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| From | Stewart Mason <flamingo@theworld.com> |
| Subject | Re: Another Bealtes? |
| Date | Wed, 04 Aug 2004 01:22:54 -0400 |
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At 11:48 PM 8/3/2004 -0500, Michael Bennett wrote:
>Nothing like specific anecdotal evidence to refute a general statement.
I was responding to Josh's equally anecdotal "I know 15-year-old kids who
are learning Beatle songs on guitar, because they love them."
>Some here may recall the Beatles #1 album selling millions of copies. Which
>isn't to say that the majority of teenagers don't know the Beatles, don't
>know what they look like and just don't give a fuck. But compare them to
>anyone else in their era, and I betcha a significant percentage of teens buy
>at least one Beatle comp. What keeps the Beatles alive is what, in lesser
>numbers, is going to keep The Velvet Underground alive amongst college and
>graduate school age musicians for years to come -- the music connects.
I completely agree with every word of that paragraph. But that's a much
smaller -- and I think much more reasonable -- statement than Josh's
over-reaching claims that "everyone" knows the Liverpool Lads.
>As for the Bennie Goodman/Dorsey/Sinatra, et al. comparison -- no one said
>that The Beatles were the only group to engender a frenzied reaction.
But there have been implications that they were somehow the first group to
fuse different forms of music and then sell the results to a huge
teenybopper audience. I was merely pointing out that it wasn't even Elvis
who did that first.
>Finally -- I'd agree with you that Josh's "She Loves You" test would fail.
>But it's specious to claim that the artist who waxed two of the five most
>recorded songs in history ("Yesterday" and "Something") wouldn't be
>recognized by John and Jane Q. Public in substantial numbers. Of course, if
>your test was whether everyone recognized them, then I guess you win.
It wasn't MY test. I repeat Josh's initial claim: "Its 40 years since "She
Loves You;" FORTY YEARS. Walk down the street, sing a few bars, ask people
to identify the artist. Hell, ask Lou Reed; he always hated them. But
he'll get it. And don't just ask boomers; ask kids, old ladies, everyone.
Black, white, Latino, everyone."
Those were his words, not mine. He's the one who said "everyone," and he
said it twice.
S
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