Why?
To complete the series WHO-WHAT-WHERE-WHEN-HOW, we need to consider "WHY". I left that one for last because, in my mind, it is the the most mysterious. It's relatively easy to know who, or what, when or where, but it is sometimes very perplexing to understand "WHY". Why are we here? Why is the sky blue? Why is the alphabet in that order? Is it because of the song?
For as long as man has thought about anything, he has wondered "Why?" "Why" is an instrument of change. Often in history, someone has thought WHY are we doing this the hard way? WHY don't we make it easier, faster, stronger, better? WHY do we treat each other the way we do? WHY can't we all just get along?
Billy Joel must have gotten exasperated because he wrote "Don't Ask Me Why". Norah Jones seemed sincere when she sang "Don't Know Why". The Eagles were clearly hiding something when they said "I Can't Tell You Why".
Usually, however, songwriters who ask "Why?" are trying to understand the reason why their love has left them or some other crisis that has been brought on by love. According to the Drive-By Truckers in their great song "A World of Hurt", "...to love is to feel pain." That certainly seems to be the case in so many songs bearing the word "Why".
Annie Lennox simply wanted to know "Why?". George Jones pleaded "Why Baby Why?" Alicia Keys asked, "Why Do I Feel So Sad?" "Why Don't You Love Me?", asked Hank Williams. "Why Do Fools Fall In Love?", queried Frankie Lymon. Kris Kristofferson wondered "Why Me Lord?" And most plaintive of all, Weird Al Yankovic asked "Why Does This Always Happen To Me?" I Guess that's WHY they call it the Blues.
Somehow, we are able to overcome the sadness. I guess we ask ourselves, WHY do I have to feel so bad? "Why Can't This Be Love?", asked Van Halen. "Why Can't We Be Friends?", wondered War. In a more jaunty mood, the Beatles asked "Why Don't We Do It In The Road?" and, one of my all-time favorites, Jimmy Buffett romantically asked "Why Don't We Get Drunk?".
So if you're sad, turn your frown upside down and smile. To smile every day, just listen to some great music.
Just like the James Taylor song, "That's WHY I'm Here".
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
How do I work this?
How?
Trying to figure out something. Searching for the mechanism. Determining the process.
A lot of songs, many by female artists, ask "How?" How do I get that man? How do I keep that man? How do I tell that man to go away?
"How Will I Know?", asked Whitney Houston. "How Can I Be Sure?", asked Dusty Springfield.
"How Can I Make You?", Linda Ronstadt wondered. "How Do I Live?", Trisha Yearwood asked sadly.
A lot of songs, in turn, by male artists, also ask "How?" How did I let her do this to me? "How Do You Mend a Broken Heart?", lamented the Bee Gees. "How's It Gonna Be?", asked Third Eye Blind. "How Do You Think It Feels?", pondered Lou Reed. And one that many of us men can relate to, "How Could I Be Such A Fool?" inquired Frank Zappa.
How. How can this happen? Lisa Loeb wrote a song simply called "How". In matters of the heart, there are generally more questions than answers.
On a happy note, Toby Keith triumphantly boasts "How Do You Like Me Now?". So it's not all bad.
Except for Junior in the song by Mofro entitled, "HOW Junior Got His Head Put Out".
How do I end this?
Trying to figure out something. Searching for the mechanism. Determining the process.
A lot of songs, many by female artists, ask "How?" How do I get that man? How do I keep that man? How do I tell that man to go away?
"How Will I Know?", asked Whitney Houston. "How Can I Be Sure?", asked Dusty Springfield.
"How Can I Make You?", Linda Ronstadt wondered. "How Do I Live?", Trisha Yearwood asked sadly.
A lot of songs, in turn, by male artists, also ask "How?" How did I let her do this to me? "How Do You Mend a Broken Heart?", lamented the Bee Gees. "How's It Gonna Be?", asked Third Eye Blind. "How Do You Think It Feels?", pondered Lou Reed. And one that many of us men can relate to, "How Could I Be Such A Fool?" inquired Frank Zappa.
How. How can this happen? Lisa Loeb wrote a song simply called "How". In matters of the heart, there are generally more questions than answers.
On a happy note, Toby Keith triumphantly boasts "How Do You Like Me Now?". So it's not all bad.
Except for Junior in the song by Mofro entitled, "HOW Junior Got His Head Put Out".
How do I end this?
Thursday, August 27, 2009
A sphincter says WHAT????
What?
A simple word, expressing curiosity or longing to know the answer.
Marvin Gaye wanted to know "What's Goin' On?"
Elvis Costello mused "What's So Funny about Peace, Love and Understanding?"
Louis Armstrong showed us "What A Wonderful World" it could be.
These songs ask us to think about WHAT we can do be make the world a better place.
Others have posed more immediate and personal questions. Ray Charles asked "What'd I Say?" R.E.M. queried, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?". The Buzzcocks wanted to know "What Do I Get?" Lyle Lovett was curious when he asked "What Do You Do?" Snoop Dogg asked "What's My Name?"
Tom Jones had to know "What's Up Pussycat?"
A lot of questions. Any answers?
Yes. Gary P. Nunn tells us quite plainly "What I Like About Texas", just as Bob Wills told us "That's What I Like About The South." Genesis said "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" and the Romantics state most clearly "What I Like About You".
Most of us know WHAT we like, and have a great longing to know WHAT it's all about.
Like U2, "I Still Haven't Found WHAT I'm Looking For".
A simple word, expressing curiosity or longing to know the answer.
Marvin Gaye wanted to know "What's Goin' On?"
Elvis Costello mused "What's So Funny about Peace, Love and Understanding?"
Louis Armstrong showed us "What A Wonderful World" it could be.
These songs ask us to think about WHAT we can do be make the world a better place.
Others have posed more immediate and personal questions. Ray Charles asked "What'd I Say?" R.E.M. queried, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?". The Buzzcocks wanted to know "What Do I Get?" Lyle Lovett was curious when he asked "What Do You Do?" Snoop Dogg asked "What's My Name?"
Tom Jones had to know "What's Up Pussycat?"
A lot of questions. Any answers?
Yes. Gary P. Nunn tells us quite plainly "What I Like About Texas", just as Bob Wills told us "That's What I Like About The South." Genesis said "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" and the Romantics state most clearly "What I Like About You".
Most of us know WHAT we like, and have a great longing to know WHAT it's all about.
Like U2, "I Still Haven't Found WHAT I'm Looking For".
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
As Time Goes By
"Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" was one of Chicago's first great songs. Music and Time are tightly intertwined. Often, when you hear an old song on the radio, or on your iPod, you are immediately transported back to WHEN you first heard it.
Continuing the theme of "Who-What-When-Where-Why-and How", today we will consider WHEN.
Music marks the times of our lives. Chances are, you may not be listening to the same type of music you did WHEN you were a child. Sometimes those songs are fun to revisit. Sometimes you get a legitimate opportunity to revisit them. For instance, despite the fact that there are many great artists producing Children's Songs these days (e.g. Laurie Berkner, The Wiggles, Lisa Loeb and even Barenaked Ladies), one of the best of that genre is Raffi. Listen to the words of Raffi's "The More We Get Together" which proclaim "...your friends are my friends, and my friends are your friends; the more we get together, the happier we'll be." If the whole world would just embrace that sentiment, what a wonderful world this would be. My reason for mentioning it is that my daughter and I listened to Raffi when she was a child, and now we are listening to Raffi again with her child. Music connects us through the ages.
"WHEN You Wish Upon A Star", sung by Jiminy Cricket, is a hopeful song, but it is a sad song for me because that tune was played for some inexplicable reason at my grandfather's funeral. I was young and I loved my grandfather very much and did not understand why he had to go away. To this day, when I hear that beautiful song, I am instantly sad.
When will I be happy? "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)", sang Judy Garland and many others. "When Doves Cry", said Prince. "When I Paint My Masterpiece", said Bob Dylan. "When Grandma Played the Banjo", said Roy Wood. "When I'm Sixty-four", said Lennon & McCartney. "When Big Joan Sets Up", said Captain Beefheart. "When I Come Around", said Green Day. "When Love Comes To Town", said U2.
When will I be sad? "When the Levee Breaks", said Led Zeppelin. And especially, "When the Music's Over", said the Doors.
"Remember When?", asked Alan Jackson. I remember it like it was today. "Time Has Come Today", said the Chambers Brothers. "He Stopped Loving Her Today", said George Jones. "I Saw God Today", said George Strait. "Today Your Love, Tomorrow The World", yelled the Ramones. When will it happen? I hope it's now. "How Soon Is Now?", asked the Smiths. "Sooner or Later", said the Grass Roots.
For now, it's "Closing Time", said Lyle Lovett.
Willie chimes in..."Ain't It Funny, How Time Slips Away".
Continuing the theme of "Who-What-When-Where-Why-and How", today we will consider WHEN.
Music marks the times of our lives. Chances are, you may not be listening to the same type of music you did WHEN you were a child. Sometimes those songs are fun to revisit. Sometimes you get a legitimate opportunity to revisit them. For instance, despite the fact that there are many great artists producing Children's Songs these days (e.g. Laurie Berkner, The Wiggles, Lisa Loeb and even Barenaked Ladies), one of the best of that genre is Raffi. Listen to the words of Raffi's "The More We Get Together" which proclaim "...your friends are my friends, and my friends are your friends; the more we get together, the happier we'll be." If the whole world would just embrace that sentiment, what a wonderful world this would be. My reason for mentioning it is that my daughter and I listened to Raffi when she was a child, and now we are listening to Raffi again with her child. Music connects us through the ages.
"WHEN You Wish Upon A Star", sung by Jiminy Cricket, is a hopeful song, but it is a sad song for me because that tune was played for some inexplicable reason at my grandfather's funeral. I was young and I loved my grandfather very much and did not understand why he had to go away. To this day, when I hear that beautiful song, I am instantly sad.
When will I be happy? "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)", sang Judy Garland and many others. "When Doves Cry", said Prince. "When I Paint My Masterpiece", said Bob Dylan. "When Grandma Played the Banjo", said Roy Wood. "When I'm Sixty-four", said Lennon & McCartney. "When Big Joan Sets Up", said Captain Beefheart. "When I Come Around", said Green Day. "When Love Comes To Town", said U2.
When will I be sad? "When the Levee Breaks", said Led Zeppelin. And especially, "When the Music's Over", said the Doors.
"Remember When?", asked Alan Jackson. I remember it like it was today. "Time Has Come Today", said the Chambers Brothers. "He Stopped Loving Her Today", said George Jones. "I Saw God Today", said George Strait. "Today Your Love, Tomorrow The World", yelled the Ramones. When will it happen? I hope it's now. "How Soon Is Now?", asked the Smiths. "Sooner or Later", said the Grass Roots.
For now, it's "Closing Time", said Lyle Lovett.
Willie chimes in..."Ain't It Funny, How Time Slips Away".
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Who Can It Be Now?
Every night, as I sit on my patio deck, I hear an owl. He keeps asking, "WHO ?"
A lot of songs ask WHO. A great tune by the Who asks "Who Are You?" Many artists have asked "Who Do You Love?" The Baha Men wanted to know "Who Let the Dogs Out?"
Who are we, anyway?
Smokey Robinson said that you should "Be Who You Are". Frank Zappa said "You Are What You Is".
The Sweethearts of the Rodeo said "I Know Who You Are", and Bjork said "I See Who You Are".
The Texas Tornadoes wanted to know "Who Were You Thinkin' Of (When We Were Makin' Love)?"
Toby Keith wanted to know "Who's Your Daddy?"
Tracy Lawrence said, in times of need, you will "Find Out Who Your Friends Are".
As Beck asked: Q: Who Are You? A: I'm the Enchanting Wizard of Rhythm.
Who are you? "You Are My Sunshine".
Who are we? Let's see...
I am the Walrus.
He ain't heavy, he's my brother.
She's a bad mama jama.
They might be giants.
We are the world.
A lot of songs ask WHO. A great tune by the Who asks "Who Are You?" Many artists have asked "Who Do You Love?" The Baha Men wanted to know "Who Let the Dogs Out?"
Who are we, anyway?
Smokey Robinson said that you should "Be Who You Are". Frank Zappa said "You Are What You Is".
The Sweethearts of the Rodeo said "I Know Who You Are", and Bjork said "I See Who You Are".
The Texas Tornadoes wanted to know "Who Were You Thinkin' Of (When We Were Makin' Love)?"
Toby Keith wanted to know "Who's Your Daddy?"
Tracy Lawrence said, in times of need, you will "Find Out Who Your Friends Are".
As Beck asked: Q: Who Are You? A: I'm the Enchanting Wizard of Rhythm.
Who are you? "You Are My Sunshine".
Who are we? Let's see...
I am the Walrus.
He ain't heavy, he's my brother.
She's a bad mama jama.
They might be giants.
We are the world.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Start Spreadin' the News
Journalism 101 teaches us that a good newswriter should include the following in every story:
WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHY and HOW
Music is like the News. It reports on our human condition. "Sad Songs Say So Much" or "I Just Want to Celebrate". It tells us about our worlds; inner and outer worlds; and the space between us. In my blogs, I want to bring you the GOOD NEWS. Music gives us the good news everyday; all we have to do listen. Great music compels us to do more than listen, but also to act.
Because I don't subscribe to the idea of doing things in a linear fashion, I am not going to illustrate how songs give us the "WHO-WHAT-WHEN-WHERE-WHY-HOW" in that order. Today, I am going to start with WHERE. Where am I and where are you? Where have we been and where are we going?
WHERE SONGS:
The ultimate where song is Johnny Cash's "I've Been Everywhere", but a close runner-up is the classic song "Route 66". It literally follows the map along Route 66, taking us from Chicago to Los Angeles, passing through St.Louis, Joplin, Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Gallup, Flagstaff, Winona, Kingman, Barstow and San Bernadino.
"Is Anybody Going to San Antone?" "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" "Please Come to Boston" because "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."
Some songs are so certain about WHERE they are. "Houston" by Dean Martin, "Omaha" by the Counting Crows, "London" by the Smiths, "Miami" by Will Smith, "New York New York" by Sinatra, and "Gary Indiana" by Little Ronnie Howard. Of course, let's not forget "La Grange" by ZZ Top.
Wherever you are, and wherever you are going, keep Music with you and you will never be lost.
WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHY and HOW
Music is like the News. It reports on our human condition. "Sad Songs Say So Much" or "I Just Want to Celebrate". It tells us about our worlds; inner and outer worlds; and the space between us. In my blogs, I want to bring you the GOOD NEWS. Music gives us the good news everyday; all we have to do listen. Great music compels us to do more than listen, but also to act.
Because I don't subscribe to the idea of doing things in a linear fashion, I am not going to illustrate how songs give us the "WHO-WHAT-WHEN-WHERE-WHY-HOW" in that order. Today, I am going to start with WHERE. Where am I and where are you? Where have we been and where are we going?
WHERE SONGS:
The ultimate where song is Johnny Cash's "I've Been Everywhere", but a close runner-up is the classic song "Route 66". It literally follows the map along Route 66, taking us from Chicago to Los Angeles, passing through St.Louis, Joplin, Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Gallup, Flagstaff, Winona, Kingman, Barstow and San Bernadino.
"Is Anybody Going to San Antone?" "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" "Please Come to Boston" because "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."
Some songs are so certain about WHERE they are. "Houston" by Dean Martin, "Omaha" by the Counting Crows, "London" by the Smiths, "Miami" by Will Smith, "New York New York" by Sinatra, and "Gary Indiana" by Little Ronnie Howard. Of course, let's not forget "La Grange" by ZZ Top.
Wherever you are, and wherever you are going, keep Music with you and you will never be lost.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Huevos Rancheros Rock!
I live in San Antonio. It's a great city of Living History. We have our links to the past, the Alamo, the Missions, La Villita, the River Walk. At the same time, we are ALIVE, in the present tense, letting our history serve as a backdrop to our current achievements and future dreams.
This morning, I had huevos rancheros at Mi Tierra, a San Antonio landmark restaurant with a long history of serving great food and great memories. As I enjoyed my breakfast, as I have done so many times before, I thought about they have maintained their high quality through the years. That's why I, and so many others, keep coming back.
It made me think about my favorite Live Rock Albums. Why do I keep returning to them over the years for another listen? Because they captured something special, a moment of greatness, preserved forever, to enjoy again and again. Just like my huevos rancheros, which were as excellent this morning and they were 20 years ago and, I suspect, they will be 20 years from now.
When you think of live rock albums, you may think "Frampton Comes Alive", "Woodstock" (or possibly some of my favorites, like Lou Reed's "Rock and Roll Animal" or the first benefit rock concert "Concert for Bangladesh"). I am sure that you have your favorites. Live albums are designed to be something like a souvenir for the fans; something to keep as a remembrance of good times.
Here are some of my favorite LIVE ROCK albums of the past few decades:
1970's
Rolling Stones - Get Your Ya-Ya's Out (1970)
Led Zeppelin - The Song Remains the Same (1976)
Genesis - Seconds Out (1977)
1980's
U2 - Under a Blood Red Sky (1983)
Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense (1984)
George Thorogood - Live (1986)
1990's
The Band - The Last Waltz (1990)
Nirvana - MTV Unplugged in New York (1994)
Pearl Jam - Live on Two Legs (1998)
2000's
Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band - Live in New York City (2001) - which contains a spectacular version of "Land of Hope and Dreams"
U2 - Go Home/Live from Slane Castle Ireland (2007)
Kings of Leon - Live at the O2 - to be released October 13, 2009 - if the record is anything like the YouTube videos from their June 2009 shows at London's O2 arena, it should be amazing. Just like my huevos rancheros this morning.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Tree of Rock
I am a scientist. I like classifying things. Just like with all living things, there is taxonomy for rock music. You may remember from your Biology class that animals are classified into the following groups: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus & Species. You can remember the order of those groups by using a couple of different mnemonic aides, "King Penguins Congregate On Frozen Ground Sometimes", or "Keep Pond Clean Or Frogs Get Sick".
The folks who classify music into different genres and sub-genres, keep dividing and sub-dividing groups into their respective categories too. For instance, did you know that Punk Music now has separate categories of punk: Punk Rock, Pop Punk, Post-Punk Revival, Dance Punk, and so on. A lot of this sub-dividing has happened since the 1990's, when Heavy Metal was sub-divided into Speed Metal, Nu Metal and Metalcore.
Just as all the various life forms on earth have their own niches on land, sea and air, Rock Music has a myriad of forms, filled with great bands, all trying to survive and grow. Every once in awhile a new mutation comes along. Those with survival value will thrive and give rise to others like themselves. Hail to the mutants!
The folks who classify music into different genres and sub-genres, keep dividing and sub-dividing groups into their respective categories too. For instance, did you know that Punk Music now has separate categories of punk: Punk Rock, Pop Punk, Post-Punk Revival, Dance Punk, and so on. A lot of this sub-dividing has happened since the 1990's, when Heavy Metal was sub-divided into Speed Metal, Nu Metal and Metalcore.
Just as all the various life forms on earth have their own niches on land, sea and air, Rock Music has a myriad of forms, filled with great bands, all trying to survive and grow. Every once in awhile a new mutation comes along. Those with survival value will thrive and give rise to others like themselves. Hail to the mutants!
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
A Brief Shining Moment
"Are you ready, Steve? Aha.
Andy? Yeah!
Mick? OK.
Alright, fellas, let's go!"
That's the beginning to "Ballroom Blitz" by the group The Sweet. You may recall that it was played by Wayne's girlfriend's band in the movie "Wayne's World". The original was a catchy little tune from a campy genre known as Glam Rock, sometimes also called Glitter Rock. Glam rock started in the U.K., presumably in response to boredom with the Woodstock Generation. Glam rock musicians frequently resembled drag queens with guitars. They had bright flamboyant costumes, heavy eye makeup, outrageous hairstyles, theatrics, and a penchant for high heeled boots.
One particularly influential glam rock band was Slade. Gene Simmons points to Slade as one of his primary inspirations for Kiss, who also like dressing up and exhibiting their own distinct brand of theatrics. Slade was also known for intentionally misspelling their song titles. You may recall that the 80's rock band Quiet Riot had a couple of hits with covers of Slade songs "Cum On Feel the Noize" and "Mama Weer All Crazee Now".
Another purveyor of glam was Gary Glitter. His legacy lives on perennially at football games when High School Bands play Gary's immortal classic "Rock and Roll, Part 2", while crazed fans chant "Hey!" along with the chorus.
My three favorite Glam Rock bands were:
1) David Bowie (Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars)
2) Mott the Hoople
3) T. Rex
David Bowie is one of the few survivors of glam rock because he continued to develop new and interesting music, morphing from Ziggy to the Thin White Duke, to establish himself as the Godfather of Alternative Music. His influence is everywhere. During the glam rock era, Bowie penned a tune called "All the Young Dudes" and shared it with another of my favorite glam rock bands, Mott the Hoople. Evidence of glam rock's eschewing music of the 60's is found in the lyrics to "All the Young Dudes" which said "...my brother's back at home with his Beatles and his Stones; We never got it off on that Revolution stuff; What a Drag...". Like Slade, Mott the Hoople really ROCKED. They had some stellar tunes, like "Jerkin' Crocus", "One of the Boys", "All the Way to Memphis" and, as a solo artist, lead singer Ian Hunter wrote one of my all-time favorite rock tunes "Once Bitten Twice Shy"; still a staple on Classic Rock radio stations.
T. Rex were in a class by themselves. Marc Bolan of T. Rex, who died at 29 in a car crash, wrote the immortal "Bang a Gong (Get It On)". Listen closely to T. Rex songs and you will hear them paying tribute to the early Rock and Roll masters, like Chuck Berry. Basic rock riffs were the launching pad from which T. Rex blasted their glam rock masterpieces into outer space. For those of you who may be less familiar with T. Rex, I recommend you download their albums "Electric Warrior" and "The Slider". Their lyrics are deceptively simple, almost Dr. Seuss-ian, in nature, as in the song "Telegram Sam" wherein Bolan speaks of various characters known as "golden nose slim, purple pie pete and jungle faced jake".
Glam rock may be gone from the radio, but it is playing in the background of our lives. In the movie "Juno", reference is made to Mott the Hoople, and young Juno thinks that "All the Young Dudes" is decent. And Madison Avenue has certainly embraced Glam Rock. In 1991, Levi's jeans had a commercially starring Brad Pitt with T. Rex's "20th Century Boy" playing in the background. It was also used in a 2002 Mitsubishi commercial. If you turn on your TV right now, you might see the Mastercard commercial showing Marlon Brando, Carlos Santana, John Wayne and the Ramones, all wearing jeans, while David Bowie's "Jean Genie" seals the deal.
Monday, August 17, 2009
More than Meets the Ear
Remember the commercial slogan “There’s no single cheese like Velveeta, ’cause Velveeta is more than one single cheese." Rock & Roll is like that.
Back in the 1950's, Rock & Roll was mostly what we now call Rockabilly. Then in the 1960's, British Bands like the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, Cream and Led Zeppelin blended in the Blues, and Rock & Roll started to have a new flavor. While most bands only gave us a few flavors, the Beatles gave us an entire banquet. Real "Rock Music" was started by the Who. They played loud. They had something interesting to say and they wanted to be heard over the background noise. Because of these pioneers, Rock music now has endless possibilities.
Because a daily blog requires me to come up with something new to write about everyday, I will spend the next few blogs exploring various sub-categories of Rock music. Some have come and gone and some are still around. Let's get started.
Today's Category: PROGRESSIVE ROCK
Name your 3 favorite Progressive Rock Bands: _______, _______, _______.
Mine are: Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd. I'll tell you why in a minute.
Of course, I could have also mentioned other great bands like Yes, the Moody Blues, King Crimson, Wishbone Ash, Tangerine Dream, Utopia, Genesis or even newer groups like Dream Theatre or Mars Volta. What do all these bands have in common? They elevate Rock music to a higher level of artistic sensibility.
Back to my Top Three: Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP) channeled Classical Music through synthesizers and stacks of amplifiers. They turned Mussorgsky's "Pictures At An Exhibition" into poetic rock majestry. I remember playing their album "Brain Salad Surgery" over and over and over until the grooves on the LP were worn away. ELP had a knack for picking up classical themes and, like alchemists, created music that was vital and accessible to a new audience. And they ROCKED!
Jethro Tull, album after album, created compelling music with complexity and grandeur. Everyone knows their classic "Aqualung", but I suggest you give a listen to their other masterworks, "Thick As A Brick" or "War Child". I remember bringing my "War Child" LP to my college English professor and asking him to really listen to it. He became a Jethro Tull fan and occasionally made reference to their lyrics in class. Crazy.
Finally, Pink Floyd. "Dark Side of the Moon" is the Progressive Rock Bible. "Wish You Were Here", their tribute to their madcap genius founder Syd Barrett, was also a commercial and critical masterpiece. Some of my friends say that "The Wall" was overrated. Oh well, I liked it anyway. Plus, I also really like "Animals" because I got the concept when I was a kid, and today I understand its deeper meanings, because of a lifetime of employment in a territorial dog-eat-dog, submit-to-the-alpha-monkey existence. I think it is time for me to go listen to "One of These Days" and dance with the little people.
Back in the 1950's, Rock & Roll was mostly what we now call Rockabilly. Then in the 1960's, British Bands like the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, Cream and Led Zeppelin blended in the Blues, and Rock & Roll started to have a new flavor. While most bands only gave us a few flavors, the Beatles gave us an entire banquet. Real "Rock Music" was started by the Who. They played loud. They had something interesting to say and they wanted to be heard over the background noise. Because of these pioneers, Rock music now has endless possibilities.
Because a daily blog requires me to come up with something new to write about everyday, I will spend the next few blogs exploring various sub-categories of Rock music. Some have come and gone and some are still around. Let's get started.
Today's Category: PROGRESSIVE ROCK
Name your 3 favorite Progressive Rock Bands: _______, _______, _______.
Mine are: Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd. I'll tell you why in a minute.
Of course, I could have also mentioned other great bands like Yes, the Moody Blues, King Crimson, Wishbone Ash, Tangerine Dream, Utopia, Genesis or even newer groups like Dream Theatre or Mars Volta. What do all these bands have in common? They elevate Rock music to a higher level of artistic sensibility.
Back to my Top Three: Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP) channeled Classical Music through synthesizers and stacks of amplifiers. They turned Mussorgsky's "Pictures At An Exhibition" into poetic rock majestry. I remember playing their album "Brain Salad Surgery" over and over and over until the grooves on the LP were worn away. ELP had a knack for picking up classical themes and, like alchemists, created music that was vital and accessible to a new audience. And they ROCKED!
Jethro Tull, album after album, created compelling music with complexity and grandeur. Everyone knows their classic "Aqualung", but I suggest you give a listen to their other masterworks, "Thick As A Brick" or "War Child". I remember bringing my "War Child" LP to my college English professor and asking him to really listen to it. He became a Jethro Tull fan and occasionally made reference to their lyrics in class. Crazy.
Finally, Pink Floyd. "Dark Side of the Moon" is the Progressive Rock Bible. "Wish You Were Here", their tribute to their madcap genius founder Syd Barrett, was also a commercial and critical masterpiece. Some of my friends say that "The Wall" was overrated. Oh well, I liked it anyway. Plus, I also really like "Animals" because I got the concept when I was a kid, and today I understand its deeper meanings, because of a lifetime of employment in a territorial dog-eat-dog, submit-to-the-alpha-monkey existence. I think it is time for me to go listen to "One of These Days" and dance with the little people.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
What Woodstock Means To Me
This weekend celebrates the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. I did not attend, but it still is a big part of my life. Why?
I grew up in a small Texas town. My mother worked in a small hamburger joint called the "Dairy Mart" and it had a juke box. Because I was hanging around the Dairy Mart all the time, I heard the songs on the jukebox and paid attention. The guy who loaded the new 45's into the jukebox was really cool and always made sure there was great Rock & Roll for the kids. The first time I heard "Whole Lotta Love" and "Pinball Wizard" was on that jukebox. Back in the day, before iTunes, before MTV, there was this great thing called RADIO. Unfortunately, in my small town, the radio station played only Farm Reports and Polka music. I tried to tune in stations from the big cities, but the reception was poor. Sometimes, late at night, I would get a good signal, and I would hear strange things like The Velvet Underground or the Mothers of Invention. They intrigued me.
I would go visit my friend Paul and listen to Bubblegum Rock. One day, his older sister burst into the room, handed us a copy of the Jimi Hendrix album "Are You Experienced?" and said, "This is what you should be listening to!". That day, I paid attention.
Back at the Dairy Mart, the older kids would sit in the booths near the jukebox and occasionally talk to me. They tolerated me because I was a goofball and because I knew the songs we were all listening to together. The songs mattered. The songs helped us get through tough times. The Vietnam War was going on and its effects reached into our small town. Good boys I knew from the Dairy Mart were suddenly gone. I distinctly remember asking the girls with the over-hairsprayed bouffants and mini-skirts something like "Where's Jimmy? He never comes around anymore." They said, "Jimmy was killed in Viet Nam". It made me sad. It made me mad.
We heard about the war every night on the evening news and they would tally up how many young people had died. It seemed to go on forever and I wondered whether I was going to be one of them. To me, it seemed like the whole world was crazy. The people who preached peace, justice and equality were being killed. First MLK then Bobby Kennedy. Our country was in flames and no one seemed interested in putting out the fire. I was paying attention.
I noticed that there were these long-haired kids, often wearing head bands and love beads, with flowers and flags sewn onto their jeans, flashing the Peace Sign, and smoking interesting-smelly cigarettes in the back booths at the Dairy Mart. I talked to them too, and they had some very interesting ideas. It seemed to me that they would rather party than kill me. "Make Love Not War" seemed like a really good idea to me then. Still does.
A lot of these long-haired kids, referred to as "Hippies", decided that they ought to attend this big music festival called Woodstock. There was going to be a lot of good bands there, like Jefferson Airplane, Canned Heat and Jimi Hendrix. Just like the people in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" who had an encounter felt compelled to make the trek to Devil's Tower to be with the aliens, the Hippies had to make the trek to Yasgur's Farm because SOMETHING IMPORTANT was going to happen there.
What happened, 40 years ago, was a great party with some extraordinary music. Peace and Love and Music intertwined over that weekend and if was a defining moment. Rock and Roll could change the world. That was the awakening.
It all fascinated me so much that I read everthing I could find about the "counterculture", started dressing like my Hippie Heroes, and kept paying attention. The music permeated my soul and it resides there still. The MESSAGE of the music is PEACE AND LOVE IS BETTER THAN WAR AND HATRED.
Are you paying attention?
I grew up in a small Texas town. My mother worked in a small hamburger joint called the "Dairy Mart" and it had a juke box. Because I was hanging around the Dairy Mart all the time, I heard the songs on the jukebox and paid attention. The guy who loaded the new 45's into the jukebox was really cool and always made sure there was great Rock & Roll for the kids. The first time I heard "Whole Lotta Love" and "Pinball Wizard" was on that jukebox. Back in the day, before iTunes, before MTV, there was this great thing called RADIO. Unfortunately, in my small town, the radio station played only Farm Reports and Polka music. I tried to tune in stations from the big cities, but the reception was poor. Sometimes, late at night, I would get a good signal, and I would hear strange things like The Velvet Underground or the Mothers of Invention. They intrigued me.
I would go visit my friend Paul and listen to Bubblegum Rock. One day, his older sister burst into the room, handed us a copy of the Jimi Hendrix album "Are You Experienced?" and said, "This is what you should be listening to!". That day, I paid attention.
Back at the Dairy Mart, the older kids would sit in the booths near the jukebox and occasionally talk to me. They tolerated me because I was a goofball and because I knew the songs we were all listening to together. The songs mattered. The songs helped us get through tough times. The Vietnam War was going on and its effects reached into our small town. Good boys I knew from the Dairy Mart were suddenly gone. I distinctly remember asking the girls with the over-hairsprayed bouffants and mini-skirts something like "Where's Jimmy? He never comes around anymore." They said, "Jimmy was killed in Viet Nam". It made me sad. It made me mad.
We heard about the war every night on the evening news and they would tally up how many young people had died. It seemed to go on forever and I wondered whether I was going to be one of them. To me, it seemed like the whole world was crazy. The people who preached peace, justice and equality were being killed. First MLK then Bobby Kennedy. Our country was in flames and no one seemed interested in putting out the fire. I was paying attention.
I noticed that there were these long-haired kids, often wearing head bands and love beads, with flowers and flags sewn onto their jeans, flashing the Peace Sign, and smoking interesting-smelly cigarettes in the back booths at the Dairy Mart. I talked to them too, and they had some very interesting ideas. It seemed to me that they would rather party than kill me. "Make Love Not War" seemed like a really good idea to me then. Still does.
A lot of these long-haired kids, referred to as "Hippies", decided that they ought to attend this big music festival called Woodstock. There was going to be a lot of good bands there, like Jefferson Airplane, Canned Heat and Jimi Hendrix. Just like the people in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" who had an encounter felt compelled to make the trek to Devil's Tower to be with the aliens, the Hippies had to make the trek to Yasgur's Farm because SOMETHING IMPORTANT was going to happen there.
What happened, 40 years ago, was a great party with some extraordinary music. Peace and Love and Music intertwined over that weekend and if was a defining moment. Rock and Roll could change the world. That was the awakening.
It all fascinated me so much that I read everthing I could find about the "counterculture", started dressing like my Hippie Heroes, and kept paying attention. The music permeated my soul and it resides there still. The MESSAGE of the music is PEACE AND LOVE IS BETTER THAN WAR AND HATRED.
Are you paying attention?
Friday, August 14, 2009
Enough with the "Staycations" Already
Every year, new words get added to the dictionary, like "frenemy", "locavore" and "webisode" and it seems to me that the big winner this year was "STAYCATION", meaning to stay near home on your vacation, presumably because of the financial crisis of recent years. I'm cool with that. But now there are even crazier derivatives of STAYCATION popping up everywhere. I have seen "Daycation", or a one-day vacation; kind of like the Beatles "Daytripper" of old. The other day I saw "Naycation" which was meant to imply abstinence from any vacation whatsoever. Dumb.
What I saw driving to work this morning was the stupidest incarnation of STAYCATION. It was on a billboard for a local taco restaurant. It said "Take a Taco-cation". The billboard went on to ask, "Why go out of town this summer when you can put paradise in your belly?
Had the billboard not explained what "Taco-cation" was, I would have been very confused. Because I am a scientist by trade, I know that "cations" are positively-charged ions. For a brief moment, I thought the restaurant was selling some sort of new electrically charged or magnetic taco. For me, it was good that they explained that EATING TACOS COULD SUBSTITUTE FOR GOING ON VACATION. Are they kidding me? I really love tacos, but if I have to resort to eating tacos to enjoy some vacation time, just let me put a gun to my head right now.
When I think of VACATION, I don't immediately think about tacos. I think about Vegas, or NYC, or the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone, or even Italy. I don't think...hmm...crispy or puffy?
When I think of VACATION, I think about the Griswalds making the trek to Wally World, and Clark punching the moose and freaking out. I also think about the Go-Go's water-skiing in their video for "Vacation".
I don't know about you, but I need a vacation.
What I saw driving to work this morning was the stupidest incarnation of STAYCATION. It was on a billboard for a local taco restaurant. It said "Take a Taco-cation". The billboard went on to ask, "Why go out of town this summer when you can put paradise in your belly?
Had the billboard not explained what "Taco-cation" was, I would have been very confused. Because I am a scientist by trade, I know that "cations" are positively-charged ions. For a brief moment, I thought the restaurant was selling some sort of new electrically charged or magnetic taco. For me, it was good that they explained that EATING TACOS COULD SUBSTITUTE FOR GOING ON VACATION. Are they kidding me? I really love tacos, but if I have to resort to eating tacos to enjoy some vacation time, just let me put a gun to my head right now.
When I think of VACATION, I don't immediately think about tacos. I think about Vegas, or NYC, or the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone, or even Italy. I don't think...hmm...crispy or puffy?
When I think of VACATION, I think about the Griswalds making the trek to Wally World, and Clark punching the moose and freaking out. I also think about the Go-Go's water-skiing in their video for "Vacation".
I don't know about you, but I need a vacation.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Rainy Day, Dream Away
It's raining. That would not be such an remarkable thing except for the fact that we have been in a drought for as long as anyone around here can remember. The rain was so welcome...so refreshing...so wonderful that we just sat on the porch and watched it come down. At first, each big drop re-exploded into smaller drops. Then, as it began to rain harder, the air temperature dropped fast and the smell was amazing. It was a smell I had frankly forgotten, but it was so fragrant. Fragrant...that's how life should be.
It got me thinking about all the songs we know about rain. Of course, there's "Rain" (Beatles), "I Wish It Would Rain" (Temptations), "I'm Only Happy When It Rains" (Garbage), "No Rain" (Blind Melon), "Rain Song" (Led Zeppelin), "Let It Rain" (Clapton), "Have You Ever Seen The Rain" (Creedence), "November Rain" (Guns 'N' Roses), "Kentucky Rain" (Elvis), "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" (Willie Nelson), "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head" (B.J. Thomas), or even "Chocolate Rain" (Tay Zonday).
If it rains too much, there might be a flood. If you live in Texas, then there might be a "Texas Flood" (Stevie Ray Vaughan). If it get colder, the rain could turn to sleet, hail or even snow, and everything could become "White As Snow" (U2). If the wind picks up, there might be tornadoes, like a "Texas Tornado" (Doug Sahm), but probably not a "G-Spot Tornado" (Zappa). Perhaps, we might even have a hurricane, "Like A Hurricane" (Neil Young). It might "Rock You Like a Hurricane" (Scorpions), or cause a "Tsunami!" (Los Straitjackets). Whatever happens, I hope you are "Trying to Reason with the Hurricane Season" (Jimmy Buffett).
Whatever kind of weather you are having now, I hope it's not "Stormy Weather". I hope you will have "Blue Skies" and "Sunshine on Your Shoulders".
It got me thinking about all the songs we know about rain. Of course, there's "Rain" (Beatles), "I Wish It Would Rain" (Temptations), "I'm Only Happy When It Rains" (Garbage), "No Rain" (Blind Melon), "Rain Song" (Led Zeppelin), "Let It Rain" (Clapton), "Have You Ever Seen The Rain" (Creedence), "November Rain" (Guns 'N' Roses), "Kentucky Rain" (Elvis), "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" (Willie Nelson), "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head" (B.J. Thomas), or even "Chocolate Rain" (Tay Zonday).
If it rains too much, there might be a flood. If you live in Texas, then there might be a "Texas Flood" (Stevie Ray Vaughan). If it get colder, the rain could turn to sleet, hail or even snow, and everything could become "White As Snow" (U2). If the wind picks up, there might be tornadoes, like a "Texas Tornado" (Doug Sahm), but probably not a "G-Spot Tornado" (Zappa). Perhaps, we might even have a hurricane, "Like A Hurricane" (Neil Young). It might "Rock You Like a Hurricane" (Scorpions), or cause a "Tsunami!" (Los Straitjackets). Whatever happens, I hope you are "Trying to Reason with the Hurricane Season" (Jimmy Buffett).
Whatever kind of weather you are having now, I hope it's not "Stormy Weather". I hope you will have "Blue Skies" and "Sunshine on Your Shoulders".
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Mock Me Amadeus
Cover Songs...we know them...sometimes hate them...but often love them. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then creating your own sonic tribute to your favorite song is something that artists have been doing for a long time. Some cover songs were done so well, in fact, that the original is forgotten. Here are my pick for TOP TEN COVER SONGS...
1. Jimi Hendrix, “All Along the Watchtower” (Bob Dylan)
2. Aretha Franklin, “Respect” (Otis Redding)
3. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" (Judy Garland)
4. Ike & Tina Turner, “Proud Mary” (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
5. Joe Cocker "With A Little Help From My Friends" (The Beatles)
6. Patti Smith, “Gloria” (Van Morrison and Them)
7. Two Tons of Steel, “I Want to Be Sedated” (Ramones)
8. Pixies, "Head On" (Jesus and Mary Chain)
9. The Gourds, “Gin and Juice” (Snoop Dogg)
10. Johnny Cash, “Hurt” (Nine Inch Nails)
Some other favorites that could have made the Top Ten are:
The Gipsy Kings, “Hotel California” (The Eagles)
Pet Shop Boys, "You Were Always On My Mind" (Elvis Presley)
Travis, “Hit Me Baby, One More Time” (Britney Spears)
Deodato "Also Sprach Zarathustra" (Richard Strauss)
Uncle Tupelo "Effigy" (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
Think about which ones you love or hate. There are some really bad ones out there...you know what they are, I don't have to tell you.
What is the thought process that goes into making a great COVER SONG, I wonder? Do some artists just love the song so much that they want to create a VERBATIM version, as true to the original as humanly possible. That rarely is effective, in my opinion. A striking exception to that is the album "Faithful" by Todd Rundren, in which he delivers dead-on perfect replicas of Beatles, Beach Boys, Hendrix songs, etc, and it is fantastic. Reworking a song is a very GREEN thing to do...Reuse...Recycle...and Reclaim the glory of the original. When an artist strives to create a NEW VERSION of someone else's work, it often raises the song into another stratum or higher energy level. U2 has done that many times for songs like "Everlasting Love" and "Helter Skelter".
Some songs are so good they can be COVERED by artists from other genres of music. Example: "Summertime Blues" (Eddie Cochran) which worked as a bombastic rock song by the Who and a twangy country song by Alan Jackson. Come to think of it, country artists did a down-home, yee-haw version of AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long" that was a hoot, but was still quite unique and enjoyable.
What put me in the mood to blog about COVER SONGS today was the new version of Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic" by the Zac Brown Band on their "Live at Bonnaroo" EP. They nailed it perfectly. In fact, it is the absolute best version of "Into the Mystic" that I have heard anyone attempt other than Van himself. Listen to it today...hurry!
1. Jimi Hendrix, “All Along the Watchtower” (Bob Dylan)
2. Aretha Franklin, “Respect” (Otis Redding)
3. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" (Judy Garland)
4. Ike & Tina Turner, “Proud Mary” (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
5. Joe Cocker "With A Little Help From My Friends" (The Beatles)
6. Patti Smith, “Gloria” (Van Morrison and Them)
7. Two Tons of Steel, “I Want to Be Sedated” (Ramones)
8. Pixies, "Head On" (Jesus and Mary Chain)
9. The Gourds, “Gin and Juice” (Snoop Dogg)
10. Johnny Cash, “Hurt” (Nine Inch Nails)
Some other favorites that could have made the Top Ten are:
The Gipsy Kings, “Hotel California” (The Eagles)
Pet Shop Boys, "You Were Always On My Mind" (Elvis Presley)
Travis, “Hit Me Baby, One More Time” (Britney Spears)
Deodato "Also Sprach Zarathustra" (Richard Strauss)
Uncle Tupelo "Effigy" (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
Think about which ones you love or hate. There are some really bad ones out there...you know what they are, I don't have to tell you.
What is the thought process that goes into making a great COVER SONG, I wonder? Do some artists just love the song so much that they want to create a VERBATIM version, as true to the original as humanly possible. That rarely is effective, in my opinion. A striking exception to that is the album "Faithful" by Todd Rundren, in which he delivers dead-on perfect replicas of Beatles, Beach Boys, Hendrix songs, etc, and it is fantastic. Reworking a song is a very GREEN thing to do...Reuse...Recycle...and Reclaim the glory of the original. When an artist strives to create a NEW VERSION of someone else's work, it often raises the song into another stratum or higher energy level. U2 has done that many times for songs like "Everlasting Love" and "Helter Skelter".
Some songs are so good they can be COVERED by artists from other genres of music. Example: "Summertime Blues" (Eddie Cochran) which worked as a bombastic rock song by the Who and a twangy country song by Alan Jackson. Come to think of it, country artists did a down-home, yee-haw version of AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long" that was a hoot, but was still quite unique and enjoyable.
What put me in the mood to blog about COVER SONGS today was the new version of Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic" by the Zac Brown Band on their "Live at Bonnaroo" EP. They nailed it perfectly. In fact, it is the absolute best version of "Into the Mystic" that I have heard anyone attempt other than Van himself. Listen to it today...hurry!
Monday, August 10, 2009
After changes upon changes, are we the same?
Music, like the Universe, hates order and tends toward maximum disorder. Entropy in music manifests itself whenever some new trend becomes stale and tiresome. Music, like the Universe, has undergone multiple episodes of BIG BANGS, expansion and collapse. During the 1950's, popular music was Lollipop Lollipop/Mr.Sandman/Love Letters in the Sand schmaltziness. Then Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Elvis came along and WOKE IT UP from its dormancy. The 1960's were very interesting and turbulent, but also collapsed under its own psychedelic daydream. After the Beatles broke up, and Satan laughed at the Altamont, music stopped taking chances for awhile; stopped being meaningful and compelling. It got very commercial. Rock achieved perfection in 1974, said Homer Simpson. Maybe he was right, but I doubt it. We all got so happy, we started dancing and shaking our booty non-stop. Disco didn't suck, it snorted. Rock and Roll was about to flatline, DNR, until we were jolted back into consciousness by the mighty Ramones, Sex Pistols and the Clash. Punk music had been around, but under the radar. Iggy & the Stooges invented it. The MC5 rollicked with it, but few listened. Not until 1977 did PUNK rule the world.
But guess what, the chaos of punk music was meteoric and it morphed into New Wave music and Synth-Pop. We all got stupid again (but it was lots of fun). Would Rock ever really matter again? Would it connect us politically and spiritually, like the Hippie Rock of the 60's and the immortal Bob Dylan ("Like a Rolling Stone" is still my pick for the Greatest Song of All Time)? It seemed unlikely, we ran so far way (with the Flock of Seagulls) and blinded ourselves with science. Guitars were silenced...synthesizers were King. Rock was really dead this time.
Just as it was moving toward the light, about to cast off its mortal coil, the peal of the bell calling the faithful back to the fold was heard. U2. The Edge's guitar sliced through the sonic nebula like a pulsar. We were back home. The torch was re-lit. Rock and Roll had survived.
But for how long?
But guess what, the chaos of punk music was meteoric and it morphed into New Wave music and Synth-Pop. We all got stupid again (but it was lots of fun). Would Rock ever really matter again? Would it connect us politically and spiritually, like the Hippie Rock of the 60's and the immortal Bob Dylan ("Like a Rolling Stone" is still my pick for the Greatest Song of All Time)? It seemed unlikely, we ran so far way (with the Flock of Seagulls) and blinded ourselves with science. Guitars were silenced...synthesizers were King. Rock was really dead this time.
Just as it was moving toward the light, about to cast off its mortal coil, the peal of the bell calling the faithful back to the fold was heard. U2. The Edge's guitar sliced through the sonic nebula like a pulsar. We were back home. The torch was re-lit. Rock and Roll had survived.
But for how long?
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Music Whispers or Screams the Truth
MUSIC is a mysterious thing. It is something personal and also something that unifies us all. It has the power to bring great joy and great sadness. It resides in our souls with our best memories and our worst memories.
When I was a child, my musical landscape was small, like my desk in elementary school. As I have grown older, the landscape has grown larger, like my bones. What I will attempt to achieve in this blog will be more than simple Music Criticism but an exploration of how great songs can whisper to our individual consciences or scream at our common humanity.
In a lighter vein, I will just share my love of music with you. Sometimes you will think that I am right, other times wrong, but I will try to mix it up and try not to bore you too much.
Today's topic: "Rockers, It's OK to Enjoy Country Music Now"
Why would I write that? It seems to me that more and more Country & Western musicians today are embracing the rebel nature of early Rock & Roll. I'm not just talking about "Outlaw Country" that has been around since the Seventies days of Willie & Waylon or Hank Jr, I am also talking about the more recent Party Rock Vibe that permeates Country Music today. If you turn on any modern Country radio station now, you will hear the unmistakable sound of Seventies Rock. It is as though Southern Rock and Party Rock had a baby, and that baby is now called Country Music. Listen and you will hear Lynyrd Skynyrd's influence in Toby Keith songs, Jim Croce's influence in Billy Currington songs, and Jimmy Buffett's influence in Kenny Chesney songs. Country music today sounds a lot like "Smokin' in the Boys Room", "Pour Some Sugar on Me" or "Margaritaville".
If you are one of those people who says, "Rock is Dead...Radio Stations just play Rap now", try listening to a Country Station. You will hear that Old Time Rock and Roll.
When I was a child, my musical landscape was small, like my desk in elementary school. As I have grown older, the landscape has grown larger, like my bones. What I will attempt to achieve in this blog will be more than simple Music Criticism but an exploration of how great songs can whisper to our individual consciences or scream at our common humanity.
In a lighter vein, I will just share my love of music with you. Sometimes you will think that I am right, other times wrong, but I will try to mix it up and try not to bore you too much.
Today's topic: "Rockers, It's OK to Enjoy Country Music Now"
Why would I write that? It seems to me that more and more Country & Western musicians today are embracing the rebel nature of early Rock & Roll. I'm not just talking about "Outlaw Country" that has been around since the Seventies days of Willie & Waylon or Hank Jr, I am also talking about the more recent Party Rock Vibe that permeates Country Music today. If you turn on any modern Country radio station now, you will hear the unmistakable sound of Seventies Rock. It is as though Southern Rock and Party Rock had a baby, and that baby is now called Country Music. Listen and you will hear Lynyrd Skynyrd's influence in Toby Keith songs, Jim Croce's influence in Billy Currington songs, and Jimmy Buffett's influence in Kenny Chesney songs. Country music today sounds a lot like "Smokin' in the Boys Room", "Pour Some Sugar on Me" or "Margaritaville".
If you are one of those people who says, "Rock is Dead...Radio Stations just play Rap now", try listening to a Country Station. You will hear that Old Time Rock and Roll.
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