Last night The Who performed at the Super Bowl. I was actually pretty ecstatic to see them live, because they typically have forgone doing live shows (barring any kind of future tour they may do if that ever happens). And at the age they are at, and minus Keith Moon and John Entwistle, that is completely understandable. The Who may not be what they used to be, but certainly they still rock hard to songs that are actually enjoyable.
There are of course the critics. They can be broken down into two distinct groups. You have the people that are the original fans who are complaining because the band does not sound as good as it used to and that the lineup has changed. I know a few of these people and they present a legitimate argument. No, the band is not the same, and no they do not sound as good. Fine—with age, that is to be expected. If you can do 1/10th of what any of those guys do with a guitar or a drum at 60+, I would be seriously surprised.
Then you have the younger generation, probably anyone a part of Generation Y and forward. I do not include Generation X because that generation at least knows who these bands are. These people do not care for this kind of music, nor do they really appreciate or know what decent music is because mainstream music producers have loaded the airwaves with crap. They have been trained to listen to this crap. This is the generation that has grown up with rap music, grunge, boy bands, spoiled and overexposed teen queens (Simpson and Spears), and maybe caught the tail end of music from the 80s, if they were lucky enough.
If you have not already noticed the disdain I have for music of the current generation, then please take note of it now. I do not claim it as my own. I was fortunate enough to have been exposed to real music, and breaking out the vinyl is looking better and better as the years go on.
The problem you have is the music of today is not great. Rap music is not great, but rock today leaves a lot to be desired. As a genre, rap is a sorry excuse for music. It is neither timeless (a true sign of good music) or original. I am a fan of G-Funk and Gangster Rap to an extent, but since the mid-90s, rap music has been overrated. When was the last time you popped in a Nelly CD or a Tupac CD? How about Dr. Dre? I bet it has been a long time. For the most part, this music is not timeless.
Rock music today seems to all sound the same. I will tip my hat to the grunge scene, but overall it is a letdown. The genre lacks the major bands and groups. We do not have the John Mellencamps, the Van Halens, or the CCRs today. We have a lot of bands, but most of them are nothing to write home about. The number of rock songs in the top 50 has declined substantially between the 70s and today if that is any indication of things. A few of those top hits recently were covers of versions of songs done years ago. Some of these hits were not even original and likely made the top 50 because they have been done before.
In place of rock, we get a lot of single act pop groups and rap that seem to be glorified by the mainstream for whatever reason that may be. None of the music is timeless. When was the last time you popped in a CD from the early or mid 90s? If you actually have done so, I am willing to bet it was grunge related. I doubt you popped in a CD by Mariah Carey, Seal, Ace of Base, or any other slew of popular music that fell by the wayside and became cliché.
Good music is timeless. That is why Sinatra is still popular. That is why the Beatles are still popular. And yes, that is why The Who is still extremely popular today, even in their old age and less than stellar physical abilities. These kinds of groups had tremendous abilities and musicianship that has long been gone from the modern music of today. The songs these artists composed and performed are extremely memorable and definitely repeatable, and there were volumes upon volumes of good music over the period from 1950 to the early 1990s. There was a sense of originality and uniqueness that you do not find today.
And that is why I would pay decent money to see The Who as compared to a band like Nickelback any day of the week.
The Mang
Conservative Capo of Youngstown
There are of course the critics. They can be broken down into two distinct groups. You have the people that are the original fans who are complaining because the band does not sound as good as it used to and that the lineup has changed. I know a few of these people and they present a legitimate argument. No, the band is not the same, and no they do not sound as good. Fine—with age, that is to be expected. If you can do 1/10th of what any of those guys do with a guitar or a drum at 60+, I would be seriously surprised.
Then you have the younger generation, probably anyone a part of Generation Y and forward. I do not include Generation X because that generation at least knows who these bands are. These people do not care for this kind of music, nor do they really appreciate or know what decent music is because mainstream music producers have loaded the airwaves with crap. They have been trained to listen to this crap. This is the generation that has grown up with rap music, grunge, boy bands, spoiled and overexposed teen queens (Simpson and Spears), and maybe caught the tail end of music from the 80s, if they were lucky enough.
If you have not already noticed the disdain I have for music of the current generation, then please take note of it now. I do not claim it as my own. I was fortunate enough to have been exposed to real music, and breaking out the vinyl is looking better and better as the years go on.
The problem you have is the music of today is not great. Rap music is not great, but rock today leaves a lot to be desired. As a genre, rap is a sorry excuse for music. It is neither timeless (a true sign of good music) or original. I am a fan of G-Funk and Gangster Rap to an extent, but since the mid-90s, rap music has been overrated. When was the last time you popped in a Nelly CD or a Tupac CD? How about Dr. Dre? I bet it has been a long time. For the most part, this music is not timeless.
Rock music today seems to all sound the same. I will tip my hat to the grunge scene, but overall it is a letdown. The genre lacks the major bands and groups. We do not have the John Mellencamps, the Van Halens, or the CCRs today. We have a lot of bands, but most of them are nothing to write home about. The number of rock songs in the top 50 has declined substantially between the 70s and today if that is any indication of things. A few of those top hits recently were covers of versions of songs done years ago. Some of these hits were not even original and likely made the top 50 because they have been done before.
In place of rock, we get a lot of single act pop groups and rap that seem to be glorified by the mainstream for whatever reason that may be. None of the music is timeless. When was the last time you popped in a CD from the early or mid 90s? If you actually have done so, I am willing to bet it was grunge related. I doubt you popped in a CD by Mariah Carey, Seal, Ace of Base, or any other slew of popular music that fell by the wayside and became cliché.
Good music is timeless. That is why Sinatra is still popular. That is why the Beatles are still popular. And yes, that is why The Who is still extremely popular today, even in their old age and less than stellar physical abilities. These kinds of groups had tremendous abilities and musicianship that has long been gone from the modern music of today. The songs these artists composed and performed are extremely memorable and definitely repeatable, and there were volumes upon volumes of good music over the period from 1950 to the early 1990s. There was a sense of originality and uniqueness that you do not find today.
And that is why I would pay decent money to see The Who as compared to a band like Nickelback any day of the week.
The Mang
Conservative Capo of Youngstown
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