My wife had a dream last night that the end of the world happened and the first people who got to show up were musicians who passed to the other side. They were performing modern music, rather than their own. In her dream Janis Joplin was singing a Katy Perry song in Janis’ style. I don’t remember the name of the song, I only listen to my wife most of the time.
Anyway, here’s my theory. Modern artists are always cutting albums of standards. If mature artists (for example, Carole King) recorded some of Jay-Z’s music, in their own style, maybe us more mature folks might actually listen to what he had to say and give him a chance. There could be some interesting results.
Johnny Cash did “Hurt”. Not really in his own style IMO, but I suppose it depends on how you measure that. I think its appeal for me was because not only was it a brutally frank song edgy in its day - and it’s still edgy and riveting for me - Cash was doing it [insert “Need I say more…”]. And he’d lived the life. For as different a composition as it was from I was used to hearing out of him, I thought he fit right into it like hand in glove. Seeing his reflection in that mirror was for me a tribute to both. I was impressed.
Eh, who knows. Maybe it was just the curiosity factor. It made the charts, anyway.
Ain’t nothing like Lyle Lovett and Al Green singing Willie Nelson or maybe I’m thinking of Gladys Knight and Vince Gill singing “Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing.”
Thank goodness that due to the amazing on air talent judging those amazing new generations of singers and the incredibly talented nominees and winners of the music awards shows we aren’t being faced with a musical Apocalypse any time soon.
Oh, that day will come. Our music has been turned in Muzak. I cringed the first time that I heard hippie rock molested like that. Most of the Muzak in West Virginia is Country and I don’t mind what they do with Country.
If you want to hear creepy that grows on here is a track from the album “If I Were a Carpenter” a tribute album by modern (punk) rockers. My MIL gave it to me. She thought it was “disturbing”. So did I the first time I heard it. It grew on me.
Here’s the first track. American Music Club performing “Goodbye to Love”.
At least you’re in the good generation. I will live to see the day when Britney Spears is on the oldies station.
I was musing on this to my mum before a recent choir concert at a retirement community… some of the stuff we sang were things like songs from South Pacific, and music that was popular when my grandmother was younger, etc.
I realized that when I get old, choirs will come in to sing music contemporary to my time. I will be stuck listening to choir-ified versions of Paula Abdul and Ace of Base and Backstreet Boys.
And they wonder why some people have no hope for the future.
