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| From | "John L. Micek" <jlmicek@comcast.net> |
| Subject | Re: too much and or not enough |
| Date | Fri, 11 May 2007 14:38:05 -0400 |
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>So this all makes me think about the period of the 60s thru the mid-90s
>( i.e. the period from the start of the rock and roll boom years to the
>time when digital all but buried vinyl) (?), and how it relates to the
>periods before and after it - the current age, the early 20th century,
>the big band era... basically every musical era back to the start of
>recorded music. I wonder how the percentage of the western population
>who have released professional product compares between eras. Likewise,
>what percentage of the general public are/were musicians who make or
>made a living on music? What is the number of releases per year in
>relation to the overall census? Is the market oversaturated now, or is
>it just my perception? What percentage of the average person's income
>went/goes towards music? How rich or poor are/were musicians in each of
>these periods? ...Record industry people?
I recall reading somewhere a while back (don't remember the source now,
sadly) that the idea of the "professional" musician is actually a fairly
modern construct. For the longest time, music was strictly a grassroots type
of thing -- people gathering in people's houses with stringed instruments to
pass the night away before the advent of electricity, radio, television,
et.al.
At some point, again, I don't recall exactly when (possibly around the time
of modern recording equipment or when touring the country became at least
moderately feasible), there were people who made their living by traveling
from town to town playing music. If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say it
started with the railroad era, and then became more formalized into the
early 20th century (jazz, Big Band, et.al).
Anyway, the point the author was trying to make was that music was, for most
of its history, an incredibly democratic institution -- until corporate
interests got hold of it, and determined that it was also a way to make a
buck. Then, music became something that "other" people with tremendous gifts
did. God forbid if you should venture our on your own to do it.
I have to say, it's an argument with some merit. The dawning of the creature
known as the "rock star" further cemented the notion of a divide between
audience and musician. And that only calcified through the rock era. It
finally hit the wall, in my judgment, with the dawning of punk, and the
birth of DIY culture.
And that's a healthy development. If you play music -- professionally or
not -- you're a musician. The idea that there's some kind of divide between
"real" musicians and guys messing about in their garages is an awfully
undemocratic way of looking at the world. And this idea that there's not
enough "quality control" separating the listener from the vast mass of
untalented hacks smacks of the worst kind of elitism. One of the best things
to come out the DIY era, in my judgment, was the idea that anyone with
enough balls could strap on a guitar, write some tunes and get a record out.
God knows, some of the indie label owners in our midst probably wouldn't
have existed without that template. Or, for that matter, my woefully
underachieving little combo (Milkshake Jones). Does that mean that there's
some truly awful stuff out there? Sure. But I'll take that in trade over the
notion that three or four multinationals should be the sole determiners of
what I get to listen to.
As a side note, I'll agree that the sheer volume of recorded material has
made it harder to keep up with what's out there. But so what? You'll find
the stuff you really like -- via music 'blogs, magazines or online music
groups like this one. It's not incumbent on you to "keep up" with every
shred of recorded music being released at one time. I'm fairly sure you'd
like to have a life, right?
Again, I'd rather have a multiplicity of choices (with me acting as the sole
gatekeeper) and discover a talented guy like Mike Carpenter, Michael Giblin
or Adam Marsland, instead of having my listening choices limited by the
programming director at my local FM station or the A&R guy at
UniversalSonyPolydorVirgin Records. That's how we ended up with f**ing
Foreigner. And I'd rather cut my arms off than have to listen to "Hot
Blooded" again.
As for rich v. poor musicians -- wasn't Mozart buried in a pauper's grave?
Just a few thoughts on a slow Friday.
john micek.
http://www.myspace.com/milkshakejones
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