Pop-M-S @ 1557

You know that Nick Hornby book, High Fidelity, the one that was made into a movie? Well, I haven’t seen the movie but I did read the book and found many of the lead character’s observations and neurotic habits familiar.

Here’s my top 10 favourite bands, and I assure you I spent as much sweat and thought into this list as that male character did on his list of top 10 albums.

1 - U2
2 - The Beatles
3 - Nirvana

4. Umm, I don’t know really. After No. 3, it gets too hard trying to decide whether I like Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers better or REM better (and what about Suede, Blur and Oasis, my Britpop years favourites?) and I get distracted by whether I should change the list name from top 10 favourite bands to top 10 favourite musicians. That way, I can add the solo artistes too.

Anyhow, I give up, though I have a sneaking suspicion that this list will haunt me for many many more hours.

But why was I trying to get the list together any way?

I’ve always fancied Brit bands better than American bands and I thought articulating my top 10 bands will give a good idea whether it’s American or Brit bands which occupy a bigger part of my heart.

Now, of course, most of the world won’t care whether I love American or British music more but more should care in a friendly discussion on American music versus British music: Which is better?

Did the reign of American music died with Elvis, like the poster a screaming American Beatles fan carried in the documentary shown in the lecture? (It basically said: Elvis’ dead. We love The Beatles).

Some, like the male babysitter in Jerry Maguire who gave Tom Cruise’s character a Miles Davis tape for Maguire and Renee Zellweger’s um, night in, would say that with Miles Davis’ career, American music’s greatest hour rose and ended.

Then, we have The Beatles, who in their heyday, was – in John Lennon’s words – “bigger than God” (Noel Gallagher from Oasis infamously and not quite accurately duplicated the same phrase on his own band during their own heyday).

It has been 40 years since The Beatles stormed America and introduced the UK brand of rock n roll and no one can argue that the Fab Four weren’t amazingly successful.

But since then, while bands like Radiohead and Coldplay have been well received in America, generally, America has not been embracing Brit bands.

At times, it seems that cracking Stateside is the highest test for British musicians.

UK’s pop king, bad boy of pop, Robbie Williams not too long ago tried – even recording a duet with Nicole Kidman, a cover of Something Stupid – but failed.

Bands like would-be punk group Busted, who is currently wildly popular in Britain (for reasons not understandable to me), are unknown in America.

A BBC article (Feb 2004) reported that “in 1986, British artists accounted for almost a third of all records sold in the US. Acts like Duran Duran, Wham! and Simple Minds were among those at the top of the US charts in the 1980s” but “now, just 5% of music bought in the US comes from artists signed in other countries”.

The answer to whether America or British music is better can only be articulated from a personal point of view. To try to find an objective answer to this is quite impossible and would involve colossal.

From Britain came the most important band in popular music, The Beatles, hailing from Liverpool. From Britain too came bands like The Clash, The Who, The Rolling Stones, The Sex Pistols, all bands which shaped the history of rock (and punk) music.

A general music lover would identify Britain’s contribution to rock music as priceless.

And there were moments like Britpop, that phenomenon in the mid-90s which has faded away by now, which was full of good stuff, of bands like Oasis, Blur, Suede.

What did America contribute?

Top of mind comes R & B music and blues.

Manufactured pop idols are rampant in both countries and the UK charts’ top spots have known many dodgy singles from equally dodgy, not particularly talented bands like Deuce and Aqua.

Still, despite that, if by feeling and gut feel alone, I would say Brit music, UK music is my preferred choice.

If America seems like an adult, intent on being serious and contemporary, Britain – despite the fact that they are English – seems like a hotbed of creativity where new things erupt and occasionally explode. The Brit music scene actually seems like the impetuous, rock n roll kid who would continuously re-invent music.

Maybe it’s the rainy weather.

Maybe it’s the perpetual mist over so many parts of that isle.
That even The Spice Girls – out of whom only two out of five could sing decently – could reign in the charts in the late 90s, this is testimony to the kooky, kitsch part of British music industry’s soul.

But it’s from this very soul that more new things will come and continue to reinvent and inject new life into music.

That’s just my two-pence worth, any how.
- posted by sg girl @ 6:05 pm
 

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