Disqus - Latest Comments for gcn

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:49:19 -0000

It all makes sense... I certainly don't disagree. There is always a thread that connects artists across styles and era's...

Ok... so when can I expect to read an upcoming music history book written by you? You really know your stuff!! :)

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:42:20 -0000

Age is a just number! It's how you feel that matters! :)

Growing up, I was exposed primarily to disco and that is what defines music for me from the 70s (which is why I unfortunately cringe). And to your point, there was a lot of great music and artists who have left their mark and continue to influence artists of today and into the future.

Admittedly, I have never spent much time digging as deep into music history before the 1980s (Motown not withstanding because I've always loved that sound!), so my experience and exposure is limited to what I heard in passing and around the house as a kid.

Music is very fascinating because of the way it captures the culture, mood, politics, technology and reaction of an era. From the mainstream to the fringe and everything in between, history is created and captured for future generations to reflect and learn from.

One of the great things about generational conversations is embodied in the discussion we are having. I'm going carve out a bit of time to read and learn more about the period you experienced and which you closely relate to.

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

tomhigley — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:31:21 -0000

Oh. And there's more. James Taylor's Sweet Baby James hits the market in 1970. Yes's Fragile (1971) and Close to the Edge (1972) and Steely Dan's "Can't Buy a Thrill"(1972) (the year I graduated from high school) create the basis for influence across multiple musical styles from singer-songwriter, to Prog Rock to what would later become Indie Rock. The Doobie Brothers biggest and most notable hits, Long Train Runnin and China Grove are from 1973. Disco? Nowhere to be found. "The first article about disco was written in September 1973 by Vince Aletti for Rolling Stone Magazine." (Wikipedia) The phenomenon doesn't really take hold until the late 70s. But we've got that tendencies to label musical styles and trends based on ten year buckets that end in zero. [ . . . getting off the soapbox.]

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

tomhigley — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:14:28 -0000

Hey, but I AM old. We were called Uhuru Unlimited. Roscoe Mitchell was teaching at MSU at the time, and a friend in the band, Tony Holland, was studying saxophone with him. Roscoe used to come watch us play. Eddie Harris came to listen too, and gave us his advice. Not too long after that Tommy Debarge joined Switch, his brother Bobby's band ("discovered" by Barry White) and not too long after that the Debarge family hooked up with the Jacksons and Motown.

As for the 70s or 60s or whatever, I've often found that our tendency to frame decades in terms of 50s, 60s or 70s falls apart when you spend time exploring what was really happening at the time. For example, Dylan and the Beatles kick off an era that didn't begin in 1960, it starts about 3 or 4 years later, and it probably ends in the early 70s. And very interesting, hip funk grooves begin to give way to a more predictable, processed disco sound in about 1975. So what are the 70s? If you think of that period as mainly about disco, you miss a huge chunk of what was happening in the earlier part of that decade. Herbie Hancock's electronic experimentation - Chameleon, Watermelon Man, etc.; Sly and the Family Stone; Curtis Mayfield; The Ohio Players; Rufus; Gil Scott Heron; Parliment Funkadelic; Kool & the Gang; even what Quincy Jones did with the Brothers Johnson; and, of course, much much more.

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 22:42:37 -0000

Nope, you have never shared that story with me! What was the name of your band?

I hate to say this because the intent is not to make you feel old but I was a babbling 2 year old back when you were opening for Barry White... but got to say, that's must have been a cool experience!

Music makes such a powerful cultural statement and so vividly frames time periods. The 70s is an example of a decade of such "interesting", dare I say cheesy music! **cough** disco **cough**

Re: Best Music Tumblr Blogs

gcn — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 11:59:16 -0000

Thanks Mark! Great list... very helpful and thanks for putting it together and maintaining it. The quality, passion and maturity of all these music lovers is amazing! Doesn't get any better!

Re: Best Music Tumblr Blogs

PovertyJetSet — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 10:15:42 -0000

Oops! I've been following your blog for a long time! Sorry for the oversight, would have added you initially. :)

Re: Best Music Tumblr Blogs

gcn — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:48:03 -0000

Gotta plug my little music focused tumbleblog -- http://gcn.tumblr.com :)

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:46:27 -0000

Might make for a possible mashup?

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:45:39 -0000

Found it on http://thepowerofindependenttrucking.blogspot.com . Check out the blogroll for some other amazing music blogs. A goldmine of music!

Re: davehyndman.tumbl – Shout Out Louds - Go Sadness A great song from...

davehyndman — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:13:48 -0000

I'm an 80s guy (born in '66). I hear 100% Cure when I listen to these guys ... but happier.

Re: davehyndman.tumbl – Shout Out Louds - Go Sadness A great song from...

gcn — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:07:16 -0000

Great song and band! Thanks for sharing. Singer sounds like he is channeling Tim Booth from James... otherwise they've got the Cure influence lacing their songs. Love it!

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:46:09 -0000

With the weather we've been having here in TO... it sure feels like late October!!

Re: Will house values drop like they did in Japan?

gcn — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 22:56:40 -0000

I'm sure you've read John Maudlin's latest post... Buddy Can You Spare $5 trillion - http://smub.it/iry

Very interesting stats about Japan's growing debt, shrinking and aging population that isn't saving anymore. Both economies are so interwined and the US is going down the same path (debt/housing etc)... none of this is going to end well.

Where does China fit into the global macro picture?

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 07:58:14 -0000

Totally agree with you Tom. It's a last stand effort to protect old business models that will are being forced to change by new market driven economics.

Once we get past these tumultuous times and sustainable solutions come on stream, I really think we will find harmony between respecting artists rights and new technologies that will support the creative process.

Re: Stocktwits - IDEAS…Not Promises

twitter-7517052 — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:08:35 -0000

life is one long series of opportnities. I am the cynical optimist.

Re: Stocktwits - IDEAS…Not Promises

gcn — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:30:09 -0000

Ideas, not promise... like that. My fav line that I keep reminding myself is that in life there are many opportunities, but no guarantees.

Re: 50 Musicians That Use Twitter

gcn — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:04:04 -0000

Re: 50 Musicians That Use Twitter

gcn — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:03:18 -0000

For a list of over 1700 artists contributed by hundreds of Twitter users, check out the Artists on Twitter (AOT) list I've been managing since the end of January. Also covers record labels, music bloggers, music biz contacts, music web services and many other music categories.

AOT Link: http://tra.kz/v

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:57:59 -0000

Music discovery sites, music bloggers and music sharing has probably benefited some bands more than others. It has empowered a DIY ethic that some have embraced and used to their advantage.

Napster was a defining digital culture moment... a catchy name, lots of media exposure and a technology that made it easier than ever for novices to share music. Arguably, all recorded music was theoretically made available to the world.

It's the crazy, no-holds barred, got nothing to lose activity happening on the edges that over time becomes globally accepted and commercially mainstream. That's not the kind of thinking you would find in an established industry who's main goal is to preserve the status quo.

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

bankdraft — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:30:42 -0000

Ya, I like the sound a lot....female voice is beautiful.... Oddly enough, her voice sounds like the young girl in the Big Love series...

Send more anytime...

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:06:18 -0000

I'm a big Smiths fan... so you'll see a few of these covers posted over time!!

The Welcome Wagon is such an interesting band... the lead singer started his own church in Brooklyn.

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 08:44:38 -0000

Friday is a couple of days late! On Wed, woke up thinking it was Friday... :)

Thanks for the greetings... you have a great weekend!

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 11:22:29 -0000

Yes Tom, you are absolutely right. The technology is the least of the music business hurdles. There are enough brains out there to solve any technical challenge.

Is it better to stop fighting the trend and resist change or be part of shaping the future?

I could see a "balkanization" happen where some bands/copyright holders/music industry players progress forward and embrace the music fan and market driven economics, while another group will continue to grasp on tightly to old ways of thinking and doing business.

It might take a generation (or two) but major music business changes are happening and change does not wait for everyone to be ready for it. If anything, it will ultimately punish those who fight against it.

As we have already talked about, we certainly live in exciting and uncertain times in the music and technology space. The foundation is being laid today for a major music business evolution. It's great to be a part of it!

Re: Serve Well and Be Well Served

gcn — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 23:29:40 -0000

You should check out the rest of the album... they are streaming 4 other songs . http://dscvry.net