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Music That Speaks To You

@thestrangequark First, my point about "someone to love, someone to marry, etc." was an admitting that there was sexism in the music I displayed, just as "society at-large" was with Hillary Clinton and the "Lady Macbeth" reference. I re-read what I said and I saw that it could be interpreted to mean, I THINK that's all women are for, and as a feminist, I would say that is contrary to my beliefs. Let me play some of the songs I am talking about, I know, a celebration thread. I am also going to break the "1-2" rule, because I am being challenged on sample-size. I DO NOT believe that these love songs are feminist anthems. I believe they are RESPECTFUL love songs. It's not "Anaconda," "Bubble Butt," or "Baby Got Back." Rap lost this fight a generation ago, and now the music is not feminist at all. It's not being ahead of your time or pushing the envelope. It's just disgusting objectification of a human being. Feel free to google those songs, if you want.

I refer to the radio consultant that said women are the tomatoes in the salad of country music. http://www.cmt.com/news/1754800/men-are-lettuce-women-are-tomatoes/ This happened in 2015, not the 1970s.

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This video and song offend me. I think it speaks for itself. "Girl, hand me another beer" is reminiscent of the woman's place being in the kitchen. The video freezes, and pans, on women's bodies throughout its entirety, and that is objectification. No emotions, no thoughts, no experiences--just body parts--and the woman's place is simply to be leered at, to be "loved (a pseudonym for sex)," and the association with that, is having a good time. She is a prop to that end, like the stiff drink in your hand, and will be gone tomorrow. But, for tonight, just objectify her--"Nice marbling! I bet the steak will be juicy!"

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Um...could it be any more like a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders episode? "I'm from the country, y'all, and I'm here to be a prize for a man! Now watch me dance and imagine me having sex with you!"

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This video offends me more than the song. We see her naked back, we see an up-close of her waist, she is straddling him, we see her, in slow-motion, move into bed in bra and panties. She is seducing him, and is uncovered throughout most of the video. The choice of actress--tan, big boobs, small waist--is the cultural standard of an American knockout. It is perpetuating the myth that to have love, you need to look a certain way, and, therefore, kill yourself for this image (eating disorders, low self-esteem, especially confidence in your body, etc.).

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This one is about Sunday--the day of rest--being a day to get high, get drunk, and get laid. Period. It's about blowing off steam by just using another person.

Now, some context. These are bankable stars singing this crap. These are guys at the tops of the charts (I don't think I named a song outside of the top-5 on radio or downloads when these songs were released, I could be wrong). There is tremendous money in this. Now, compare these songs to my "pretty" love songs, and the love songs start looking like feminist anthems, when they really aren't. As a feminist, I have had to circumnavigate these types of songs to get to artists I have mentioned in this thread--starting with Miranda Lambert's "Vice" and going through Jennifer Nettles' entire song catalog. Kacey Musgraves and Brandy Clark, Ashley Monroe and Leann Rimes. They are making great music, and it's pushed down on the charts for this objectifying, good-time, treat-women-like-crap, "music." It is about the fans of this music, the DJs spinning these songs, and the record executives refusing to stop green-lighting something that will make them bank, for the sake of morality.
 
Lately, when I drop by a record store and look for new music, I generally go straight to the "Indie" and "Local" sections. Nothing mainstream really speaks to me anymore.

Contrary to most people I know, I almost never listen to the stuff that I used to enjoy in high school. My musical tastes keep changing, and I keep looking for something different.

Kor
 
@HaventGotALife , I appreciate your response, (and I don't have to google those songs, they're a bit famous :p) but you're still making huge generalizations from a very small sample size. If you truly think "rap lost this fight a generation ago" then that's proof that you haven't heard enough. There is a sub-genre of rap that tends to be very misogynistic, but that is not all rap. If you don't like rap, and don't want to listen to more that's cool, but you can't categorize an entire genre of music as overly misogynistic unless you really listen to the balance of what that genre has to offer.

I see that you didn't mean that wife and girlfriend is all a woman can be. And I definitely see the shift in country music as you're experiencing it through the videos you're sharing, and how more overt and explicit misogyny is taking hold in that genre. I can see as well, how you're perceiving a shift away from respect towards women. However, think about this: while those more genteel and respectful songs were being written, when the movie you cited was made, when men, as you said, were defining women as someone to marry, date, and love, it wasn't considered possible to rape your wife, it was legal to beat your wife (within limits), the extremely disrespectful punishment of spanking was normal.
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It has always been the male narrative, the only difference is that it used to be wrapped in a pretty bow. Rap has the same proportion of misogynistic songs as any other genre, it only stands out to you because an integral part of the art is speaking in real language, which is often harsh, so the typical male narrative is naturally going to sound worse in that medium -- they're saying the same thing rapping about bitches and hoes as rockers and country stars and other musicians have been singing about chicks, gals, broads, girls, and ladies for years.

I'll take a handful of obnoxiously misogynistic music videos over that. At least now I have the right to call them out on their shit.
 
Andrew Bird is a genius. I love how he overlays stuff. He can be quite tangential and a bit of an oddity, but I love what he does with his music. Feels very organic. I actually like his one-man stuff more than his later stuff when he brought on a band. I first became aware of him via Weather Systems. Interesting accent and a sound that dates back to the days when folk music was at its prime. The guy wouldn't be out of place in the 60's folk scene. Oh and whistling is underrated as an instrument.

A few years ago I bought the Break It Yourself/Hands of Glory double-album.
 
Andrew Bird is a genius. I love how he overlays stuff. He can be quite tangential and a bit of an oddity, but I love what he does with his music. Feels very organic. I actually like his one-man stuff more than his later stuff when he brought on a band. I first became aware of him via Weather Systems. Interesting accent and a sound that dates back to the days when folk music was at its prime. The guy wouldn't be out of place in the 60's folk scene. Oh and whistling is underrated as an instrument.

A few years ago I bought the Break It Yourself/Hands of Glory double-album.
Agreed. I'm currently making it a goal to buy all of his albums. He's wonderful. I love how he engages in wordplay, and as you say he layers everything in such a way that you can listen to a song for years, and then one day a particular lyric strikes you differently, and it takes on an entirely new meaning. I love him.
 
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In all honesty, I can't explain why this song 'speaks' to me so much. I've certainly never been in the sort of emotional situations that they're describing, so it's not like there was an easy 'chord' to strike.

But maybe that's the sign of a well-written song - it makes you empathise.

Also, the contrast between the two versions is a pretty great example of how the performence itself (as opposed to just the lyrics) plays a big part in defining a song's 'meaning.'
 
The Cash version really moves me too. Made more poignant by the fact that June Carter (in the video) died a few months later, Cash himself died a few months after that, and the house it was filmed in (the House of Cash museum) burned down in 2007. All gone.
 
...I loved Wallflowers but they weren't singing my experience, ...

The Wallflowers! :D Probably my first, or at least one of my early, "new music" as a kid!

Anyway, great thread and idea tsq.

This one is (more) recent for me, and is one of those songs that's both uplifting and yet chokes me up from a band I really love. The sound and the words...

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@Coloratura , thanks for sharing that! The eclectic instrumentation reminds me a bit of the Dave Matthews Band.

Speaking of which, I've always had a kind of visceral reaction to "Two Step" from DMB. It's a kind of carpe diem song. But the way it builds and then kind of explodes with emotion is kind of amazing. Then, seeing it performed live, in a driving thunderstorm (wind, downpour, chain lightning, the whole deal), was one of the most surreal and powerfully musical memories I have. Dave Matthews talks about it here.

Needless to say, this song will forever speak to me about the uplifting power of emotion. And, to make great surprise and joy, I've found what seems to be the live recording of it:
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@Coloratura , thank you for sharing that song, I'd never heard it, and it is beautiful.

@Hela , yeah..."Hurt"...man, if you're not moved by either or both the original and Cash cover you're not human.

@Kestrel , The Wallflowers were amazing, weren't they? Every single song on Bringing Down the Horse is classic. Like I said, I always loved them, and while as a teen none of their songs spoke to me in the way I meant for this thread, as an adult they have begun to more so. One in particular, in a bizarre way. It almost feels manufactured, but I suppose it's not disingenuous:

Several years ago I wrote a novel and one of the characters was named Marlena inspired by the song -- the song even ended up in the story. It always reminded me of my mother, who was a big Wallflowers fan, and the character was the main character's mother in the story. The song has since developed new meaning for me, and speaks to me through it's relationship to the characters I created.

Not fond of the video, though; I feel the visual story-telling detracts from the story-telling in the song.
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Love, Death, and Madness... and this time, it's the video that speaks to me as much as the song. I mean, just look at Annie's eyes. If there's ever been a better portrayal of "mad with love," I've yet to see it.
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Annie is great at this game.

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@Kestrel , The Wallflowers were amazing, weren't they? Every single song on Bringing Down the Horse is classic. Like I said, I always loved them, and while as a teen none of their songs spoke to me in the way I meant for this thread, as an adult they have begun to more so. One in particular, in a bizarre way. It almost feels manufactured, but I suppose it's not disingenuous:

Several years ago I wrote a novel and one of the characters was named Marlena inspired by the song -- the song even ended up in the story. It always reminded me of my mother, who was a big Wallflowers fan, and the character was the main character's mother in the story. The song has since developed new meaning for me, and speaks to me through it's relationship to the characters I created.

Not fond of the video, though; I feel the visual story-telling detracts from the story-telling in the song.

Yes! I might get torched for this but... while Jakob Dylan isn't the songwriter his father is (but that's no insult, really!), he's a FAR better singer and his own performance is overall better.

And that's an awesome story for sure, and a great way to give added meaning to something you already loved. :) Three Marlenas is a wonderful song. I'd never seen the video, and... yeah, I don't get it, how it relates to the song at all. Aside from that though, the whole mood of it isn't even right... should be darker, dimmer.

Also, thanks to you bringing them up I pulled out my copy of Bringing Down the Horse and... time for some unexpected musical nerd-dom! A couple names caught my eye - first, T Bone Burnett as producer (but then, he's produced a LOT of good stuff). And second, David Rawlings as an "additional musician."

Rawlings, who I know best as the musical partner of the awesome bluegrass artist Gillian Welch, and who produced the first couple albums (at least) of Old Crow Medicine Show, who was the band I posted that video from.

So thank you for leading me to that really cool through-line! :)

Along those lines, here's my submission. Again, not childhood-forming and doesn't really speak to anything in my own personal experience, but very is "of home." And I wanted it to fit with my through-line, lol. I'll try and be more cheery from here on out!

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Yes! I might get torched for this but... while Jakob Dylan isn't the songwriter his father is (but that's no insult, really!), he's a FAR better singer and his own performance is overall better.
Well, Jimi Hendrix famously overcame self-consciousness of his own voice after seeing Bob Dylan sing and saying, "Well, if he can do it, so can I."
Bob Dylan belongs to a special class of singers who are truly great singers who don't have "good" voices. Some of the greatest singers in music history belong to this category, and it is part of what makes them great.
 
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