Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: The Mellotron Group

On 25/07/2011 12:44, Chris Dale wrote:

 

I never got into her music. Her drug / alcohol abuseruins her credibility for me. (Hendix had a strong record of enormous talentbefore he became a junkie).

I find this incredible. I can guarantee that most of the music you know andlove was made by people who were out of their flaming boxes when they dreamedit up.  Absolutely off their kites.  Stoned out of theirgourds.  baked.  Roasted.  Six kinds of Wednesday. Smashed.  Toked.  Why apply one set of rules to the people whosemusic you happen to like and not to others?  Frankly I don't care one iotaif someone is a junkie or not if I like their music.  All three members ofCream were blasted out of their little redwagons when they wrote and made their music.  Is it anygood?  Of course it is.  If you don'tlike it then it's a matter of taste, but to say it's bad becausethey used drugs is little short of idiotic.

Notice - you said that 'her drug / alcohol abuse ruins her credibility forme'.  I mean...where to start?  None of (say) Amy Winehouse's musicsounds like she was tottering about the studio in a state of intoxication;barely any marketable label (like...oh Idunno...Island) would tolerate that fiscal waste thesedays.  So what you are actually saying is that because she used drugs her music is no good.  If youmeanrt something else then maybe you could articulate it a bit better, but thatis what your words say.

I don't much care for drugs.  I didn't much care for Amy Winehouse's musiceither.  But this kind of
 

I'll stick with music made by musicians whoindisputably make, write and perform their own music and don't need gaudyand tacky stage shows, secret songwriting teams,  and alarmistpolitical tactics and causes to draw attention to themselves.

I think you will find without any doubt that Winehouse, Madonna and Lady Gagawrite/wrote and performed their own material.  Certainly the latter twoare two women very much incommand of what they do.

Secret songwriting teams?  Really?  Like who? I think you'll findthat most songwriters (or secret teams)are probably quite motivated not tobe secret because being secret means lessmoney.  The days of Tin Pan Alley writers churning out songafter song on the odd chance that one will hit paydirt are long behindus. 

I don't know who you are referring to about 'alarmist political tactics', butit sounds weird.  Bear in mind that one Elvis Presley was possibly themost alarming thing that the sheltered bits of the USA had everseen at one point.  Mostly because he reminded people how babies aremade.  That was something terrifying.  And it sold records. And it was still terrifying enough to ban bits of him from the screens of thenation's TV sets.  Deeply alarming.  Well, maybe not.  Perhapsthat was a mantle better reserved for LittleRichard.  He must have seemed like a thermonuclear device.

And....gaudy and tacky stage shows?  This from someone who like progrock? This one hit me like a brick in the face! Canyou possibly be serious???

EXHIBIT 1: http://cdn.crooksandliars.com/files/uploads/2010/04/genesis_petergabriel_live_2954b.jpg
EXHIBIT 2: http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Millennium/General/1999/02/25/codpiece.jpg
EXHIBIT 3: http://farm1.static.flickr.com/94/240935102_c05b4e74ac.jpg
EXHIBIT 4: http://www.keyboardmag.com/uploadedimages/keyboardmag/articles/emerson_opener_web.jpg
EXHIBIT 5: http://yesmuseum.org/images/RickOnIce.JPG

I can stop any time you like.

 That's why I like prog - not a Labatts orMcDonalds ad  or association in sight.

Given the above I'm not surprised. It wouldn't pay. 

-- 

Mike Dickson, Edinburgh