Ever
since I got back into playing and writing songs, a certain ennui has quietly
stalked me. As with most people my age; at least those paying attention or
remotely curious, I was blessed to be witness to the golden age of Rock and
Roll. For a guitar player this has meant being able to say I, personally, was
blown away by the power and the glory of any number of seminal guitar rock
gods: Hendrix, Clapton, Page, Beck, Allman, Van Halen, Richards, Santana, as well as
less well known ( outside of guitar circles ) players: Morse, Vai, Satriani,
Lowell, and Felder. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see all of them live, but I
was able to experience their music and playing when it was first created; when
it was new and fresh. That they are all still venerated says a lot about both
their time then and our time now, as in have we have reached the twilight of such
gods? The days of listening to the radio and hearing a signature sound,
instantly identifiable, and grooving to it with the masses is over. Whether at
the Crossroads, hearing that Long Train Running, knowing it’s More than a
Feeling, Truckin’, being Experienced, or a Day Tripper, or on a Stairway; it’s
safe to say that while rock may not be dead; it ain’t the same.
As
distinct from Pop music in some ways, Rock and Pop have intersected and intertwined over the
years, but Pop was always created to sell, to be a product; to be the
McDonald’s of the music world, prefab, processed, and mass produced. It works
because it’s created to hit those cranial sweet spots that get our feet tapping.
Rock was, in essence, more primordial; at least in its early formative period;
strident, edgy, loud, and different. When I was a teen, we did not listen to 40
year old music. That was on geezer stations or Lawrence Welk, when they weren’t
inducing cringe-worthy renditions of popular current songs. We listened to Rock, man!
Now I hear the music of my youth being blithely listened to by people in their
20’s and 30’s. I’m thinking why? Is there nothing better? Newer? Pursuant to
this, I made a concerted effort to listen to the new sounds, the hip new thing.
Here are a couple of unscientific observations. Other than a few small college
stations, of which there is a conflict over what constitutes worthy, radio
ain’t the place. I could be specious and note that radio sucks, but radio is a
commercial business and as trapped by the changes in how and who listens as the
record ( Are they still referred to as that? ) companies are to declining
sales.
That
means that to find what you want, or to seek out new stuff, you’re online
hitting websites, Spotify or other streaming content providers, publications,
and blogs; you have to let them know you’re looking. That means you need to be
proactive if you want something new. Or, you can continue to listen to the past
or the pabulum that has always passed as popular music. On the plus side, there
is a lot of stuff out there. People who love to play, perform, and create.
There’s the surge in roots based bluegrass and traditional acoustic music, and
it’s easier than ever to get your music and ideas out there. Whether or not
anyone will hear it, or whether you can make any money doing it remains a
crapshoot, no matter how hard you may want it or work at it, but it’s always
been that way. Some things never change. I don’t know how much A&R plays
into getting the music out these days. They used to; I assume they still do. Maybe
for Pop, but Rock? I wonder if they still do? Rock, like Jazz, has splintered into a myriad of
sub-genres. Take Metal as an example: speed metal, thrash metal, death metal,
etc. Here’s another thing about guitar driven Rock n’ Roll: in every decade since the 60’s, the number of well known, successful bands with a back
catalog spanning more than 2 or 3 albums has declined through each successive
decade. Think of it this way, is there a single well known, platinum selling
band with a signature guitar sound from the late 90’s on? Remember I said
signature sound. Maybe one or two; maybe.
Looking
for great guitar driven Rock and Roll? It’s out there. Will any of them scale
the guitar god mountain to claim international stature and acclaim? I doubt it.
why? Because that time has come and gone. Hence the ennui. That’s not to say
that there aren’t great young players out there; there are. They can certainly
play me under the table. And the music is fun, creative, and energetic. The
problem is when I listen, much as I might like it, I still hear the past coming
through it. That not a concern for those new to it, but for someone who
remembers hearing the Beatles coming over the radio in the car when he was
five; I’ve already been there. I hear all those ghosts haunting Rock. Today,
they still play the same guitars, use the same amps, or ones that “model” the
sounds of all the great old amps of yore. You can mash unusual instrument combinations,
but it’s not good ol’ Rock n” Roll. For good ol’ Rock n’ Roll, it is guitars, bass,
drums, maybe a keyboard. You can hit
the archives or do your version of it. It is what it is,
but it’s not new. As a matter of fact it’s 60 years old!
Maybe
something new will come along. Maybe someone will come along to reinvigorate
Rock, bring it back to prominence, make it the strutting drama queen that it
was, but in my heart of hearts I think it’s time has come and gone.
