hofmann@AMSAA.ARPA (08/16/85)
From: Jim Hofmann <hofmann@AMSAA.ARPA> > [Doug Alan:nessus@mit-eddie] >> [hofmann@amsaa.ARPA] > Hey Mu! You have great taste in music, but why should I not listen to > the Sex Pistols just because they're long gone? Maybe I missed them > first time around.... NO NO NO. That's not what I meant! That discussion ( which was brought over from sf-lovers [don't ask why] ) was about how hard it was in the mid to late 70's for bands with a new and original style to make a living. Most of them folded usually after a trajedy. ( New York Dolls, Sex Pistols, Television and countless others ). The person I was responding to assumed that this was all my musical tastes encompassed and I got snotty answering his flame. No, Doug, you are perfectly free to listen to anything your dreaming heart desires. ( Oh, by the way, WHFS is bringing "Running up the Hill" into airplay and reports an increased amount of request for other KB materiel. One small victory, eh? ) > > I've even listened to disco to see if there was anything redeeming. There > > wasn't until ... later. Until it had become a totally discredited form of music. Then the artists started creeping in changing things around adding new things taking away old things and creating lyrics that were interesting like .... [I can't stand the News/ What's going on?/ Controversey/ .... Some people would die so you can be free/ Yeh, Yeh, Yeh, Yeh] - Prince and yes, the B-52's while not disco certainly had lots of fun and had a role in bringing John Lennon out of mothballsand into the public eye. The story is that he was sitting in a twostory cafe and heard "Rock Lobster" playing downstairs and thought it was some of Yoko's old stuff. When the waitress informed him it was new music from the B-52's he decided to start writing again. In fact, in Double Fantasy you can hear disco influences though not too obnoxious.Lennon's favorite group circa 1979 was ELO and while I'm not a great fan, they were certainly disco influenced. I have a question though that I'll throw into the net: what characterizes disco? I have a couple of elements I'll throw out: 1) Drums are heavy and mechanical. Always on the 1 and 3 beat with the snare on the 3 beat also. Hi-hat is heavily used. 2) String machines or strings heavily used. Usually at the end of phrases for the buildup into the chorus. 3) Lyrics banal. Usually, one sentence. (Do the Hustle ...) Can anybody think of more? Meanwhile I'm going to listen to some Rain Parade. ( not disco ) Jim Hofmann
rlr@pyuxd.UUCP (Rich Rosen) (08/17/85)
> and yes, the B-52's while not disco certainly had lots of fun and > had a role in bringing John Lennon out of mothballsand into the public eye. > The story is that he was sitting in a twostory cafe and heard "Rock Lobster" > playing downstairs and thought it was some of Yoko's old stuff. When the > waitress informed him it was new music from the B-52's he decided to start > writing again. In fact, in Double Fantasy you can hear disco influences > though not too obnoxious.Lennon's favorite group circa 1979 was ELO and > while I'm not a great fan, they were certainly disco influenced. Lennon liked ELO because in their early days, he felt they were carrying the "I Am The Walrus" era of Beatles music to new extremes. -- "There! I've run rings 'round you logically!" "Oh, intercourse the penguin!" Rich Rosen ihnp4!pyuxd!rlr