smoe.org mailing lists
ivan@stellysee.de
| From | Dave Seaman <seamand@upmc.edu> |
| Subject | Big Star lyrics |
| Date | Fri, 30 Sep 2005 13:32:45 -0400 |
[Part 1 text/plain US-ASCII (2.1 kilobytes)]
(View Text in a separate window)
<<<Every time I hear, "If it's so, let me know. If it's no, well I can go,"
just resonates utterly with anyone who's ever had something for a girl and
just wants to know where he stands.>>>
Maybe this a melody vs lyrics thing for me. I like both to be great in my
music, but when it comes down to it, I probably lean more toward the melody
camp. There are songs I love with outstanding melodies and pedestrian
lyrics, but very few songs I love with outstanding lyrics and pedestrian
melodies. Of course, if they have both I am in heaven.
Not to say that Big Star has weak melodies - but I in general rate their
melodic output as "good" rather than "great". They just don't run around my
head as long as I'd like. Maybe I need to listen more to their lyrics.
Another thought I've had is that I didn't discover Big Star until recent
years. If I had picked up on them as a teenager or twenty-something, the
music might have resonated a lot more, but as a forty-something, it's a bit
harder to relate as strongly.
And then there's the nostalgia factor - those bands you love when you are
younger tend to keep a place in your heart. Even though the Beatles are my
favorite band, I prefer Raspberries' Fresh over most of the Beatles' early
albums. This is probably NOT because I think Fresh is "better" than the
Beatles albums, but probably because I bought Fresh when I was 13,
identified strongly with the feelings expressed then and throughout my teens
and early twenties, and listened to it about a zillion times -- whereas I
didn't pick up the earlier Beatles albums until I hit well into my twenties
or even thirties. (I made do with the "Red Album" double LP collection of
their earlier hits for the first 15 or so years of my musical existence.)
It seems so much of what each of us likes about certain music it's the
context in relation to our lives. If we could hear no music at all in life,
then hear everything at once, on an equal playing field, our ranking would
be quite a bit different I'd bet. Of course, that would be such a sad
situation to be in...
For assistance, please contact
the smoe.org administrators.