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Steve Ison
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Steve Ison

3/20/2013 4:03:50 PM ---- Updated 3/20/2013 4:25:13 PM

Whatever Happened to the song ?
Its weird -It used to be artists had to learn to write cool songs just to survive in the buisness -but
nowadays people just seem to want the voice n the groove..Thats really all they seem to respond to....The writing -musically speaking -beyond just being 'catchy' n 'well produced' is almost an irrelevance
I love a good voice n a great groove too-but need something more..

Big artists with huge personalities n great images from The Beatles to David Bowie to Kate Bush to The Police still had to have stunning,beautifully written fresh dynamic songs to break thru ( Please Pleae Me, Space Oddity,Wuthering Heights,Roxanne),it wasn't enough then just to have a great voice and a 'serviceable' song - the public demanded more inspiration and imagination than that..

Holland,Dozier.Holland really hit big as writers with the Four Tops utilising to the max Levi Stubbs emotionally urgent voice with the stunningly major-minor drama of 'Reach Out i'll Be There..
Professional writers that they were,they exploited that formula -but were so good at it that the follow-up singles 'standing In The Shadows Of Love' 'Bernadette' '7 Rooms Of Gloom' 'You Keep Running Away' were nearly as stellar..
Its like you HAD to be that good then to survive..
You couldn't just Xerox your big smash hit and hope people would buy it all over again-tho many tried that trick -the public wouldn't be fooled that easily then

I don't hear brilliant songwriting musically speaking (other than the Bond theme -where someone else wrote the music) from a modern international megastar like Adele..She survives on 'serviceable' pop of the kind that 1000s n 1000s of people all over the world could write equally well in their sleep -tho of course most wouldn't have her voice to deliver them..

You couldn't say that about those breakthru songs by The Beatles.Bowie etc..They're all brilliant ones that very very few people signed or not could have the talent or inspiration to write..
If they were written now tho they'd probably be stillborn tho.Passed over.They wouldn't even be recognised as being great.They'd be left to gather dust in some lost corner of the 'net while Gangnam Style racks up its 200 zillionth play..
THATS what the people want now..
There dosn't seem to be a need or demand
or hunger in any genre of music nowadays for magic anymore..

A magic that actually demands YOU PAY FULL ATTENTION and be fully present for 3 minutes rather than texting or playing a computer game while tapping your feet unconsciously to it in the background

Its like people have become more creatively dead in alot of ways since the 60s/70s.
More conservative n dull..
They must have 'cos the music they demand that reflects them is more conservative n dull..
Their senses bludgeoned into submission by the giant quantized beat and the huge compressed fuzz powerchord..Their ears corporately trained n compromised over the years by increasingly slow-witted, leaden n predictable harmonic changes...
Till thats ALL they want....

They don't want to be told a story thru music any more..They don't want their consciousness changed by music anymore.They don't want to be SUPRISED.

I think Tom here said that there's so much music everywhere now people have become completely
numb to it...Its as free as water and its for the most part a meaningless background hum..
Its taken a distant backstage role - -wheras it used to be centre stage in most peoples lives..


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Bryon Tosoff

3/20/2013 4:23:00 PM


yes indeed, you are so right, cant say much more then what you have presented here Steve, and being one who knows and understands and has learned his craft so well, you can speak as one who is an authority on the subject. I would love for this to go to Bob Lefsetz , ,he would absolutely dig what you said, because it is the hard and cutting truth of the matter


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Stoneman

3/20/2013 9:55:59 PM


I agree with everything you are saying here Steve. The excellence and brilliance that we saw during the 60's and 70's seems to have dried up and blown away. The entire industry is so caught up in a fight for those few dollars remaining in a once viable marketplace that they have lost all sight of the art of song and the nuances involved with creating something special and lasting. Mostly, all we hear these days is fad music. The flavor of the week. Quite often it sounds like last weeks ear burner. I seldom listen to the radio these days because I noticed that the play list is about 10 songs long and I like maybe one of them. Actually, I am surprised that radio even continues to exist because everyone has their own play list on their own ipod. Who's listening to the radio? Is it even relevant these days? A tough question that time will answer for sure.

Also, it is certainly not a case of missing talent. There is so much talent out there and there are so many would be great writers if only the discovery machine operated in the way that it did in the past. Back in my day you were discovered and presented while out on the road performing. Now days every kid with a computer and a Casio keyboard is making his own brand of racket and calling himself a producer. Some of the stuff I have heard has instantly made me nauseous but I know that it could probably compete with today's standard. Such a sad state of things. Today's music listener wants you to put on a raw meat dress or beat up your girlfriend. It also helps if you have been shot a few times or spent time in jail. That alone may get you stardom.

But, I hate to be labelled a complainer so I often like to explore the object of my angst and look for possible solutions. It is one thing to speak the truth and another to look for ways of creating a new truth. Each of us has their own role to play. Mine is that of mentor and educator. It is through those mediums that I am aiming to hopefully change the status quo. Well, at least in my little acre of the world. Yours may be to bring the fact that there is a dearth of good music to the attention of those who have forgotten what "magic" sounds like. You definitely write about it with great passion and wit. Maybe your criticisms will spark a musical revolution. That would be cool!

For the past 20 years the schools have faced declining budgets which has limited and in some cases eliminated all music education from the curriculum. Part of the discovery process use to begin within the educational and religious sector. Imagine the next Stevie Wonder sitting in a school where there is no piano, music teacher or school band. Or, the next Jimi Hendrix never getting his hands on a guitar. Or even more, the next Aretha Franklin never having the opportunity to work her way up through the ranks of a choir. The reality of that possibility exists in a society that values the football team over the school band and music teachers. Too bad that they even have to make a choice. But they do. I believe that talent is not found. It is born. It's kind of like Columbus discovering America. Uh, excuse me, there were people already living there! Just as talent already existed in Elvis, George Clinton and Marvin Gaye. But someone found it, recognized it, nurtured it and presented it to the world. We hear nothing but junk on the airwaves because the music industry is looking for (you guessed it) junk. The music industry is looking for junk because that is what is selling. You mentioned Gangnam style, a perfect example! One solution is that we, the listening public must stop listening to and buying junk. They (the music industry) are business people that mostly care about the bottom line more than about artistry. The great music is not there because no one is buying great music. No one is buying great music because great music never gets heard. But it certainly does exist. I have heard it right here in my neck O' the woods and wished that I had the resources to get it heard by the masses. But I don't.

How do we get people to stop listening to junk? Well I think it begins with comprehensive music education for both the artists and the listening public. We must regain a historical perspective in order to cement the reality that the magic is missing. Most of the people who buy music today have never heard of any of the people you mentioned. So, they have never heard their music. They have never witnessed "magic". They have never heard a prolific song like "That's The Way Of The World" (E.W. & F.) Or, an important statement like "Everyday People" (Sly And The Family Stone) Or, a magical musical moment like "Dock Of The Bay" (Otis Redding). These are examples of songs that affected my little world in the neighborhood of my youth. They inspired me to strive for my own artistic statements. The Dells, Delfonics, Bob Marley, Temptations, Rare Earth, AWB, Al Green. Steely Dan, Deep Purple and so many more became defining points of my own artistry. Musical images that still permeate my own vision.

But I teach my students about this music and so much more. I challenge them to write songs that will have a lasting meaning. I push them to give everything they have on stage every single time they perform. I encourage them to learn the latest technology so that they can create their own opportunities to learn and grow. But I also am very critical of the status quo and (just as I was taught) I teach them to find that untapped ability within themselves. I want them to forge their own creative path but to be armed with skill, knowledge and sometimes the harshness of truth. Sometimes I listen to their work and say "Make it better or scrap it and start over".

I know what I do is not much to counteract the disparity in musical worth that you have so vividly outlined. But in my crazy mind it makes me proud to know that when I die there will be a few who are left with the truth about what an artist should be and aspire to. They will not be able to settle with creating junk. Sure, they will strive to make a living. That's what people in poverty do. They do what it takes to rise above it and create opportunities for others. No, they won't sound like Marvin Gaye or the Beatles. But what they do will be just as beautiful and important. A bold statement I know. But I am the eternal optimist. I believe that great music will have a great resurgence. In my mind the 60's and 70's were not the end of great music. They were the beginning and example that will bring forth even greater music. Yes, I said it. I know its probably blasphemy for most musicians here but I believe that there will be artists who are greater than the Beatles, Bowie, Wonder and Curtis Mayfield. When all the shine and gloss of technology wears down. There will only be the artist and the audience left in its place. People are already tired of "auto tune". Go figure!

Sorry for being so long winded here but I have to get in all my points before they lock me out of being able to respond (like they did the last time) in one of your posts. A different or variable opinion is not a good thing to have here on the Pipeline. Just say'n.......

Much Respect Steve,
Stoneman


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Chandra Moon

3/21/2013 2:07:15 AM


I suppose I agree and disagree at the same time! I think an awful lot depends where you go to listen to music.

Nowadays you're absolutely right that it seems most of the mainstream music is manufactured pop pap and I personally can't abide it - teenagers have enjoyed pop since time immemorial and "our" era wasn't immune to pop garbage either!

However, there are still plenty of wonderful independent songwriters around playing live in all sorts of places. They are not necessarily recognised, or even recorded but they are out there.

I go to a lot of ''songwriter" type evenings, gigs and open mics here in Bristol and every now and again you hear an absolute gem of a song which can still blow you away, touch the heartstrings or soul in that magical way.

You don't have to listen to the music you don't like - you can put on your old albums or listen to the miriad of independent artists around and keep making music yourself.

The ghastly music machine will always be churning out the same old same old but I for one won't be listening to it or trying to be sucked into it. I think it's a nightmare scenario having to play to the tune of the music industry and I'm glad I had a career in something else before I started playing music. That way, I can fully enjoy it now but have no expectations of trying to break into the mainstream (not that I'm comparing myself to the "greats" that you're referring to here of course!!!!!).


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Richard Scotti

3/21/2013 12:10:11 PM ---- Updated 3/21/2013 5:37:13 PM


Every generation feels that their culture is the best. It's a biological imperative that one identifies with the era of one's youth. Nostalgia is a very powerful force and it is often said that the "good old days" were not always as good as we thought they were.

We sometimes see the past through rose colored glasses but I totally agree that music is no longer center stage in society as it was in the 60's and 70's but that its the reality we face whether we like it or not. It's not the end of the world but it is close to the end of magic in music.

All we can do as artists is to stay true to what we believe and to keep the magic alive. We can show young people what real music is by exposing it to them and teaching them about it. I recently saw something on TV where young singers had never heard the song "Let It Be" or "In My Life!!!!" They NEVER HEARD THOSE SONGS ~ EVER!! Whereas I've heard many great songs that were popular before I was born. The powers that be are erasing history so that young people won't know what they're missing. To be ignorant of history is to....uh, be ignorant!

The music of the 60's and 70's should be taught in schools! We have to show the difference between life-changing magic and fake disposable entertainment.

Obituaries on the death of music are premature. As Chandra pointed out ~ if you don't like a form of music, don't listen to it. And if you are searching for magic, there is plenty of it to be found not just from the past but from many new artists. Young people are not stupid but if they are never exposed to something, they can't evaluate it because in their universe, it doesn't exist. We have to show them that great music does exist and I know many young people, especially musicians who I
mentor who love the Doors and Led Zep and Bowie and despise the music that is being forced down their throats today. I revel in playing vintage music for them and then help them try to put those elements into their music.

Let's be realistic. The world is changing, in some ways for the good and in some ways for the worse. We mustn't despair and act like all hope is lost. People of all ages have the right to like whatever kind of music they want and the crappy stuff does seem yo get the most attention from the media but there's plenty of good music being written if (A) you write it yourself or (B) you search for it or (C) you teach others to do it. The magic of the Golden Age of song writing can never be replicated in it's entirety but it can be kept alive for present and future generations if we try hard enough.


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The Dorroughbys

3/21/2013 6:20:55 PM


I think the role of the ubiquitous music video can't be undersestimated. Nowadays, a song is mere background music to the images, which are ultimately more about the artist's persona than any subject in the actual song - how cool they look and dress, how many 'hos' they can pull, how much money and style they've got etc. Music videos are short 'cult of personality' films in which the actual music is a barely relevant backdrop, just some blah blah in the background.


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Bob Elliott

3/22/2013 12:02:05 PM


Well, I guess if you did a scientific study and graphed the amount of chordal/melodic complexity in music you would find it has only gone down since about the 40's, and to me that's a shame, but at the same time I am pretty into good hip hop.

But whatever complaints I could lodge regarding the industry or the audience never have any effect on my own place in it all. I mean, there's something I want out of me, and whatever everyone else is doing or not doing never let's me off the hook of something I want out of me, and so it all becomes somewhat irrelevant to my musical life.
I have at my fingertips the entire world of recorded music pretty much (just try Rhapsody), so there isn't even enough time for me to listen to all the wonderful recordings that exist in the world that a person like me feeds on. I'm not underfed in that way at all. The time anything came out isn't all that significant to me in the bigger picture of what I use it for and what I need to hear and what I need to make.

Also, I guess the other thing about the way I view it all wouldn't stand up to much scrutiny, but I look at it thus:

I have not heard the indie songwriter that I need to learn off of in the way I am compelled to learn off of Lennon/McCartney, Brian Wilson, Marvin, Al Green, numerous experts from the first half of the twentieth or say Mozart, Bach and Beethoven.

Someone like me feeds off of inspired works. I have heard works I like out of indies, but I haven't been compelled to contemplate them for that lift-you-higher-as-an-artist quality, can't ignore it because it's deep under my skin quality and I can't shake it.

As far as I am aware, no one is studying my own work in that way either. So, to me, it is of no importance (or very little) what the modern audience or industry is doing since I place the quality blame pretty squarely on me and my coartists. When we create something of that kind that musicians have to almost study because they are compelled to get that into them in order to continue to create, you know the effect say Jimi had on many, until I hear that sort of thing, I think it's not that important what the audience and industry are doing, the key is going to be in what we are doing.


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Tom O'Brien

3/23/2013 3:37:44 PM


This feels like a very important issue, and I wish the passion here was recognized on a bigger level.

I feel like a Medieval monk who has spent his life miraculously copying the Bible in the most elaborate illuminated script, only to have Gutenburg come along and say, "You're services are no longer required."

I have made allusions to shamanistic traditions here before, that we songwriters are the priests/priestesses of modern society. We may not have literally suckled at the teats of Lennon and McCartney, but we are a part of their legacy, as they were a part of another legacy, and so on. Songwriting is a religion. Some people are just lay people, some are priests, and some are saints. We look to the saints as examples of virtue and aspire to be like them.

So, whatever it is that is passing for musical culture of this age, it's not the music that we all share, that we hold sacred. It's going to pass. Anything that shallow cannot live long. There will always be those who are after the riches. And then there are those of us who are all about the spirit in music. All good music has soul.


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Hop On Pop

3/25/2013 5:47:05 AM ---- Updated 3/25/2013 5:51:08 AM


Why does complex = good?
Does that make Hank Williams ? good?

A good song is a good song, no matter the "complexity" of the chord structure and harmonic invention.

Of course, while I do appreciate the craftsmanship and artistry of somebody like an Andrew Bird (who is classically trained) or Brian Wilson (who is not, but still manages these miraculous creations), I can also appreciate The Ramones' brutal, yet highly melodic pummelings.

Complexity for its own sake can be just as banal as any insipid pop song.

I love music. And while there are some songs that can stand up to scrutiny and deep analysis, there are equally wonderful creations that simply, don't. I love it all. Or, at least I love what I love.
Leave it at that.

At various time, I have written songs that (I feel) can come from either area: a simple I, IV, V; or odd voicings and changes that have thrown my own band members.

There is merit in both approaches.
And I can love it all. As long as I like it.

Love what you love.


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Chandra Moon

3/25/2013 7:08:03 AM


hear hear!!


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Bob Elliott

3/25/2013 1:13:48 PM


No one said complexity was better in any given song, but when ison pointed out how the quality of writing seems to be plummeting with time, I point out complexity has fallen dramatically from the forties.

I don't find that a problem per song, but as a trend I think it is a shame how few songs are written with the beautiful appropriate uses of the demented 9s and such. If it is not a total lost art, it is surely a diminished art, and ison was lamenting the lost art of songwriting, so I think it's worth mentioning.

I am a fan of h. Williams, and many others who write in the three or less chord tradition.( but don't underestimate just how elegantly they play behind him)


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Steve Ison

3/25/2013 3:11:39 PM


@ Bryon..Cheers for the kind thoughts..I'm not a fan of Bob Lefsetz taste in music i'm afraid lol-So
i doubt he'd be a fan of my writing ; )

@Stoneman...Sounds like you're doing really great work with your mentoring man
The emphasis on giving money to 'sport' acheivement and no funding for music sounds about right for today sadly..
It strikes me that so much of the great music that flowered in tthe 60s like The Beatles,all the
motown was so influenced by gospel music and the passionate urgency of early r'n'b..
Tho it became secular there was always the underlying transcendence n a
universal spirit in it..Which is one of the main reasons it was so creative n free compaed to today..

Gonna be very tough for an outsider kid getting any of that spirit into their music when all they've gotr as modern musical 'teachers' to inspire them are $$ eyed rap n cynically written cookie-cutter corporate pop tho..

@Chandra..Yeh -To be fair you CAN just ignore the mainstream - Now easier than ever before -and live in your own fantasy dream world surrounded by the best recorded music ever made- and for the most part- i do too..Building massive playlists on youtube-exploring girl groups n 60s soul which has been my obsession for the past 6 months or so..
Thats def one of the bonuses of the age we live in now..

@Richard..I know what you're saying -but its definitely NOT about 'nostalgia' for me..Its about a certain spirit n creative energies in music like charm,beauty,innocence,humour,playfulness,suprise that i resonate with and can't find in todays music - so have to generally dig into the past to find it to feed me..
Most of the songs i've been discovering are 'new' to me tho -even if they were made in 1965 or something..

I meet alot of 'outsider' kids n younger people too -who choose for themselves to dig alot into the past because -being more timeless themselves -they're after music thats more timeless that reflects them..They like alot of the 'old' music for the same reasons i do -'cos it speaks to them on a deeper level than what they're offered today generally..

@Trip Poppies..Yeh the video's often about selling 'cool'....Nothing more sinister than corporate cool too..Big buisness has serious attitood.. It really DOES kill people too !- n not just pose at being a tough guy...Its got the most money -so in todays $$$ grabbin' world is the coolest there is..'Doncha wish your girlfriend was HOT like me? Doncha..doncha..

@Bob..I totally hear you - and here - as in many other posts of yours i find it genuinelly inspirational..So thanx for that
Thinking about it,it matters not a jot when something came out for me either..
Like you i'm on my own quest - and try to find what i love most to try to feed me what i need..

The point about wanting music that REALLY blows you away to feel compelled to feed n learn from -rather than merely 'liking' or enjoying on a more superficial level is incisive too - and
i'd agree..
You naturally wanna gravitate to the very best teachers there are -you don't want that spirit watered down at all

And yeh..in the end the responsibility does come down to US as artists to be great - no one else..


@Tom..Thats a wonderful poetic write man..Thanx so much for that..Really inspired
I DO think of songwriting/music as my 'religion' and have said as much to other people -but you've put in such a concise interesting way -there's real food for thought there..

I admire the kinda inner calm n resolve you n Bob've got about this whole issue..

There's a part of me thats got this constant bubbling rage against the injustice of how the creative spirit of the music's been cynically crushed out of the mainstream -when in the 60s n 70s so many beautiful,highly individualised artistic outsiders rose up n ruled the roost - and there always seemed to be room for that magical spirit to seep into it..
Its gotta have a massive effect on people's consciousness whether that energy's there or not..

Makes me question the whole point of a scattergun generalised blog like this- and really the point of it lol
Its just shouting nto the void really - People who already agree will agree-and it won't change anyones opinion who dosn't..
The only way to do thats thru our own music as Bob said..
I think you (and Bob) would both love the late Ian MacDonalds book 'Revolution in the Head'

Its been my 'bible' as far as the written word goes on music n popular culture and how they meet..
It crystalised so many thoughts that i FELT but couldn't articulate as well -Much as you guys have done here


@Todd..As Bob pointed out ..No one was saying complexity was intrinsically 'better'..I certainly don't believe that - and my current love is 60s sul n girl group music-often with really simple doo-wop based chord sequences..Maybe its cos they often have more inspired urgent,intuitive vocal lines..
..As you (or any discrning listener knows ) there's a universe of difference between say 'Here Comes The Night' or 'Baby I Love you' which uses simple I-IV-V progresssions and the millions of forgettable songs which do too..





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Hop On Pop

3/27/2013 9:55:45 AM


Went to an open mic last night and there was a regular there, whom I am always happy to see play; incredibly talented.
Anyway, he covered "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" and, listening to those changes, I thought of this conversation.
Totally illustrated your point, Steve.
But then, it IS Stevie Wonder.


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Bob Elliott

3/27/2013 11:51:29 AM


Yeah, that song is pretty damn tricky to play, but flows so easy on the ears. That's a kind of thing I am interested in doing. But then the album that comes off of is my standard for probably best album ever made.


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Hop On Pop

3/27/2013 12:06:33 PM


It's from Songs in the Key of Life, right?
If not the best, it's certainly way up there.


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Bob Elliott

3/27/2013 1:52:00 PM


Talking Book. Innervisions and Talking Book were released within less than a year of each other and sound almost like one album, one beyond belief album.

Songs in the Key is great, too, but not every single song like with those other two.


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Steve April

3/29/2013 4:58:28 PM


fun read, illuminating.

great stuff, guys and gals. ************

p.s.

another reason folks may listen to songs, "to forget about life for awhile."

oR FOR EXAMPLE, I HAVE A FRIEND IN l.a. hE LIKES TO LISTEN TO pANDORA AND LAUGH AT HOW BAD THE SONGS ARE.


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Steve Ison

4/1/2013 3:20:16 AM


"another reason folks may listen to songs, "to forget about life for awhile."

Thats definitely the reason i love listening n getting lost in music - and creating it..To 'escape' from the mundane world

The world of your own imagination is a much nicer place to live f'sure :)


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