I must be getting old but what has happened to modern music (for the want of a better term)? Where are the great lyricists, the storytellers, the poets and those who had the ability to turn topical issues and ideas into a song?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The passing of artists like Michael Jackson, David Bowie and even more recently Prince means a huge void has been left in creativity on the music scene.
I’m not saying there are not still some exceptionally good musicians/writers and performers around, only that they are declining at a rapid rate. Adele is exception as she writes and performs some incredibly moving songs. Mostly melancholy, but at least they tell a story of lost or spurned love. Alecia Moore (better known as Pink) is another who can come up with songs that are both popular and have meaning and maybe I can throw in Bruno Mars to a lesser extent.
The rest, mind numbing, mass produced, multimedia grunge. What goes as R’n’B now certainly has no Rhythm and even fewer Blues, there is an occasional beat but the lyrics are indecipherable.
….and now that CDs are losing popularity and vinyl is collector’s items where are we heading.
I can remember when you could sit down with a new album and read all the lyrics and song information off the sleeve while listening to all the great tracks, even CDs often carried information notes, but now it’s download and nothing but some near identical tune to the last five put out by the same artist.
It appears all about image with flashy film clips and pointless videos of six pac males and scantily clad females, with very little substance to anything resembling music, let alone meaningful lyrics.
Where are the Joni Mitchell’s, James Taylor, Morrissey, Harry Nilsson, Bob Dylan, Don Henley and Glenn Frey, Carole King, Lennon and McCartney and even Chinn and Chapman, anybody who can string together words, rhythm, and an expressive tune?
Alas, it all appears lost!
Fortunately, you can tune into 2MCE and pick up one of our many Retro style programs such as Saturday Night Jukebox or Tim Williams Retro Top 40 every second Saturday at 4pm. For instance this week Tim is commencing a series featuring a countdown of the top 100 hits from 1955 to 1999.
Five generations of music that are listenable and relatable. Try it, you are sure to like it.
