Classic Rock in the 22nd Century

[Aquarius]

It's still early. I'd rather give other people a chance to weigh in on the classic rock thing before we go too far on another tangent, unless what you have in mind is related to rock music somehow (ie, how rock had its earliest roots in country,somgs that cross over from one genre to the other, etc.).

[WarpGirl]

Well if you want to get technical, nearly all forms of music in the world have influenced popular music throughout history. So really if you think about it you can find almost any musical influence in 99.999999999 percent of music in the 20th-21st centuries.

But can we define "Classic" here? Is it "classic" for Trip, or "classic" for us? Because I gotta say Hootie And The Blowfish, are classic for me. And Darius Rucker is now a Country Star.

[Alelou]

I wonder if songs that are available and well-suited to music vids are some of the ones that are going to get longer play going forward? I know I've been exposed to -- and gotten fond of -- a lot of new music I never would have noticed before just because of YouTube.

I'm an utterly haphazard consumer of music, though. Maybe it's a TnT video. Maybe it's whatever's playing over the credits at the end of True Blood. I heard a song I loved in Defying Gravity the other night (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsBwfWLXu5k) and so I went and bought it on Rhapsody.

Last year I heard Marc Anthony's "I Need to Know" in Hannaford's and had a really hard time not dancing in the aisle, so then I had to figure out what it was and then get it....

[Aquarius]

You and your semantics, WG.

Obviously the passage of time from this year to a hundred+ years from now can age something we consider modern into a classic for Trip and his homies. So if you want to talk about something from today that you will believe will endure into the 22nd century, it's fair game.

Taking a discussion from classic rock into some obscure music that maybe three people here have heard of really isn't, so I just wanted to make sure that's not where you were going. Just stay relevant to the discussion and how it would effect the people of Trip's time and I think we're good.

I don't know that Hootie would have the staying power that artists like the Beatles, etc. have enjoyed. The only stations still playing Hootie and the Blowfish around here are the "nice rock" stations, a format that just means the stuff they play is office-friendly. Oh, and "Doug FM/'We Play Everything'" still plays them because, well...they really play everything! The Blowfish enjoyed some popularity and Darius is just starting his country career and I'm sure that audience is enjoying him, but I just don't see him/them enjoying the same phenomenal iconic/legendary status as some of the other artists already mentioned. Sure it could happen, especially if DR beomes a real mover and shaker in the country biz, but so far I'm not sure that he's left enough of a mark that a lot of people in the 22nd Century would know who he is. He had some pretty good pop tunes, but the ones who really endure have usually changed music somehow.

[WarpGirl]

Okay me and my semantics... Well we don't like vaugeness I guess. As for Hootie, dang I think they have some very enduring songs. As a matter of fact, I think Trip would appreciate "I Only Wanna Be With You" OK so the girl in the song isn't T'Pol obviously, but the theme would appeal to him. Besides Trip has some pretty avant guard taste in Classic movies. So I think his musical taste would be just as unique.

[Alelou]

Besides Trip has some pretty avant guard taste in Classic movies.

I think I'd call it "retro" taste. Kind of reminds me of that awful joke in STIV about Jacqueline Susann and Harold Robbins being "the classics."

[Aquarius]

Besides Trip has some pretty avant guard taste in Classic movies.

I think I'd call it "retro" taste. Kind of reminds me of that awful joke in STIV about Jacqueline Susann and Harold Robbins being "the classics."

Very true--and that part of ST IV totally cracked me up!!

Other rockers I think have a chance making it to the 22nd Century:

Nirvana and Pearl Jam--they didn't invent grunge rock, but these two bands are the reason people outside of Seattle know what it is.

The Ramones--one of the founders of the American punk phenomenon, and I can't picture an anthem like "I Wanna Be Sedated" ever going away.

The Sex Pistols--bands like Motley Crue are covering "Anarchy in the UK" at their shows; their own cover of the Monkees' "Stepping Stone" totally WORKS as a punk song; and there is just nothing like Johnny Rotten belting out " I did it myyyyyyyyyy waaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyy!" They are also the reason popular culture believes that punk rock has always been mohawks, safety pins, and studded leather when it actually didn't start that way.

Janis Joplin--she's the first lady of rock!! I also think she'd be on Trip's 20th/21st Century playlist.

Jimi Hendrix--'nuff said.

Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp--okay, you've got kind of two different takes on rock here, but both come from places where people work hard and don't necessarily have much. Bruce has the blue-collar Jersey thing going on, and John is representin' America's heartland...and both had a lot of appeal for people who grew up like I did, in rural, blue-collar areas where the guys you crushed on had hot physiques not from workouts, but from hard work. Much of the music from both these artists embody what regular people in modern America are all about, and for that they've left an indelible mark.

And stepping out of the realm of pure rock and into pop for just a moment, I think these artists will endure because of their indelible contributions to music and popular culture:

Madonna
Michael Jackson

...and I had a few more but I forgot 'em! I'll add them later. But basically, the point is the ones I think will endure are the ones who actually pioneered and/or innovatedsomething--either no one was doing what they did at the time, or others were doing it but these artists in question were the ones that the general public actually paid attention to--and in either case, a bunch of wanna-bes came in their wake, but no one did it quite as well as they did.

[WarpGirl]

Pat Benitar and Heart. They had angry chick rock done better than Alannis Morriset could ever dream. But I think there is something utterly unique about Cheryl Crow that appeals to both men and women so I think Trip would like her. And I think he'd like her. And I think she'd last throughout time. Definitely Fleetwood-Mac, they're timeless, and they're being covered by some amazing people right now. I'd love to think Maroon 5 would last.

[Aquarius]

Yeah, I was thinking Heart earlier, too, and Pat Benetar is a good one, because after Janis, they're really the first ones who come to mind when you think of chicks that ROCK, and the sounds that go with these women are unique and distinctive.

Alanis...I don't know that I can speak to her durability...I'm not such a fan of her personally, but maybe she'll last. My problem with her is that when she broke out with "You Oughta Know," I thought to myself, "Cool! Here's a chick who's really p*ssed off and not whining about it!" ...and then every subsequent song she comes out with is whine, whine, whine. No offense to those who like her, I was just personally disappointed.

I think Sheryl Crow is a good one, too, and especially for Trip personally, as she's got that Southern Rock thing going for her so I think he'd really relate to her.

Another rock band I thought might last is the Eagles. And I think that's another one for Trip...they're from California, and not that I'm saying Trip's tastes would be limited to Southern rock (just that for obvious reasons I think he'd relate to it really well), but much of their music has "Southern rock appeal", if you know what I mean.

And another pop group I thought would last because of their iconic status is ABBA.

[WarpGirl]

Well for me I tend to think that Trip comes from a musical family. I don't know why, maybe it's because of the Classical music in Cogenitor, and his harmonica. If we're talking about Trip and his tastes I'd think he could be very eclectic because he is eclectic. With his love of oceans and beaches, I'd say he'd have some experience in the islands because he loves to dive. So some Calypso maybe Bob Marley, would creep in.

Another thing to think about is that what might have died out in our time, a band like Creed for example... I really loved them. Could come back in Trip's time. So Creed might be a band he'd like.

[Aquarius]

Personally I never got into Creed. To me, they were "Pearl Jam Lite." Again, they're very popular and I understand why people like them, but I don't know that I'd say that they left enough of a mark to endure in a really big way. They're more like what I'd consider to be the kind of band that came in on the next wave of someone who did leave that kind of mark.

[WarpGirl]

Can I plead age? I forgot to mention the Beach Boys, oh and Jerry Lee Lewis! No rotten tomatoes, he's amazing.

[Aquarius]

Oh, yeah, Beach Boys for sure!

And Jerry Lee Lewis--that's interesting that you mention him because he's from that era where rock was just being born, so the line between "what is rock" and "what is country" wasn't necessarily so firm...which led me to think of a couple of obvious ones that I didn't mention before: Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash. I know Johnny is labeled country, but I honestly think of him as more "Americana"--not strictly country, not strictly folk, but whatever the label it's musical storytelling at it's American best. Johnny will endure. Not to mention, I've heard it argued quite convincingly that Johnny is the grandfather of punk--"the man in black" and his rebelliousness and all that.

Elvis...need I say more? He's the king of rock and roll, always will be. Elvis will never die. Trip will pick up an Enquirer and they will still be spotting him at fast food restaurants.

[WarpGirl]

See that is why I'm slightly confused as to what exactly you mean by Classic Rock. In the very beginning Rock and Roll was amalgemated with Jazz, what we would now call Soul, Blues, and doezens of other influences. So how do we describe what would last into the 22nd century? Personally I'm such a music junky, I can't really seperate some of the greats into catagories because I hear so much. But I will add a few more Sting, U2, Chuck Berry, and for the heck of it Buck Cherry.

Also I don't really think of lasting artists as people who actually create a catagory of something, although they often are. But I think the people who bring orgionality and uniqueness to something to be just as lasting. Case in point, Shakespere.

[Aquarius]

Some types of rock have their influence from jazz, yes. Much of it also has its roots in country. I suppose it could be argued that rock is what you get when jazz and country got together and had a baby.

I like all kinds of music, too. And yes, many things cross boundaries--Kid Rock, for example, scores hits on the pop, rock, country, and alternative charts, but I think it's generally accepted that he's "rock." But yes, he has appeal to lots of different people who like lots of different kinds of things. And that is why I think HE will endure, because of the diversity of fans he appeals to, without being watered down homogenized pablum focus-grouped to appeal to the masses.

There is nothing to be confused about. A lot of things relate to "classic rock." And a lot of what's popular now may be classics in the making. But I didn't say that the criteria was strictly an artist who "started" something...but you yourself kind of are when pointing to an artist's uniqueness....and the fact that we really, really, really like a particular artist doesn't necessarily mean that they will endure. There are many bands and soloists out there who are very talented, very popular, but in the grand scheme of things, I'm sorry to say it but there's nothing really that special about them. It's okay to like them and spend lots of money on their music and shows and shirts and stuff, but in the end they just don't have that special quality that in 20 years will still have everybody loving them, they'll just be on one of those Time-Life infommercials when they hawk their next nostalgia collection. We still pay attention to bands like Zeppelin and the Stones and the Who because of how they changed music; now think of all the artists who were also charting at those times who were talented and popular but we DON'T still consider relevant? Something separates them from the Zeppelins and the Stones and the Whos. They may have been very good and very respected in the industry, but they didn't endure because they didn't make enough of an impression for whatever reason.