Reading the day's P-2 stuff late, and amazed how a few folks' simple
challenge of UT's status as godheads of alternative country is being seen
as heresy. A bloody explosion of defensiveness. I didn't really even see
anybody criticize the music; it was mainly just a few expressions of
annoyance at the notion that UT started alt.country, when, as Todd
correctly (if ironically) described it, they represent a ripple -- OK, a small
mountain-range -- in the continuum of country-rock and
alternative-to-commercial country music. That annoyance doesn't arise from
any dislike of UT, Wilco or SV -- at least not from me. As I said, I've
got great fondness for UT's non-hard rock stuff, as well as SV and to a
lesser extent Wilco. The irritation for me stems from the
implied trivialization of all the great alt.country acts that came before
UT -- or which were playing their asses off at the same time. God,
nobody's even mentioned Neil Young in all this. (This debate arises from
differences in defining alt.country, rather than differences in
appreciation of UT, I'd guess. If we stipulated those definitions, we'd
probably all have a group hug.)
As for over-intellectualizing the music, um, if we stop talking about
music on this list -- and WHY we like it or don't like it -- then I guess
it's back to comparing notes on peanutbutter, mayonaisse and banana
sandwiches or somesuch nonsense. Even tossing out a term like
"over-intellectualize" is a Stalinist-type conversation-stopper. Send
those damn professors out to the fields. Now.
>From all the huzza-huzzas that erupted after Todd's post, however, it's
evident that there's a lot of seething resentment among list members who
feel that UT et al are unfairly slapped around on this list. Well, folks,
jump in anytime. Not you, Neal, you jump in plenty already (g). -- Terry Smith
np Paul Kelly's "Words and Music." Criminy, the tune "Gutless Wonder" has
a sort of Richard Thompson-esque nasty freaking attitude about it, doesn't it?
