Meanwhile... Pt. 1

[dan bailey]

MusicI've long since gotten used to music snobs looking down their noses at me. I refuse to apologize for my tastes and I, in turn, do not ask you to apologize for yours.

No doubt I come off as precisely that -- a music snob -- but rest assured that it's not intentional; I just happen to have pretty esoteric tastes. The people I consider music snobs, hipper-than-thou Scott Pilgrim types who turn up their noses at, say, the Killers or (going back a ways to cite bands I've been mocked on various music lists over the years for championing) the Cars or A Flock of Seagulls or ELO or anyone else anyone has ever heard of, absolutely make my skin crawl.

Besides, you're Kurt Mitchell. I couldn't, & wouldn't, look down my nose at you for any reason. (Well, I guess I could ... I seem to have my Jewish grandfather's nose, & my eyes are deep-set enough that it's always in my field of vision, not that I ever really notice it).

Now ... The Confessor I'll be happy to look down my nose at. *ahem*

Also, I own both Titanic soundtrack CDs because I like the Celine Dion song "My Heart Will Go On." (I also like Whitney Houston's earlier "I Will Always Love You.") How in hell could I look down on anybody for the music he or she likes or doesn't?

[i]Really, the only kinds of Western music I don't care for are opera, heavy metal, rap/hip-hop and (sorry, dan) punk but even so, I bet I could name at least one act or song in each genre that I do dig.[/quote]

If you can think of a palatable example of opera, you're one up on me. With heavy metal, sounds like we're pretty much in agreement -- with the exception of a couple of old Black Sabbath songs, I'd as soon listen to static. (Unless the late Type O Negative are considered heavy metal; I liked those guys a lot.)

Rap/hip-hop I liked a fair amount of through about, oh, 1987. Then, I guess, I got old; other than Public Enemy & a bit of A Tribe Called Quest, I lost all interest.

As for punk, I actually tired of 99 percent of hardcore around 1983, at which point it started all sounding pretty much alike.

This year, I have a list of 34 books I hope to finish by Labor Day. All of them have two things in common: they're non-fiction and their authors were featured in Continuing The Conversation, a collection of interviews from the PBS series Bill Moyers' Journal.

I'm not familiar with the TV series, but I'll note that for whatever reasons, close to 100 percent of my reading (other than comics) these days is nonfiction, as fueled by the local library.

[Cei-U!]

No doubt I come off as precisely that -- a music snob -- but rest assured that it's not intentional; I just happen to have pretty esoteric tastes. The people I consider music snobs, hipper-than-thou Scott Pilgrim types who turn up their noses at, say, the Killers or (going back a ways to cite bands I've been mocked on various music lists over the years for championing) the Cars or A Flock of Seagulls or ELO or anyone else anyone has ever heard of, absolutely make my skin crawl.

I wasn't seriously calling you a music snob. Besides, how could I stay mad at anybody who loves the Cars and ELO? Face the Music and Discovery are two of my favorite albums ever.

If you can think of a palatable example of opera, you're one up on me.

Hrm. Y'know, I don't think I can. I doubted that part of the statement even as I was typing it. I've sat through a handful of classics--Carmen, Madame Butterfly, Salome--but it was the spectacle I enjoyed, not the music. Buncha damn caterwaulin' if'n ya axe me!

With heavy metal, sounds like we're pretty much in agreement -- with the exception of a couple of old Black Sabbath songs, I'd as soon listen to static. (Unless the late Type O Negative are considered heavy metal; I liked those guys a lot.)

I had a roommate in the mid-80s who was into it so I get a slight twinge of nostalgia when I hear the Scorpions or Ratt.

Rap/hip-hop I liked a fair amount of through about, oh, 1987. Then, I guess, I got old; other than Public Enemy & a bit of A Tribe Called Quest, I lost all interest.

I don't think it's bad music. I just can't relate to it.

As for punk, I actually tired of 99 percent of hardcore around 1983, at which point it started all sounding pretty much alike.

Is the Clash considered punk? Cause I kinda liked them.

I'm not familiar with the TV series, but I'll note that for whatever reasons, close to 100 percent of my reading (other than comics) these days is nonfiction, as fueled by the local library.

It's mostly non-fiction for me these days, though I'm also currently reading the Stephen King short story collection Just After Sunset. So far, so good.

Cei-U!
Particularly liked "The Gingerbread Girl"!

[dan bailey]

Silly double post.

[dan bailey]

Is the Clash considered punk? Cause I kinda liked them.

Very much so. Class-of-'76 originals. (They pretty much lost the plot by 1979 -- London Calling would've been a very solid single LP, but as a double LP it fell far short of the mark, which is probably why those merchants of mediocrity Rolling Stone thought it was the bee's knees -- but their hearts remained in the right place through the bitter end.)

We'll be having you in a mohawk in no time ...

(Not an affectation I have any use for; god forbid. I always thought mohawks were the equivalent of the mandarins' fingernails, which the old Chinese nobles apparently grew so long so that people would know they didn't have to work. Same with a mohawk.)

[Phil Maurice]

with the exception of a couple of old Black Sabbath songs, I'd as soon listen to static.

Is one of them the Sabs' version of "Blue Suede Shoes," from their appearance on the German TV show Musikladen circa '70?

It's "Youtube-able" and worthwhile. Iommi's fingers are wrapped in what appears to be duct tape and his strings are untrimmed at the top of the fretboard. Ozzy ad-libs the lyrics, which are both comical and effective.

[dan bailey]

Jesus! This was supposed to replace the double post above!

Time for me to go home ...

[The Confessor]

Just to chime in on the turntable topic, I have a Rega Planar 3 with the RB300 tonearm and a Rega Exact cartridge. I bought it about 5 years ago to replace an old Sony turntable I had that dated from 1970.

It sounds absolutely lovely!

[Phil Maurice]

Just to chime in on the turntable topic, I have a Rega Planar 3 with the RB300 tonearm and a Rega Exact cartridge. I bought it about 5 years ago to replace an old Sony turntable I had that dated from 1970.

It sounds absolutely lovely!

There's exquisite beauty in the sleek simplicity of that. I imagine the tones it produces display a warmth and richness that are enviable by any standard.

I have a dear friend who is a "phonophile," and being in the UK, you might appreciate this. I gave him a copy of Monty Python's 1973 release "Matching Tie and Handkerchief" recently. This is an original pressing of the legendary "three-sided" album. It's true. One side features two sets of concentric grooves which, depending on where you drop the needle produces one of two wholly different "sides" of a record. To compound matters, there is no track listing and both sides of the album are labelled "Side 2."

[Kan-Man]

I'm loving this thread...

First of all, congrats to Shaxper - that's great news.

As I mentioned on another thread, I've been away for quite some time. I started a new job last November after getting laid off the previous February. So I haven't had as much time for the important things in life.

Now that I'm back to commuting, my wife bought me one of those new fangled smartphones so I could check e-mail and such when I'm not at my computer. The reason I bring this up is I spent a recent commute reading through the past couple of month's worth of posts on LR's blog and enjoyed them very much. Nice going, Scott!

We have two boys, Jackson (7) and Griffin (3), who monopolize the stereo so mostly I've been listening to what they've been listening to. They both started with The Beatles and Springsteen (our home is still mourning the loss of our beloved Big Man) and then Jackson discovered KISS a lot earlier than I expected. Then, somewhere along the line they both got into Green Day (which is how my kids learned the word "masturbation" - awesome!) Lately, they've been listening to a lot of Foo Fighters. The sight and sounds of a 3-year old singing along with Dave Grohl is a sight to behold.

Since there's been some discussion of Punk and Punk-era artists, I thought I'd share this - a couple of weeks ago, my wife produced Sesame Street's annual fund-raising gala and this year's musical guest was Elvis Costello. She said he couldn't have been nicer or more down to earth.

For those who were talking about alt-country or country rock, allow me to recommend the movie Crazy Heart with Jeff Bridges and its soundtrack. Some good stuff there.

[Aaron King]

At the moment, I'm about midway through A History of God by Karen Armstrong. I thought I had a fairly good layman's grasp of the histories of the three great monotheistic faiths--Judaism, Christianity, Islam--but Ms. Armstrong has knocked that particular piece of self-deception right outta me. I suspect the bibliography alone will keep me scouring the library shelves for years to come.

I'm in love with Karen Armstrong (as a writer; I understand that she's quite old, and I'm not so Harold & Maude). If you continue to like this book, I highly recommend her A Case For God and, if you like that, Douglas Rushkoff's Nothing Sacred. Both of those books have really helped give a voice and explanation to my own feelings on religion and spirituality (as Nietzsche did to... adam warlock's[?] philosophy).

Sidenote: Rushkoff also wrote the short-lived Vertigo series Testament, which is almost a fictionalized adaptation of his nonfiction works. It was a mixed bag, but I generally liked it.

[MWGallaher]

That sounds good. I'll try to remember to check it out.

[Roquefort Raider]

We have two boys, Jackson (7) and Griffin (3), who monopolize the stereo so mostly I've been listening to what they've been listening to.

Good things that music tastes are no longer as generation-specific as they used to be, Kan-Man!

Too bad the overlap isn't as extensice as it could be, though. Two weeks ago there was a feed of the Metropoloitan Opera at the local cinema and I got to see Die Walküre all by myself. (Time was, I would have gone with my dad, but a taste for Wagner seems to have skipped the next generation). Brilliant, brilliant production... Robert Lepage, who staged it, is just a magician with scenery. He manages to turn one thing into another when you're not watching. (I remember a play he staged, oh, 20 years ago, in which a library with piles of books and a small statue of Liberty turned into New York harbour just by lowering the normal lights and turning on a blacklight. Magic, I tell you).

Anyhoo... Someone mentioned shameless plugs, so I'd like to invite you good folks to visit my blog! Comic strips, paintings, humor cartoons, illustrations... all that I do with a pen or a brush is fair game. (Because right now, the sound of crickets out there is deafening!!!)

[prince hal]

We have two boys, Jackson (7) and Griffin (3), who monopolize the stereo so mostly I've been listening to what they've been listening to. They both started with The Beatles and Springsteen (our home is still mourning the loss of our beloved Big Man)

As is ours. Our kids grew up on Bruce, the Beatles, and Motown. Made family trips great for sing-alongs that everyone liked!

I was listening to "Jungleland" and some other Bruce songs while I was doing yard work today and couldn't help but think that no one else can play that sax that way.

[adam_warlock_2099]

Opera -- What's Opera Doc? still tears me up. The only opera that has ever caught my ear is the opera in Hannibal. It's when they are all sitting out on the lawn watching it at night. After it's over Hannibal tells the cop he's seriously thinking about having his wife for dinner. Whatever that opera is for the few moments I heard it was incredible. But I don't know what it is.

Music Firsts

Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve -- I first heard this in an adult film.
Rhinestone Cowboy by Glen Campbell -- Heard it first on the movie "High School High" with Jon Lovitz
She Shook Me All Night Long by AC/DC -- This was on a VHS tape commercial for a local radio station that I had on a tape of the Simpsons. It was long after that I was watching it and decided to see what that song was.
Pink Cashmere by Prince -- I heard from Girl 6 movie. This was my introduction and continued following of Prince's music.

[benday-dot]

Also, I own both Titanic soundtrack CDs because I like the Celine Dion song "My Heart Will Go On." (I also like Whitney Houston's earlier "I Will Always Love You.") How in hell could I look down on anybody for the music he or she likes or doesn't?

... and that is the single most stunning revelation I've ever read on the Internet since Al Gore introduced it all those years ago. I'm not judging Dan. I'm just.... saying.