in the red states,” as one magazine claimed.
“That’s not even close to the truth. The truth is, I do 70 shows a year, half of them in the blue states,” he says, noting his biggest markets include Philadelphia, Boston and Washington, D.C.
Such misunderstandings also abound concerning his personal life. Keith has quite a sense of humor, as he demonstrated in a recent appearance on Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report,” in which he talked about Willie Nelson’s pot use on his tour bus.
The show got more mileage out of the bit a few days later when Nelson got busted in Louisiana.
Those who know him see his sense of humor, he says, but even with massive exposure, few people know much about Keith beyond his hard-driven image.
What matters most to him, he says, is the songwriting awards he has won in recent years.
“The greatest gift God ever gave me was my songwriting,” he said. “Creating a song is my best talent. That’s the most precious award I have.”
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| 11th October 2006 06:59 AM |
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| Jumping Jack |
He is mostly correct.
You have rap for the blue staters and country for the red staters these days.
ROCK IS DEAD THEY SAY
[Edited by Jumping Jack] |
| 11th October 2006 07:19 AM |
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| corgi37 |
I have to agree with Mr. Keith. Country is the new rock for whiteys. Particularly in the U.S. Rock is still big in Oz, Europe & U.K. We still dish out Jet, Wolfmother, Arctic Monkeys, Oasis (not for long though) where as the best the Yanks can dish out is crap like Sweet Charlotte for the disaffected kids of the celebrity lawyers and gated community real estate agents.
It goes back ages. Think grunge. How many black grunge bands were there? See any black people in a Nirvana clip? Same with 80's U.S. candy metal. Apart from Living Color, i cant think of 1 black band to join the sadly pathetic ranks of Warrant, Ratt, Cinderalla etc. There was a clear divide then, and it is only worse. The attempted amalgamation by the likes of Aerosmith, Run DMC, and the other one (was in Pantera & NWA???) was evidently a one off fluke.
I feel really saddened. Here in Oz, the fans of Jet etc are really just whiteys. Not even Greeks, Italians or even New Zealanders like them. Just honkies. Rap/hip hop, which is tragically and alarmingly now called "RnB", is for anyone and everyone NOT white/Anglo Saxon. The whole "Idol" shit-fest is clearly aimed at this market. The amount of Maori, Islander, indigineous entrants is amazing. Since it began here, only 1 winner was a white honky. The songs chosen are nearly all hip hop/RnB dirge fests. The "a-capella" Pacific Islander thing here is so huge, its frightening.
Normally, i would say "Its times like these, thank God we have the Stones and boy, do we ever need them".
But they are just pure nostalgia. They cant help. It's over. And, the trouble for me is 10 fold, as i fucking despise country music and all it stands for. |
| 11th October 2006 07:20 AM |
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| taz22 |
Who or what the hell is Toby Keith?
Is that some type of food product like Dolly Madison or a Babe Ruth candy bar?? |
| 11th October 2006 07:31 AM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
quote:
taz22 wrote:
Who or what the hell is Toby Keith?
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| 11th October 2006 07:37 AM |
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| M.O.W.A.T. |
You got that right. I see more white people wearing Tupac shirts these days (do they even know who he is???). The sad thing about this is, that yesterday, I saw a twenty-something white kid wearing an aforementioned Tupac shirt wheeling his son around the mall in a stroller (pram, for all you Brits!) and thinking to myself: "There goes another generation which will never experience rock music". |
| 11th October 2006 07:58 AM |
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| F505 |
Toby Keith = Old Bore |
| 11th October 2006 08:37 AM |
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| TampabayStone |
quote:
Jumping Jack wrote:
He is mostly correct.
You have rap for the blue staters and country for the red staters these days.
ROCK IS DEAD THEY SAY
[Edited by Jumping Jack]
That pic is awesome! |
| 11th October 2006 08:45 AM |
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| sirmoonie |
quote:
Ten Thousand Motels wrote:
“Sammy Hagar is a good friend of mine, and when he puts an album out, he has to call it ‘classic rock’ because there’s no rock ’n’ roll format to send it out to. There’s a big void.”
He actually said that and expects to be taken seriously. |
| 11th October 2006 09:14 AM |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
Rock and Roll isn't dead. Not even close.
Commercial Rock and Roll Radio is on life support though.
What Mr. Keith is saying is that if you wanna be a superdupersuperstarmusicmogol type dealie, you gotta go Country because there isn't a big Rock market anymore.
OK, I'll buy that.
But Rock n Roll is still here, and it's as good now as it ever was. The only thing that has happened is that it moved back into the dirty sweaty smokey Rock n Roll clubs, and outta the arenas and stadiums. That's a good thing too, IMO.
I've been to about 20 Rock n Roll shows just this year. Some were just OK, some good, some great. But the one common thread was that it was ROCK N ROLL music being played. Most of it was NEW music. Look, just because it ain't in Rolling Stone or Spin anymore, doesn't mean that it stopped existing! I mean, isn't that what the supposition is here? Just because Rock n Roll isn't in vogue anymore...it's DEAD? That is the most ridiculos notion I've seen in a long while.
Rock n Roll in 2006 is just fine. I know that to be a fact because I've seen it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears. It's still out there, you just have to be willing to go find it now. Yeah, it might take a little effort on your part...but that doesn't mean it's dead. Not by a long shot. |
| 11th October 2006 09:17 AM |
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| egon |
SKANK |
| 11th October 2006 09:53 AM |
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| Steel Wheels |
Never listened to Toby Keith, but he's way off the mark on this one. Sign up for Sirius radio and enjoy the good tunes. Everyday I listen to the blues, jazz, the Stones, everything.
I've been seeing more young urban people wearing Stones tee-shirts too. Strange thing to see, but I like it.
Saw one urban woman wearing a Beatles tee. |
| 11th October 2006 11:15 AM |
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| MikeyC613 |
Urban=Black? |
| 11th October 2006 11:15 AM |
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| MikeyC613 |
And where does that leave Keith Urban? |
| 11th October 2006 11:53 AM |
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| Your Cousin Lou |
Rock isn't dead, but it has been pretty stagnant since the mid 1990's. A lot of kids I see here in New York are getting into the classic bands. |
| 11th October 2006 01:04 PM |
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| mojoman |
toby who? |
| 11th October 2006 01:22 PM |
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| Poplar |
quote:
MikeyC613 wrote:
And where does that leave Keith Urban?
Charged with murder in the 1st degree.
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| 11th October 2006 01:30 PM |
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| Dick Bush |
Well,
What Toby is playing is nothing else but the hillbilly-dressed soft rock. He makes funny videos and good beerdrinking music though.
The groovy, flashy music like rock aint gonna disappear as long as most of us will live for sure, but where the heck are the young guys with real gifts and fresh ideas to replace the Stones, Beatles and Zepps?
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| 11th October 2006 01:33 PM |
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| Jumping Jack |
Toby's shows are louder than The Stones or The Who. |
| 11th October 2006 01:41 PM |
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| nanatod |
quote:
Dick Bush wrote:
but where the heck are the young guys with real gifts and fresh ideas to replace the Stones, Beatles and Zepps?
Jim James and his band, My Morning Jacket
Jerry Joseph and the Jackmormons
Robert Randolph and the Family Band
Dresden Dolls
The Frames
Raconteurs
Cold War Kids
Ozomatli |
| 11th October 2006 01:58 PM |
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| danielharris627 |
Ahh i just think music as a whole is dead now. New band wise. |
| 11th October 2006 02:13 PM |
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| rollmops |
Yeah Rock and Roll will Never Die! As long as thousands of kids, musicians all over the world are playing that music in garages, small clubs it is fine to me. Rock and roll is not(only) about selling millions of cds or making millions of $$$. It is still the most exciting music to be played nowaday, I believe. Listen to the last Jerry lee Lewis altough it may not sell as much as Tobi's last one, it is surely 10 times better.
Rock and roll,
Mops |
| 11th October 2006 02:36 PM |
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| MrPleasant |
Bush is dead? |
| 11th October 2006 02:50 PM |
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| SheRat |
Toby Keith can suck my motherfucking clit.
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| 11th October 2006 02:55 PM |
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| Dick Bush |
quote:
SheRat wrote:
Toby Keith can suck my motherfucking clit.
Sorry, but the fat, balding hillbilly is being very busy these days... Would you please ask someone else to do that favor to you? |
| 11th October 2006 03:20 PM |
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| SheRat |
quote:
Dick Bush wrote:
Sorry, but the fat, balding hillbilly is being very busy these days... Would you please ask someone else to do that favor to you?
It's not a "favor" to me, there, Sparky, but the whole of human kind.
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| 11th October 2006 03:27 PM |
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| monkey_man |
quote:
SheRat wrote:
It's not a "favor" to me, there, Sparky, but the whole of human kind.
LOL!! |
| 11th October 2006 03:40 PM |
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| Dick Bush |
quote:
SheRat wrote:
It's not a "favor" to me, there, Sparky, but the whole of human kind.
That looks like a real bitch jaw, wow! I gues it makes it feel like blowing, if you know what I mean. Honey, you're really a mighty girl, no, really!!
I'll think about doing you what you need so desperately. |
| 11th October 2006 04:04 PM |
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| keefjunkie |
anyone who agrees with this dumbass is a dumbass as well. |
| 11th October 2006 04:15 PM |
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| SheRat |
quote:
Dick Bush wrote:
That looks like a real bitch jaw, wow! I gues it makes it feel like blowing, if you know what I mean. Honey, you're really a mighty girl, no, really!!
I'll think about doing you what you need so desperately.
Cocaine is a hell of a drug!
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