Re: [Harp-L] Opps I did it again. Pop is for the week.

["Planet Harmonica" <lists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

If there wasn't so much implied haughtiness and self-excuse in your post, I might agree with most of it. 

But just think about this : you think there's no marketing about Coltrane ?

Think again. 

Marketing and music (in the sense that it moves you) have nothing to do with each other. That means that there may be great music without marketing, and that there may be great music with marketing. And of course that there may be lousy music with either. 

However, I get pretty pissed off when I hear people deciding off-hand what is or is not great music. And despite what you think, people are not stupid. They may buy a record because it's hype, but everyone has records in their collection that they will listen to again and again, that will move them. And Richard is right. Among these records, a vast majority are vocal.

I think that "marketing" has become the easy "misunderstood artist" argument to explain lack of success. If you know how to reach out to people, you will have success. The rest is down to exposure and distribution. That's when marketing plays a crucial role. 

Is there a lot of preprocessed music nowadays ? Hell, yes. But there's a lot of pop music that is also deep, insightful, lively, musical, vocal and is nonetheless pop and will stand the test of time.

Currently, I'm in the process of digging deep into a genre that was made by marketing (or the press, which, in the 70s was most of what marketing was) and broken by it, namely progressive rock. On the whole, prog was not easily accessible and yet prog bands like Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd, ELP, King Crimson and others filled stadiums in their time. Should we ditch all of them because they were popular and therefore their success was due only to the public's stupidity ?

If you despise the public, you will certainly never reach out and touch it...

Ben
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Chris Michalek 
  To: turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx ; harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx ; Roscoharp@xxxxxxx 
  Sent: Saturday, October 01, 2005 6:17 PM
  Subject: [Harp-L] Opps I did it again. Pop is for the week.



  >>about which music sucks and which music sings.  The question was
  >about
  >>what most people hear and respond to, first.  Pop music by
  >definition is
  >>music that's popular, so it's a fairly reliable guide to what most
  >>people respond to, first. 


  Pop music is only popular because that what people are told to like.
  It's all about marketing.  Do you think a song is popular because you
  hear it on a pop station twice per hour?  Companies pay for that kind
  of exposure.  You know this Richard.  Weak minds are subjected to the
  same things over and over thus they believe it is what they are
  supposed to like.  They believe it is popular. Marketing in the Pop
  sector involves a technique called Forced Evangelism. 

  Imagine this scenerio...

  A person is standing outside a building staring up to the sky because
  he sees a Magical Super Monkey holding the staff of Irania.  Other
  people come by "hey what are you looking at"  the first person points
  up and says it's the "Magical Super Monkey and its holding the staff
  of Irania."  "I don't see anything" another person comes along what
  are you staring at...  "it's theMagical Super Monkey holding the
  staff of Irania." "Yeah, I think I see it." so this guys sticks
  around.  When the crowd build to five people new bystander preceive
  and event... more and more people begin to "see" the Magical Super
  Monkey holding the staff of Irania.  After a few hours and a 20
  people news stations will come, you'll see shadows on the news with
  circle around "Breaking news we have exclusive pictures of the
  Magical Super Monkey holding the staff of Irania."

  People in general are followers and will believe what you tell them.
  Or to put it in the words of David Ogilvy - "People are Stupid"  BAck
  to the point of pop culture - most people are more or less
  "brainwashed" into thinking what they like.  Why do you wear the
  clothes you do? Do you dress outside of the current fashion trends or
  do you follow them? Were you wear bell bottom a year after you said
  you would never ever wear them again? Why do you have the things you
  do?  Because other people have told you it's good to have them.  We
  are all followers in one way or another but I guarantee you that one
  person is pulling the string to make happen what he or she envisions.

  The true gems of the earth have risen above the hoopla. They thought
  differently than others.  Why do you try to play like Litte Walter?
  He wouldn't try to play like you.  Same goes for Howard Levy and
  Toots followers... I know for a fact that Howard encountered
  incredible resistence in trying to bring jazz the the diatonic.  He
  believed it could be done and nothing swayed him. He lives outside
  the box in constant uncomfortableness...  Not everybody has the
  strength to be different that's fine and without the weak, the strong
  would have no reason to be themselves...

  So I think in colors I can't help that it comes naturally. I know
  that people like Jimi Hendrix, John Coltrane, Ravi Shankar, Thelonius
  Monk and Miles Davis thinks the same way. I'm a follower too but I'm
  in good company in being weird.

  A true response is emotional and people resond to emotions because
  it's a common demoniator amoung all people on the earth.  Everybody
  knows what anger, sadness and happiness is.  They know it so well,
  they know it when they hear it or see it.  

  Really...how many people listen to Britany Spears and think - "Oh my
  gosh" as they are moved to stand on their feet. Pop is mainstream -
  neither truly good nor truly bad it's in the middle.  It's for the
  average and mostly played by the average. It's safe and people like
  it because it makes feel happy about making a decision that everybody
  makes.

  All I want to do is share what I see so that you all may learn IMOWFL.




  Chris Michalek

  www.michalekstrone.com
  CD Available
  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/michalekstrone


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