[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: Who vs Zep (yet again...)




Amira, Re:

> I'm having a hard time convincing my (hopeless) brother that the Who are at
> LEAST as good a band as Led Zeppelin if not better.

Ah, the old problem again:  `My taste is better than your taste, and therefore
my favourite band is AT LEAST as good as yours!' :-)

> His argument is that Led Zep songs are more melodic and intricate than Who
> songs---those are "just" power chords.

A way too general statement, nevertheless containing some truth.  Well, usually
I prefer `just' power chords to lengthily elaborated melodies...

> He says that overall he finds Led Zeppelin's music more "interesting."

Useless to argue against a very personal opinion like that one...

> David said [...] "the bass is not a melodic instrument."

Nonsense.  One reason why I like The Who and Zep is that both bands - unlike
many others - don't use the bass just to smooth out and support the rhythm of
the drums.  John Entwistle's and John Paul Jones's basses frequently play a
prominent role in their bands' songs, more often being very melodic than not.
As a good reference, I recommend your brother to listen to `Go to the Mirror!'.
And what about Zep's `Dazed and Confused'?

> And of course I would be disappointed if I wasn't deluged with mail from ML, 
> WF and Bernd regarding what to tell him.

I don't think that you could persuade your brother if you started with `Some
big mouth on the Who list said that...'  If you really want to convince him,
then try to verbalize your own impressions why YOU think that The Who are the
better (and, of course, the best) band.  This is the only thing that might
work...

Look, we are here on the list because we want to share information about The
Who and discuss our impressions of their records and concerts.  It is not our
aim to proselytize at least one Zep fan a day, since we all know that once we
start comparing two bands, most of the criteria will be matters of personal
taste which are not arguable.

My only advice for you is the following:  As long as your brother is willing to
do so, have him listen to some of your favourite Who songs, and listen to some
of his favourite Zep stuff in exchange.  Discuss.  And if this leads to
nothing, then stop it.

There are much worse problems than having a brother who prefers Zep to The
Who...

Cheers,

Bernd