17 Lies and Sundry Drivel

Music is my muse ... always has been. There's nothing odd about that of course. Without music, I daresay the population in general would be in a sad, sad state. I know it sounds like some after-school bullshit, but music really does have the power to change attitudes, politics and the cultural agenda.

The real question is how do you define good music? Do you rely on a complex set of variables, or are you merely measuring if it has a good beat that you can dance to? And when I say good music, I mean 'a cut above.' Those who are into music like a wide variety of songs and artists, but it only stands to reason that the very best of the best songs adhere to fairly rigid criteria.

Unfortunately, when it comes to embracing new music or getting excited about the latest rage (whether mainstream or underground) I'm pretty much a snob. Each day, publicists are pushing a lot of repetition, underworked tunes, weak production, sorry writing and shallow lyrics, so to break out and demonstrate something better than the also-rans is quite an accomplishment.

Now don't get me wrong -- I have my share of pop artists and guilty pleasures littered about my collection. I have no qualms about buying into the nostalgic quirks and popular hits of my generation, but what we're talking about here today are the tunes that do more than merely find their way onto future decade compilations.

By my definition, truly great music should transcend standard formulas, push sounds in a new direction and combine the critical elements of instrumentation, vocals and lyrics. Put a different way, I find that a ton of songs satisfy some of the criteria, but very few hit all marks. And oddly enough, what often separates the men from the boys (or the dross from the classics) are the lyrics. And let's be honest -- lyrics either suck or they are works of art.

We could go on for days about how music speaks to us, but the bottom-line question is "what does a song really say?" Consider some examples:

John Lennon "Imagine"
This is an obvious one, and I hesitate to use such a simple example. But 'simple' is precisely the gem of this one. Like many of Brian Wilson's lyrics, Lennon was a master of turning everyday reflections into poetry that will last for decades, if not centuries. One could argue that this song wouldn't be quite as special if written during a different era or set against different music. They'd be right, but at the end of the day, what defined this song's greatness was the lyrics.

Radiohead "Airbag"
And then there are the lyrics that confound and compel us. Radiohead might not be the best example of this, but they certainly fit the bill. An excerpt from Airbag:

In the next world war
In a jack knifed juggernaut
I am born again

In the neon sign
Scrolling up and down
I am born again

Again, the trend here has to do with lyrics that complement a song. I've heard that some lyricists will listen to a song over and over again, and eventually the lyrics will spew forth almost on their own. Whatever the case, Airbag wouldn't be the same if Thom opted to write "The store was closed/no beer for me tonight/I'm sober again."

Jellyfish "All Is Forgiven"
And then there's just straight poetry. To pull lyrics together in the way Jellyfish did is simply uncanny and uncommon. You know you have something special when the average joe on the street can enjoy lyrics simply by reading them ... no music, no accompaniment ... just the words. Consider:

truth and avarice
encircle his words like a barber pole
twisted and useless
till they disappear in her camisole (goodnight alibi)

throw away your daggers and pills
cause everything's still forgiven, forgiven
though he bit off the nipple of human kindness
all is forgiven

Few humans have this gift, which is why I tend to tip a song's scales one way or the other depending on the quality of the lyrics. And all this talk of lyrics brings up a relevant point. As it relates to my posts, I've opted to avoid obvious titles. I do this as a tribute to artists who are brave enough to avoid the standard titles that are based on a line from the song. There's nothing wrong with the standard approach, but I've always had extra respect for artists who label a song based on what comes to mind, and not so much what the song is about.

Obviously where this post is concerned, I've said nothing about 17 lies, but one could argue there's sundry drivel here. :) Most often, the titles will be pulled from something random yet relevant from the day's events. In this case, my wife was watching some new show on MTV about finding the next covergirl for Seventeen magazine. Needless to say, I find all this reality crap to be just that. It's just fitting that in a conversation about defining great art, we juxtapose it with a shining example of all that sucks with today's culture.