Not true at all, because the best superstar is a dead superstar. If
you die when no one's watching, then your ratings drop and you're
forgotten. But if they kill you on their TV, you're a martyr and a
Lamb of God.
> You see, friends, video dancing and sex-pop isn't enough.It is
> quality songwriting that endures.It's Lennon/McCartney,Dylan,Elton
> John,The Eagles,Paul Simon,among others, who produced timeless
> classics for generations to come.
And of course, only white rockers write quality songs. And don't call
me "friend" because I don't befriend white supremacists.
> On Jun 28, 5:25 pm, Dietrich <devalless...@shadango.com> wrote:
>
>> You see, friends, video dancing and sex-pop isn't enough.It is
>> quality songwriting that endures.It's
>> Lennon/McCartney,Dylan,Elton John,The Eagles,Paul Simon,among
>> others, who produced timeless classics for generations to come.
>
> And of course, only white rockers write quality songs.
That isn't what he said.
> And don't
> call me "friend" because I don't befriend white supremacists.
I don't see where you get "white supremacist" from his article. To
claim that one non-pink-skinned person was not a quality songwriter
is very, very different from claiming that /all/ non-pink-skinned
people are not quality songwriters.
And don't bother to accuse me of being a "white supremacist" too,
because I'm not one. I have exactly one criterion on which I
discriminate, and that's merit. Okay, possibly two - I tend to
favour those who behave civilly and politely. Merit, then, and
manners. It seems to me that Michael Jackson's songwriting has
little merit, compared to (say) Lennon and McCartney.
My list (of quality songwriters) would have been very different to
Dietrich's, but it would certainly not have included Michael
Jackson - not because he was black, which is of no relevance that I
can see, but because (in my view) he wasn't particularly skilled at
writing songs.
--
Richard Heathfield <http://www.cpax.org.uk>
Email: -http://www. +rjh@
Forged article? See
http://www.cpax.org.uk/prg/usenet/comp.lang.c/msgauth.php
"Usenet is a strange place" - dmr 29 July 1999
> Dietrich
> You seem to have a narrow view about "classics", and "quality
> songwriting that endures"? It sounds like you're stuck in the
> 60s &
> 70s, and imagine everyone else is too? HawHawHaw!
Songs that are still well-liked by many people forty years after
being written have, to a certain extent, proved their durability,
whereas songs that were written more recently have not proved the
same thing to the same extent. I'd have thought this was more or
less obvious. Equally obviously, songs that are older still - and
still well-liked - have proved their durability even more. Some
Wesley hymns, for example, have been popular for almost three
hundred years.
> I certainly wouldn't include Elton John, or The Eagles (?) in
> the same league as, Dylan, Paul Simon, or Lennon / McCarthy,
I know that spelling flames are very poor style, but is it really so
very hard to get Paul McCartney's name right? Okay... If we're
talking about quality (rather than popularity), I'd probably leave
Dylan out of the list, too, actually, but I'd certainly add in Nick
Drake, Ian Anderson, Chuck Berry, Christine McVie and Stevie
Nicks... oh, and Jim Steinman.
> who have each written scores of songs?
Lennon and McCartney wrote /hundreds/ of songs. Of course, quantity
is not the same as quality, and they wrote some seriously lame
ducks. But a songwriter who writes one astounding song per dozen
mediocrities (and/or crocks) is doing very well indeed, and Lennon
and McCartney did rather better than that. I suppose the difference
is that, L&M being L&M, even their crocks were considered worth
releasing...
> You also seem to forget that Black songwriters are the unique
> force that created "American Music", ie jazz, and blues?
I don't see how you got that from what he actually wrote. He
expressed no opinion one way or the other about black songwriters
in general, and in fact made no mention whatsoever of race, which
is utterly irrelevant to the discussion.
> I suspect you just didn't like "MJ",
I don't see how you got /that/ from what he actually wrote, either,
although it may be that you are right. I didn't particularly like
Michael Jackson's music either, although "Beat it" was reasonable.
> and are jealous about the public interest, and adoration over
> him?
I don't see how you got /that/ from what he wrote, either.
If Thriller was the only song he ever wrote he would not be consigned
to dust bin.
The guy was a phenomena that will be imitated, copied and studied for
centuries to
come.
There seems to be interesting divide between blacks and whites about
him. A lot
of blacks never bought the accusations of him being a pedophile while
white people
would diss him and go back to listening greatest hits of Garth Brooks.
I imagine your haterd of him comes from you thinking he was pedofile,
because if you listened to the
music without thinking about the accusations laid against him, there
is no way you could deny that he was the
best pop musician to grace this planet so far.
The geniuses seem to be weird and there is no doubt he was one.
I think he should have taken off the wig and come out of closet if he
was gay. I imagine he
did not because there was too much money at stake. He had tons of
teenage girl fans and
image to protect. In short, he took himself too seriously. He should
have embraced aging
instead of fighting forces of nature. But that is probably what made
him the star he was in
the first place.
He was truly troubled individual who made great music.
Antti
> I didn't particularly like
> Michael Jackson's music either, although "Beat it" was reasonable.
Hey I thought the Dubstep Remix of Strawberry Fields
was reasonable, that nutty bass line really rocked :)
Racists! Pedos! Rock n Roll! Elvis! Ringo!
Once the Political Correctness Act has been passed
we'll all have to list at least ONE chinese artist
as a personal favourite.
Or Elton John or the Eagles or Dan Fogelberg or Air Supply
I heard that during the Rodney King riots, a major CD outlet was looted.
Every CD was taken. Except the Dan Fogelberg CDs.
I did not mean to sound racist (I am white) and sure there were blacks
like Katt Williams
who constantly made jokes like "Michael was born a black man but will
die
a white woman". But I think Black community was a little bit more
proud
of one of their own and took the accusations with a grain of salt.
I myself did not know what to make of the accusations. But I did
notice that people
kept on listening to his music even with the accusations, which was a
pretty good
sign it was damn good music.
Hey, I like Garth Brooks.
Sorry if I offended you.
Antti
: If Thriller was the only song he ever wrote he would not be consigned
: to dust bin.
He didn't write that song. Many (most?) of his songs were not written by
himself, and many he did write were co-written, so you don't know how much
was him. I don't mean that in a bad way. I just mean that his song
writing is his not his big legacy. He was a performer more than anything,
also a dancer, an entertainer, and perhaps even a singer. Song writing is
lower on the list.
: The guy was a phenomena that will be imitated, copied and studied for
: centuries to
: come.
Like disco music, he is imitated by many people who deny it.
Bullshit. Name one instrument that he played...
and he wiggled and he giggled and he sang hey hey...
Michael Jackson wouldn't know genius if it dropped on him from a 4th story
window.
One man's opinion.
Here are some recording engineers talking about recording with MJ:
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/so-much-gear-so-little-time/401331-robmix-tell-us-about-mj.html
Here are some excerpts:
"One morning MJ came in with a new song he had written overnight. We
called in a guitar player, and Michael sang every note of every chord
to him. "here's the first chord first note, second note, third note.
Here's the second chord first note, second note, third note", etc.,
etc. We then witnessed him giving the most heartfelt and profound
vocal performance, live in the control room through an SM57.
He would sing us an entire string arrangement, every part. Steve
Porcaro once told me he witnessed MJ doing that with the string
section in the room. Had it all in his head, harmony and everything.
Not just little eight bar loop ideas. he would actually sing the
entire arrangement into a micro-cassette recorder complete with stops
and fills."
and..
"His beatboxing was without parallel, and his time was ridiculous.
His sense of harmony was incredible. Never a bad note, no tuning, even
his breathing was perfectly in time."
..
Next time I sing I am actually probably going to try this MJ trick:
"MJ liked hot water while he was singing. I mean really hot !!!!! It
got to the point that I would melt plastic spoons to test it."
Antti
Thanks for posting that Antti. The people who, because they don't care
for that style of music, say that MJ was "talentless" or whatever are
clearly not musicians. Real musicians recognize and respect brilliantly
executed polka, disco, elevator music, whatever, even if they don't care
for it personally. They know what's involved in creating music and they
know when it has been done at an exceptional level.
I remember having this realization many years ago when I was mocking the
BeeGees, whose disco stuff I couldn't abide. My brother-in-law, a
professional jazz musician who would certainly not put on a BeeGees
record for personal pleasure, said to me, "Like it or not, you have to
admit that they're brilliant at what they do." And it was true.
Here are some definitions of genius from princeton wordnet:
# someone who has exceptional intellectual ability and originality;
"Mozart was a child genius"; "he's smart but he's no Einstein"
# brilliance: unusual mental ability
# ace: someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field
# exceptional creative ability
# flair: a natural talent; "he has a flair for mathematics"; "he has a
genius for interior decorating"
I think MJ fits most definitions of genius, as the words of the
recording engineers above attest. This is completely aside from whether
one cares for the style of music or not.
Anyone who has actually engaged in the activity of performing in front
of an audience would certainly recognize the guy's brilliance in that area.
And this post is coming from a guy who has been getting groaned at for
saying "Elton John will be playing at MJ's funeral just like he did for
Diana. This time he'll be singing Don't Let Your Son Go Down On Me." So
you can see that I'm not an MJ worshiper. I'm just recognizing that,
aside from being a tragic creep, the man was a pop music genius.
If he was that talented, then he was genius.
I know one thing for sure, robmix thinks so, too.
I hate to sound like sour grapes, but the whole tv has been nothing
but MJ for the last week, and that was following Kobe for a week. Arghh!
I hope Shaq and King James can win it for Cleveland...
Turk 182
"aluode" <anttino...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:7120feb6-9193-4dd6...@e21g2000yqb.googlegroups.com...
<snip>
> I hate to sound like sour grapes, but the whole tv has been
> nothing but MJ for the last week, and that was following Kobe for
> a week. Arghh!
Um, is somebody forcing you to watch TV? There are so many other,
much better, ways to spend time.
"Richard Heathfield" <r...@see.sig.invalid> wrote in message
news:ltmdnRquNLAjP9PX...@bt.com...
> "Richard Heathfield" <r...@see.sig.invalid> wrote in message
> news:ltmdnRquNLAjP9PX...@bt.com...
>
>> Um, is somebody forcing you to watch TV? There are so many other,
>> much better, ways to spend time.
>
> Yep! Like in here <wink>...
Well, Usenet wasn't actually one of the examples I had in mind, but
yes, it's better than TV. If nothing else, it is at least
interactive. No, I was thinking more of things like composing
and/or playing and/or listening to music, walking, running,
swimming, cycling, software development, sampling a really good
single-malt whisky, taking your wife for a walk down by the canal,
reading a good Terry Pratchett book, chatting with friends,
learning a new instrument, eating chocolate fudge cheesecake...
But yes, Usenet is better than TV. Having every one of your toenails
pulled out in rapid succession, without anaesthetic, by a doctor
rejected by the SS for being too brutal, is probably not as good as
TV. Everything, as they say, is relative.
I broke my leg 2 and a half months ago. I have been limited in what I could
do.
TV came in very handy. I just got rid of the walking boot, so I can start
living again. UseNet isn't that bad. I kind of enjoy it. Why are you
mistreating yourself to such angst and abuse in here if you don't like it?
Just curious...
"Richard Heathfield" <r...@see.sig.invalid> wrote in message
news:eYidnV3wmLfTKdPX...@bt.com...
> I still think there is a lot of difference
> between playing an istrument and using a Shure SM56 microphone...
Using one's fingers is so much better than
using one's voice, huh.
> My apologies for crossposting...
>
> I broke my leg 2 and a half months ago. I have been limited in
> what I could do.
> TV came in very handy. I just got rid of the walking boot, so I
> can start living again. UseNet isn't that bad. I kind of enjoy it.
So do I.
> Why are you mistreating yourself to such angst and abuse in here
> if you don't like it? Just curious...
I'm not; I filter out all the playground insults. What remains is
often worth reading, although there's not much of it.
> its a lot easier and takes almost no training whatsoever, to use
> ones voice, than to use ones fingers.
It doesn't take any training to use fingers, either. But a trained
voice is a better instrument than an untrained voice, just as
trained fingers are better tools than untrained fingers.
<snip>
Michael Jackson wouldn't know genius if he dropped it down on himself from a
4th story window.
One man's opinion. Bet you can't Beat It!!
I prefer the Shure SM57, btw.
"rakmanenuff" <rakma...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:d20caf88-0ad1-41d9...@b15g2000yqd.googlegroups.com...
I just found it funny when all the blacks came out to worship him in his
casket, but they were nowhere to be found or even defending, when he was
accused of child molestation :-)
Uni
Singing talent is "talent",
Anyone can learn to play chords on guitar
or piano, or practice scales for years.
I could never sing like Andrea Boccelli or Whitney Houston
even if I had all the discipline and training in
the world, although I suppose I could aquire
their phrasing if I practiced for decades.
> Songwriters are more genius if they can do their own penning and playing.
Songwriters who do their own penning.... wow.
I thought most songwriters had secretaries who
write the whole song for them.
> Any idiot can sing. Jackson could sing and dance, so he was a
> multitalented idiot.
Any idiot can play guitar, too.
> Michael Jackson wouldn't know genius if he dropped it down on himself from a
> 4th story window.
> One man's opinion. Bet you can't Beat It!!
I'm not a big fan of Michael Jacksons *songwriting*,
I never understood his lyrics and I didn't think the
chord progressions were all that either. But "Don't stop
til you get enough" is a good song in my book.
If you have a memory, it's terribly short.
Musicians who are making money from music are always in the presence of
other musicians who can "play circles around them," and musicians in general
are highly competitive. A musician like MJ who could certainly play -- but
not "shred" -- feels sheepish that he's paying musicians who can play
circles around him, so he downplays his own ablilities.
I've seen this in the musicians I know, at many levels of fame. Could Jim
Morrison play instruments? I don't know, but Manzarek credits Morrison with
being the primary writer of most of the songs they wrote together.
What playing ability one needs to write original, interesting songs is less
than what it takes to record in the studio without endless takes, or to keep
a performance on stage from falling apart, but it is still real playing
ability.
>
>
PYT was not written by MJ.
Most of the songs written FOR MJ by others have sweet
souly keyboard chords, most of his own songs have simple
triads or are beat/bass line based with little harmonic content.
Modern r&b and dance music don't appear to be areas of interest to you. Is
Prince great? Madonna? Mary J. Blige? Beyonce? Outkast? Mariah Carey? Wyclef
Jean? Beck?
Michael Jackson succeeded and excelled in areas that had just as much
competition, or more, than any musical area you're implicitly referring to.
Indeed modern r&b and hip hop have been chugging along making music people
have HEARD OF, while rock, indie rock, metal, and the kind of music you seem
to identify with withered on the vine in the mid-80s.
Every member of every symphony orchestra around the world is a "better"
musician than MJ. That being the case, according to the rules you're
implying, they should have been able to make a record that sold 34 million
copies in the first year it was out.
>
>
>
>
I like a couple of Britney Spears songs, and I like artists like Mariah
Carey and Beyonce, whose record sales are comparable to Britney, even more.
Now, you name me an artist from 1985 or 1990 onward that you think is better
than Britney, and let's see what I have to say about that artist's music.
My point here is that as long as you keep it vague and unspecific, it's very
easy for you to lapse back into disco sux style arguments, which I don't
think apply in the case of Michael Jackson and music of the 80s onward.
... like who?
plays it in the studio and
> onstage, is better than that canned image manipulated crap.
>
> you must be kidding.
>
>
>>
>>My point here is that as long as you keep it vague and unspecific, it's
>>very
>>easy for you to lapse back into disco sux style arguments, which I don't
>>think apply in the case of Michael Jackson and music of the 80s onward.
>>
>
> the 80s sucked.
>
... and the 90s?
... and the 2000s?
In other words you're an old fart, shaking your fist at the weather, and
poor MJ is the current focus of your antipathy. It has nothing to do with
his musicianship or lack of it.
Okay, truce. I just wanted you to pony up with what you like.
It would be hypocritical of *me* to place special emphasis on self-written,
self-created music, because I'm such a fan of music from the standards era,
and Brill Building, Motown, countrypolitan, what have you.
But if that's your standard, it's a common enough sentiment, and I can see
where it's coming from.
> Michael Jackson is not one. His musicianship is, these days,
> completely over-rated in my opinion
A last thought from me about his musicianship, which I'd forgotten up to
now, despite everything going on, is what a great child singer he was. His
expressiveness on I Want You Back, I Wanna Be Where You Are, I'll Be There
was really astonishing.
I think my absolute favorite song of all time was from the 80's, but I could
be mistaken. When did Europe's Final Countdown come out? There was another
band that I think was in the 90's I just love, because they remind me of the
Doors. That would be Danzig.
Of course, I remember my stepdad just loved the WW2 sounds, though he was a
Korean War vet. He hated my music and swore by the Dorsey's, Glenn Miller
and those kind of songs. I'm sure it has something to do with what was
playing in the background of our formative years.
Personally, I like anything that's good, no matter what the genre. But I'll
take anything by Lionel Ritchie before MJ, any time. I'd like to see that
pervert dance on the ceiling sometime... LOL, that'll ruffle a few feathers,
huh?
Anyway, another excellent discussion. I just hope it doesn't disappear in a
month or so...
Thanks to all,
Vic
P.S.- I've got to remember that great line "patented internut
psycho-analysis."
I'm sure that may come in handy in the future...
"Heat Seaker" <HS34...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:009aa5a4$0$19614$c3e...@news.astraweb.com...
> On Wed, 8 Jul 2009 15:48:10 -0400, "WilliamWMeyer"
> <william...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>>>I like a couple of Britney Spears songs, and I like artists like Mariah
>>>>Carey and Beyonce, whose record sales are comparable to Britney, even
>>>>more.
>>>>Now, you name me an artist from 1985 or 1990 onward that you think is
>>>>better
>>>>than Britney, and let's see what I have to say about that artist's
>>>>music.
>>>
>>> lordy bee.
>>>
>>> anybody who writes their own music,
>>
>>
>>... like who?
>
> you dont know anybody who writes their own music?
>
>
>
>>In other words you're an old fart, shaking your fist at the weather, and
>>poor MJ is the current focus of your antipathy. It has nothing to do with
>>his musicianship or lack of it.
>
>
> ROFL
>
> patented internut psycho-analysis
>
> I like mostly old stuff, when it was done sort of by hand, but I like
> a lot of new stuff too. Of Montreal, Bjork, Nickel Creek, Dream
> Theatre, Lucky Tubb, Prince, there are many more... I have a wide
> variety of interests.
>
> Michael Jackson is not one. His musicianship is, these days,
> completely over-rated in my opinion, part of the hysteria of celebrity
> worshippers that are fawning over anything related to him. I'm
> completely underwhelmed by the vast majority of his catalogue.
>
> Now you can continue with your own retarded stereotyping. I'm not that
> guy. Disco pretty much sucked, but there were always a few things,
> even back in the 70s, that while passed for disco, were a lot of fun
> to play in a band. Pick Up the Pieces, Hot Stuff, Miss you, etc
>
> todays hip hop and r&b is simply too devoid of any real interesting
> instrumentation for my tastes. The last thing I heard from Mary J
> Blige was her singing over what sounded like a click track with some
> background moaners. Nope. Just boring and voice-fixated like american
> Idol. Give me a fat Jimmy Nolan line anytime.
>
>
I tend to agree with those that are critical of the mainstream music
today.
I also add that when I began searching out new music outside the
mainstream
- music that wasn't being promoted by any major company, I found real
greatness
equal to some of the best of the 50's and 60's in simplicity, honesty,
and fun.
So I put together the first world new music list.
I welcome comments.
FIRST WORLD TOP 40 LIST!
BEST MUSIC LIST in the WORLD!!!
(And hardest to get on!)
Week after week Musea, my 16 year old art and media zine scours
myspace and youtube for the very best in music from every corner of
the world for the world's first list of new great music. Culled from
thousands, here are the world's best. (Anyone can send me your music.
That includes any kind of music!)
Musea's Worldwide Favorite Music LIST
"100 Plus Favorite Music from Youtube and Myspace"
http://musea.wordpress.com/2008/12/10/100-plus-best-music-from-youtube-and-myspace/
In a world of misses, here are 100+ hits!
The internet is the world's first worldwide JUKEBOX
And this is the first worldwide best music list from that jukebox.
This list is NOT approved by any corporation!
From Dallas home of the art and media revolution including Post-Bands
music,
> Michael Jackson wouldn't know genius if he dropped it down on himself from a
> 4th story window.
> One man's opinion. Bet you can't Beat It!!
You are entiitled t your own opinion but not to your own facts.
Besides, you mention "The final countdown" as a manifestation of
talent.... ok there's a guy who can hold a guitar without dropping it
... some people refer to that as 'musician' ..... says about all..
<snip>
> I dont believe Michael Jackson was a genius, not by a long shot.
It depends on what you mean by "genius".
Here are some people whose "genius" status few (some, obviously, but
few!) would argue against:
Leonardo da Vinci
Sir Isaac Newton
Galileo Galilei
Johann Sebastian Bach
Albert Einstein
Kurt Goedel
Somehow, I can't see Michael Jackson fitting easily into that list.
--
Richard Heathfield <http://www.cpax.org.uk>
Email: -http://www. +rjh@
"Usenet is a strange place" - dmr 29 July 1999
This line unintentionally left unblank
"Chris Schneider" <chris.p...@t-online.de> wrote in message
news:h5fjrq$1sq$02$1...@news.t-online.com...
> Turk 182 schrieb:
>
>> Michael Jackson wouldn't know genius if he dropped it down on himself
>> from a 4th story window.
>> One man's opinion. Bet you can't Beat It!!
>
> You are entiitled t your own opinion but not to your own facts.
t must mean to in German, also. You offer a statement with no red meat.
Where's the beef? Glittering generalities...
> Besides, you mention "The final countdown" as a manifestation of
> talent....
I said no such thing. I said "I think my absolute favorite song of all time
was
from the 80's, but I could be mistaken. When *did* Europe's Final Countdown
come out?"
I said it was the best song of all time, though it is not from my
generation. At least that is what I meant.
> ok there's a guy who can hold a guitar without dropping it
Can you start a point without dropping it?
> ... some people refer to that as 'musician' ..... says about all..
Beats Kareoke all the hell, don't it?
And further more, I know that you believe you understand what you thought
I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I
meant.
Turk 182