Friday, April 11, 2014

Unofficial Music Club Hall of Fame 3 & 4: Rock Gold From A Shit List


Like your favorite WWF Smackdown cage match set to a classic rock 4/4, 13 enter the ring as nominees and only 1 leaves as an inductee. Actually, scratch that. In a last minute vote before the results were announced, Music Club decided to admit 2 inductees this time around. The Katniss and Peeta of a musical hunger games. Please excuse the mixed metaphors.

Only The Good Die Young. Arcade Fire, then Elliot Smith, then The Replacements, then Pavement, then Wilco were each ejected by the other more seasoned veterans.  No one had them as #1 on their ballots, but instead in the lower reaches of most ballots, even in the ballots of the members that nominated them.

Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me. The first real heartbreak took place when the only solo female artist in the competition and the first artist who actually ranked #1 on one of the ballots were both thrown from the ring.  Steely Dan and Tina Turner tied for 6th place raining buckets of disappointment on their nominating member. Our condolences. Steely Dan had the unusual distinction of ranking not just a #1 vote, but also a #13. Curious.

Surrender. The last artist to not make the top 5 is a favorite to many, but obviously not favorite enough. Tom Waits shuffled quietly from the ring, bourbon and hat in hand. Satisfied in the knowledge he had 3 of his songs entered into the Dedications theme that night. 

Don’t Fear The Reaper. The Final 5 stood center ring. Johnny Cash was ranked #1 in one of the seven ballots cast. Led Zeppelin was, too. But that was not enough for them to come out on top. Johnny was here once before, losing last last time to Bruce Springsteen. This time he couldn't even make it into the top 3. They ended up tied for 4th place with the upper echelon of 3 officially consisting of The Beatles, James Brown, and Bob Dylan. I am embarrassed to say that they were my nominations. I have the ballots to prove that I did not tamper with results. Still... it's awkward. 

We Are The Champions. James Brown was the one artist in the top 5 to not be ranked #1 by a single member, but he had the benefit of being in the top 5 of five separate ballots. That went a long way to keeping him around almost to the end. In the end, though, it was Bob Dylan at #2, and The Beatles, in a pretty resounding victory, took the coveted #1 spot. The Fab 4 had ranked #1 on three different ballots, so it was kind of a done deal from the very beginning.

But, see, it all seems a little anti-climactic. Doesn't it? No arguing like last time. No drunken denouncements of one artist in comparison to another. Nobody locking themselves in the bathroom and refusing to come out until everyone voted for Three Dog Night. This time it was all quiet voting in the privacy of our own homes. Boring. Where is the drama? Next time I insist we get drama. Not just the kind of drama where I get letters telling me the list of nominees is unacceptable. I want to see arm wrestling. I want to hear cries of anguish that someone would seriously consider Madonna in any way Merle Haggard's equal. That pang of disgust you just felt when you read that? I want more of that. And if you agreed with that statement, it's time you to make a stand. 

How should the next nomination process take place?  Feel free to send in your suggestions. Make it interesting. Make it count. You have time, because we're not doing this again for a long time.

Stil, congratulations go to The Beatles and Bob Dylan. It's time these two underdogs finally got the recognition they had been so rudely denied in the past.








Monday, April 7, 2014

Music Club meeting this Thursday!

Looking forward to seeing your bright, smiley faces this Thursday for music club unless it's raining cats and dogs again (I've restocked the bourbon just in case).




Friday, April 4, 2014

What year was your musical taste formed?

WXPN was revisiting 1975 this week - three songs from that year played in the 9:00am hour every day.  And every day, I screamed with delight and recognition.  Now, I scream with delight and recognition at a lot of things ("I read that book!", "Taco salads in the lunchroom!"), but five days in a row for one year?? That doesn't normally happen. So, I have concluded that, for better or for worse, my musical tastes were set in concrete in that year.  The songs are below.   Have we ever done that as a theme?  What years would you guys come up with?

PS:   Deb and J.: the band London Grammar?  Thoughts??

1975:
Earth Wind & Fire - Shining Star
The Eagles - One Of These Nights
The Ozark Mountain Daredevils - Jackie Blue
Steely Dan - Doctor Wu
David Bowie - Fame
Led Zeppelin - Ten Years Gone
Bob Dylan - Tangled Up In Blue*
Queen - Killer Queen
War - Low Rider
Brian Eno - St. Elmo's Fire**
Willie Nelson - Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain***
Janis Ian - At Seventeen
Phoebe Snow - Poetry Man
Labelle - Lady Marmalade

*Surprising, but true!  The only Dylan album I've ever owned.
**Okay, I'd never heard this song before.
***Scream? No. Deeply respect? Yes.