Music Notes

If you’re like me, after all the fattening food and other libations have been consumed, the house party messes have been disposed of, and the strains of “Auld Lang Syne” have subsided, there’s nostalgia for the year and times left behind, but a strong feeling about what is good about heading into the new year, particularly in music.

Here is some random goodness, as we move on:

Independent record stores are still, barely, out there…..: Look, I’ll be the first one to wax poetically about the ease of shopping on line, at home, in our jammies and sweats. But, thankfully there are still enough independent stores out there, fighting the good fight against the so-called “big box” behemoths like Wal-Mart, Best Buy and the like, whose sheer quantity enables them to out price the independents, thereby competitively driving more and more of them out of business, as the music doldrums continue. You want good music at a fair price in a great atmosphere? Go independent, I say.

…..and, even more so, many independent artists are still out there…..: While the major record companies still scratch their heads wondering what went wrong (Hello? the music sucks. Hello?) independent artists are following the groundbreaking example of Ani DiFranco from over a decade ago, and developing, marketing and selling their own music, frequently from their own web sites and/or record labels. There’s a ton of them out there, many, too many, to name here, but take a gander, try one or two and enjoy music on the cutting edge, again. And, maybe, just maybe, the giants will take notice…..Nah.

Musical comebacks, galore……: The Police. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band. Stevie Wonder. The wondrous and seemingly ageless Levon Helm (who also made one of the most heartfelt videos of the year). The Eagles. Led Zeppelin. Van Halen. And….on and on. These reunions seem, to some degree, to thankfully happen just about every year, but, maybe it was just me, but so many, many talented people came back to the stage and/or recording studio last year. To steal the Eagles’ ironic and iconic line of over a decade ago, hell has indeed frozen over. And, so what if it cost us a second mortgage to see each act. They were worth it, in spades.

….and some that just keep on ticking……: The Rolling Stones, grossing another gazillion dollars after a two-year world tour, putting an exclamation point on their 45 years together. The criminally underrated, and some times unappreciated, Poco, still “pickin’ and a-grinnin” 40 years after they almost single-handedly merged country with rock at the Troubadour in Hollywood. John Fogerty, who gave us a bit of that Creedence song and a whole lot more, all the while clearly enjoying being on a stage more than just about any other performer I’ve seen. Mavis Staples, holding her family’s soul high. The eternally-young Ralph Stanley after, what, about 70 years? Bob Dylan, still taking after his hero Woody Guthrie, on his truly Never-Ending Tour. Retirement? Forget it about. That word is not even in these guys’ vocabulary. As long as they are out there, good music is safe.

Artists who still make us think, stand up and take notice: Randy Newman’s “A Few Words in Defense of Our Country.” Just about everything that Steve Earle writes and sings. A substantial portion of Bruce Springsteen’s “Magic.” Heck, even some of the new Eagles’ songs. Once in a while, we need a nudge, hey, maybe a good shove, toward thinking about the world around us, and these artists, and many others, take us there.

New musical discoveries: For me, one of the great things about being a music fan is discovering new singers and musicians who just blow me away with their talents. And, last year, like, happily, so many others, there were several that took my breath away. Among them were Josh Groban (now that guy can sing), Arcade Fire (I, for one, don’t see the Springsteen comparison, and they’re certainly good enough not to need it), The White Stripes (yep, I finally got it…), Miranda Lambert (now, that’s country), Sharon Jones (now, that’s soul), and Band of Horses (now, that’s rock and roll). I admit that I can be a musical fuddy-duddy at times, unwilling to check out new artists, but sometimes, when you do take the plunge, the results are well worth it.

Musical Comedy Ain’t Pretty: And, finally, with all the distressing news about decreased sales, the closing of independent stores and the like, it was nice to have a diversion at times. So, a big shout out to Britney Spears, every artist who made a “standards” cover album (“paging Rod Stewart…your rockin’ soul has left the building”) and pretty much anyone and anything connected to American Idol. Hey, c’mon, you can’t make up this stuff!

So, what will ’08 bring? I, for one, can’t wait to find out.

You with me?