Wow, I just read a great article about jazz’s (?) popularity in the US has dwindled in the last few years. I don’t think an article has resonated as strongly with me in several months: the author describes how he tends to focus on a song’s music, whereas his wife focusses almost entirely on the lyrics.
I’m like the author: I pick out the rhythm and the beat, and if I like it, I tend to ‘like’ the song. Other people I know (SAA, you’re one of them) are much more aware of the lyrics. I think this explains why my music collection spans just about all genres (standard rock and pop, bubblegum pop, classic rock, Pakistani classic, qawwali, funk, rap, techno, alternative, country (!), smooth/vocal/blues jazz, soul/R&B), and generally only includes a few songs by each artist. Unlike the author of the article, I don’t think the problem is purely a lack of familiarity with the language (I consider both Urdu and English first-languages), but rather sing-ability and bop-ability. People who sing a lot tend to focus on how singable a song is, which necessarily demands an examination of the lyrics (and also the quality of the music). People like me, on the other hand, look primarily at a song’s bopability.
A few points that I should clarify:
- Bopability doesn’t imply songs have to have a fast beat: Jagjit’s rendition of Ghalib’s ghazals are an example of songs with wonderful, wonderful rhythm, which translates directly to bopability.
- I think this might be one of the reasons I can’t stand Leonard Cohen.
- I’ve started actively avoiding lyrics since they can be such a disappointment, ruining the song for me. Paula Cole’s “I don’t want to wait” (yes, from the Dawson’s Creek soundtrack — like I said, bubblegum pop’s fine with me) showcases the absolute nadir:
So open up your morning light
Here’s a closer examination of how appalling these lyrics are. (Don’t be misled by the notion that the lyrics have been misheard. I’ve spent entirely too much time confirming that they haven’t.)
And say a little prayer for I
I haven’t managed to listen to that song once without wincing since I noticed.
Of course, the point of the article, that interest in jazz is dwindling in America, is interesting in itself. Chicago is, in many ways, the spiritual home of jazz, but even there, the scene is fairly small and underground. In fact, I’m constantly amazed at how much more jazz I encounter here in London, whether on the posters organisers plaster everywhere, or in street markets, where jazz and reggae seem to reign supreme at music stalls. Fascinating.
So, which camp wins your (primary) allegiance?
ah! nice insight into why you don’t like leonard cohen! :) I agree.
Jazz - I thought I loved it, but mostly the only time I enjoy it is when someone else figures out when to put it on & then I’ll listen and enjoy it with them. Like this bus driver at school here - he gets into the bus with his little tape recorder, puts on his favourite jazz cd or jazz radio station and then glides (at high speed) all over his route, taking fast swingy turns and swooshes the whole way. You can see him enjoying it so much, you gain an instant apprecation too!
I think that’s what makes jazz such a powerful performance art: half the fun is watching the artists just have a grand time free-styling their way through their sets. Old-school crooners didn’t just play the piano or sing songs, they engaged the audience, sometimes with anecdotes and sometimes more directly — Nina Simone used to comment on who she thought was cute in the audience and Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis used to play with their audiences like that too.