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Re: American Music - Shallow?



>I haven't heard all the  Humble Pie stuff, but remember being seriously
>underwhelmed by a double-live  album.

Mark:

That album (ROCKING THE FILLMORE) was all Heavy Metal (at the time,
anyway...so were The Who, then) boogie. Not the deepest of music, but fun to
listen to. Some of the studio albums were much better.
I can't help but bemoan the fate of Marriot...he was (IMHO) one of the best
Rock vocalists, and a damned good guitarist, too.

>We're certainly lucky to  have had such a golden age in the 60's and 70's,
but I think this was  kick-started by a big British interest in American R&B
in the early 60's, which  all the British bands of the time cut their teeth
on. How all that songwriting  inspiration came along at once, I'm not really
sure. I think if you balance it  all out over the years, there's just as
many good, original American acts.

It seems that there are surges of creative music, which degenerate into more
passive entertainment over time. I'd say the cycle runs: `56-59, `63-`73,
`77-82, and most recently `89-94. Please note the dates with relevance to
The Who's work...whether there's a connection or not, who can say? But we
see their best period (`65-73), their end (`82), and their first reunion
(`89) are all in there.
But I agree...American R&B was creative, at least musically, and that with
Blues certainly inspired the British Invasion (and very notably, The
Who...who, on their first album did both R&B and Blues), which sparked the
American Response...
You may be right in the balancing of the acts. I'd have to sit down with it
and name names. It has always seemed to me that the British side is a tad
heavier, but I am predisposed in that direction.

>I believe it, the same thing happened with The Monkees over here.

Amazing!

>Remember one of them was British, so please don't feel entirely
responsible for them.

Davy Jones. Ooof! Started out as an child actor in musicals, didn't he? But
I think that US can still claim responsibility; the creators of The Monkees
were looking specifically for a Brit. So they could cash in on the
pro-English thing.

>Music from the Big Pink? I've heard that described as something of a
landmark  album. I've been trying to find it on CD for ages.

It's great, but IMHO the second album (self-titled) is the best of them.

>I'm also aware of Leslie West as a guitarist, but only in passing.

Both The Band and Mountain used strong American motifs for their work. The
Band, for instance, had a song called Across The Great Divide which
chronicled some of the aspects of the wagon trains going West. Mountain had
one called The Great Train Robbery, which focused on a "cowboy" era robbery.
Also, perhaps their most famous song was Nantucket Sleighride, about a New
England whaler.

>I remember reading about that (the drug bust, not the impersonation).
Didn't he  do some sort of deal with Jimmy Carter (allegedly)?

God, I hope not! I voted for him! 
I don't think Carter was very anti-drug, at least I don't recall that. He
was friends with Dylan, too. Better than Fleetwood Mac (as with Clinton),
I'll admit.

>It's their earlier (Duane) work I prefer too. I just think Dickie Betts
never  gets enough credit for his contribution. What was your job with them?

I was a roadie. And you're right about Betts. Beside Duane, he just appeared
so much weaker. Like Jones and Moon, perhaps. Not bad, just not nearly as good.

>All the British bands you've mentioned were strong on content, certainly,
but  we had our share of content-challenged ones: ELP, Rick Wakeman, plus
most of  the heavy metal lot.

Motorhead, Status Quo...Spinal Tap.
Hey! I was a roadie for ELP! Watch it!
I think that ELP and Yes (and King Crimson) were trying to take Rock music
farther by combining it with classical (and jazz) influences, with varying
degrees of success (few band were as successful at that as were The Who).
They should get points for that. They had their earlier period where they
were great, then dropped off sharply. I wouldn't have used them to argue the
shallowness of music; there are better examples. Empty from beginning to
end, like Duran Duran or Asia (oh, Carl...why didja do it?).

>Most of ours were purged by Punk, of course, but yours may  have survived
>longer.

Yeah...there's a Journey/Styx/Kansas/REO Speedwagon sort of tour going
around right now. I wonder how one can tell when one band ends and another
begins...

>Can't remember where for the moment, but I've read that  Pete was scared of
>Hendrix. Something along the lines of "This black American  guy has come
along >to take it all back from us and steal our women".

That's a great quote. I do know that Townshend (and Clapton) felt put upon
by Hendrix. I assume that Pete had the addition reason (beyond the guitar
skills) of having his "act" ripped off.

>I'm grateful that we have a musical tradition but in a very real sense, we
took  it from your country, reprocessed, repackaged and re-exported it. Much
as I'd  like to, I just find it impossible to agree that British is on the
whole  better.

I was thinking back farther with the tradition and history. Like Classical
and Dancehall. We had Folk, then Blues, then Rock And Roll. British music
had that one more element of quality. Or so it appears to me.
But look how much The Kinks (for instance) took from Dancehall! And they are
definitely a quality band.

>Just out of interest, could it be "inventory log-jam" which is keeping on
reminding you of American bands you'd possibly rather forget? e.g. "if
anyone  else brings in a copy of Chicago VIII..."

Ha ha! Yeah, I hate to see a latter-day Chicago CD come in here. But you
know...they still sell. Amazing as it may seem, I can sell all of the REO,
Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kansas, Chicago, Bolton, etc etc. I can get. It's the
college and British newer music that goes slow (because people are unaware
of them, given the crappy radio in this area). Oh yeah, and Robert Plant and
Palmer (both British, you notice).
BTW, have you heard The Wildhearts? A bit Pop/Punk/Alternative, and British,
and I love them. Big Who influence there, in the drumming and some of the
guitar.



                   Cheers                   ML


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