50 massively depressing facts about music

**grogg** · 05-10-2012 07:52 AM

Originally Posted by KevMcNJ

Never heard of many of the acts mentioned but thats understandable.

Im kind of glad Pink Floyd never hit #1. Ditto The Clash.

And Id bet Waters, Gilmour, MAson & Wright never lost a moments sleep over the fact that they never hit #1.

And Syd was furious that their act was getting popular.

I am not one to get hung up over what was #1 or what stood the test of time. That's why I never turned to the the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as some sort of vindication of my musical taste. Badfinger will probably never make the RRHoF but I don't care. No Dice and Straight Up still ranks up there with the best of the CDs I own.

The biggest hit Todd Rundgren ever had was Hello It's Me, good song but I don't play it very often, opting instead for Couldn't I just Tell You and the first side of Something/Anything.

Marianne Faithful is supposed to be this landmark cutting edge singer in the late 70/80s, not to mention the chick who Mick liked but I thought Sandie Shaw was much better. Morrissy and the Smiths must have thought so too.

It's not that I don't like these landmark songs that was mentioned above. It's just that they have been played to death on our rock stations around here. I don't understand how the entire catalog of music by the Doors, Bowie, Van, Zep, ACDC and others can be cut down to just a half dozen songs or less that get the constant airplay.

I listen to Indie Rock more and more. There is some excellent indie out there. The record company giants won't touch them and that's kinda depressing. Most will sell less than 500 downloads on ITunes but I don't care. I will listen anyway.

**fasteddy** · 05-10-2012 09:03 AM

Originally Posted by CARTer

FWIW, I was four years old in 1971, and I'm not suggesting that was the swan song for rock. I'm just pointing out the amazing amount of music that was released that year that remains popular to this day

YOUR list of songs from 1971 makes the list of #1 songs of 1971 look like crap. JMO.

**MD-IRLFAN** · 05-10-2012 09:46 AM

Originally Posted by RS2

Not all is lost in music. There are still the Foo Fighters.
Who continue to do things like this.

Foo Fighters and Clutch are by far the two best hard working American rock n roll bands playing today. Wasting Light is the best rock album to be released in recent memory IMO and Clutch have been putting out high quality rock n roll for years now.

**Jamski** · 05-10-2012 09:59 AM

Originally Posted by Kurt Cobain

Someone mentioned that Kate Bush was annoying. Fine. I'll take Kate, they can have Lady Gaga, Katie Perry, Beyonce and Celine Dionne.

Kate Bush > Lady Gaga, Katie Perry, Beyonce and Celine Dionne combined.

**MoparsRule** · 05-10-2012 10:04 AM

Janes Addiction is every bit as strong today as they were in 1991. Saw them a month ago in Louisville and it was another incredible show.

And The Black Crowes had a killer run with some amazing shows the past several years and now theey are on indefinite hiatus.

**Ajax** · 05-10-2012 10:38 AM

Originally Posted by fasteddy

I wasn't a real hippy, but I was close enough for the dope and sex.

Excellent!

**Ajax** · 05-10-2012 10:42 AM

Originally Posted by Kurt Cobain

Someone mentioned that Kate Bush was annoying. Fine. I'll take Kate, they can have Lady Gaga, Katie Perry, Beyonce and Celine Dionne.

Kate Bush > Lady Gaga, Katie Perry, Beyonce and Celine Dionne combined.

I said that... You can have them all

The only chick I listen to and enjoy (as of late) is Susan Tedeschi.

**Hardscrabble** · 05-10-2012 11:41 AM

Originally Posted by fasteddy

Well, that and "Indiana Reservation". Where is that BTW?

D'oh!!!!!

**Hardscrabble** · 05-10-2012 11:48 AM

Originally Posted by grogg

The record company giants won't touch them and that's kinda depressing. Most will sell less than 500 downloads on ITunes but I don't care. I will listen anyway.

Unlike 1971 (since that's the year that seems to be of focus), when record companies would take the time to build up an artist or band and would be happy to break even, the economics of the major labels does not allow for that nowdays...

The fact that a band that never lost their record company one dime, made modest profits for said company, and over a million dollars a year for themselves just by playing live in modest venues can't live in that enviroment, who can?

**Jim Wilke** · 05-10-2012 12:48 PM

Originally Posted by grogg

I am not one to get hung up over what was #1 or what stood the test of time. That's why I never turned to the the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as some sort of vindication of my musical taste. Badfinger will probably never make the RRHoF but I don't care. No Dice and Straight Up still ranks up there with the best of the CDs I own.

The biggest hit Todd Rundgren ever had was Hello It's Me, good song but I don't play it very often, opting instead for Couldn't I just Tell You and the first side of Something/Anything.

I'm partial to 'Nearly Human,' one of my favorite albums of the late '80s.

**MD-IRLFAN** · 05-10-2012 12:55 PM

Originally Posted by MoparsRule

Janes Addiction is every bit as strong today as they were in 1991. Saw them a month ago in Louisville and it was another incredible show.

And The Black Crowes had a killer run with some amazing shows the past several years and now theey are on indefinite hiatus.

Janes Addiction. There's a band that just never clicked with me. I've never seen what the big deal is. The presence of Dave Navarro hasn't helped things either. The Black Crowes. They have always seemed to be their own worst enemy. A solid foundation that has never really reached its full potential.

**Kurt Cobain** · 05-10-2012 11:09 PM

Originally Posted by MoparsRule

Janes Addiction is every bit as strong today as they were in 1991. Saw them a month ago in Louisville and it was another incredible show.

And The Black Crowes had a killer run with some amazing shows the past several years and now theey are on indefinite hiatus.

Had to miss that show. Hope it was better than the last time I saw them, which was in Noblesville in 2009. They played with Nine Inch Nails and while NIN was awesome, I thought Perry and the boys had an off night and mailed it in. Certainly not like I remember when I saw them in 1990 after "Habitual de la Ritual" was released. Saw them with my brother in Los Angeles when I was visiting him there. Now that was a show! Probably why I was disappointed in seeing them 20+ years later.

**jiman1973** · 05-11-2012 06:37 AM

I didn't know probably 80% of the people or groups in the list that pretentioius S.O.B. put together, and that really doesn't depress me at all. Nor did any of the facts posted in the original link. Whatever. To each their own.

**OrdinaryRaceFan** · 05-11-2012 08:07 AM

Originally Posted by jiman1973

I didn't know probably 80% of the people or groups in the list that pretentioius S.O.B. put together, and that really doesn't depress me at all. Nor did any of the facts posted in the original link. Whatever. To each their own.

+1

What I personally find sort of depressing is the way many critics have a stone set list of "worthy" bands and artists; which they endlessly use for meaningless comparisons, in order to either compliment or put down another band/artist.

The article is just a caricature of this very habit. Throw one random comparison to prove your point - here, it is that the public have awful tastes. [band X] is selling more than [band Y], however [band Y]>[band X], so it must be that the public are idiots, right? OK, fine, but what if your reader don't have a clue on who-the-hell is [band X] or [band Y]? Why don't you rather try to explain what makes [band X] so great and [band Y] so bad?

This is why I love that video from the Axis of Awesome guys. They show up, and BOOM, in 4 minutes they show how and why 40+ bands lack so much originality. With no snobism whatsoever, and with a great sence of humor

**MoparsRule** · 05-11-2012 08:15 AM

Originally Posted by MD-IRLFAN

Janes Addiction. There's a band that just never clicked with me. I've never seen what the big deal is. The presence of Dave Navarro hasn't helped things either. The Black Crowes. They have always seemed to be their own worst enemy. A solid foundation that has never really reached its full potential.

IMO, Janes is just about as good as it gets, especially live. The Ritual album is solid from start to finish. Put that thing on some headphones some time... it is sonic ecstasy in headphones.

And yes, like a lot of jam bands, The BC Roadshow can be their own worst enemy in the studio, but live they click every time.

**MoparsRule** · 05-11-2012 08:18 AM

Originally Posted by Kurt Cobain

Had to miss that show. Hope it was better than the last time I saw them, which was in Noblesville in 2009. They played with Nine Inch Nails and while NIN was awesome, I thought Perry and the boys had an off night and mailed it in. Certainly not like I remember when I saw them in 1990 after "Habitual de la Ritual" was released. Saw them with my brother in Los Angeles when I was visiting him there. Now that was a show! Probably why I was disappointed in seeing them 20+ years later.

Substantially better than that show. Perry was sick the full week leading up to the NIN/JA show at Deer Creek in 2009. And it definitely showed. Good, but far from great show that night.

The theater tour they are on right now has just been amazing. No light show or anything, just music with some odd video & theater of the weird thrown into the background.
And The Louisville Palace is a fantastic venue... if you ever have the chance to see a show there check it out.

And I can only imagine how incredible that 1990 show was, especially in LA!!!

**Frank Capua** · 05-11-2012 09:16 AM

Originally Posted by grogg

The biggest hit Todd Rundgren ever had was Hello It's Me, good song but I don't play it very often, opting instead for Couldn't I just Tell You and the first side of Something/Anything.

What? No Love for "You Left Me Sore"?

**MD-IRLFAN** · 05-11-2012 09:43 AM

Originally Posted by MoparsRule

IMO, Janes is just about as good as it gets, especially live. The Ritual album is solid from start to finish. Put that thing on some headphones some time... it is sonic ecstasy in headphones.

I've got friends that are huge Janes fans and they tell me the same thing. Maybe i'll give them another spin.

**MoparsRule** · 05-11-2012 10:23 AM

Originally Posted by MD-IRLFAN

I've got friends that are huge Janes fans and they tell me the same thing. Maybe i'll give them another spin.

The guitar in Three Days is amongst my favorite in any song.

**mattndallas** · 05-11-2012 10:35 AM

Originally Posted by MD-IRLFAN

Foo Fighters and Clutch are by far the two best hard working American rock n roll bands playing today. Wasting Light is the best rock album to be released in recent memory IMO and Clutch have been putting out high quality rock n roll for years now.

They're English and stuff, but I (we) usually go see 75+ shows a year, and these guys are the best I've seen all year...

**mattndallas** · 05-11-2012 10:44 AM

Originally Posted by mattndallas

(we) usually go see 75+ shows a year, and these guys are the best I've seen all year...

Granted, this show was @ the Granada Theatre on Greenville Mar 17th, the night after the Greenville Ave St Paddy's Parade (think the night before the 500 on Georgetown, with a little LESS WT), AND, Indiana had just advanced to the Sweet 16, so I had been drinking, but still, these guys (and chick) bring it...