Musical Styles

As I was saying in the post on Pink Floyd and David Gilmour, I don’t discriminate against musical styles just “because” (Well except for current corporate pop which is just about anything on the radio…)*

There’s a quote attributed to Duke Ellington, “There are two kinds of music. Good music, and the other kind.” I agree with this but there’s more to it than just good and bad. It means that someone has to decide what is good and what is “the other kind.” Someone has to “judge” this is good, and this isn’t. And what it comes down to is personal taste, and although I don’t particularly care for Death Metal, if someone likes it, what difference does it make to me? More power to them. And if I listen to a style of music that someone else doesn’t like, why should they care? If someone likes a style of music, then that music is valid, just don’t expect it to remain the same forever. Change is going on constantly.

Purity has a place in music, but if nothing changes, nothing advances. Every style of music is based on a preexisting style, not every change is going to be to my tastes, but if someone likes it then great. Dvorak, Copeland, and other composers took folk songs and made them “classical.” Duke Ellington took “classical” compositions and made them jazz. Pete Seeger played Ode to Joy on the banjo. Heck, I’ve even played it myself on the dulcimer. I actually like when someone takes a song or style of music and does something to it that makes me go, “Wow, I never would have thought of that!”

Here are some examples of people thinking outside the box. Taking one style of music and playing it with another style’s instrumentation, or taking an inane pop song and finding the underlying heart. Hopefully some of these will make you say “Wow!” Or maybe at least a “Well, that was interesting.”

Psychograss play Hendrix

Richard Thompson – Oops I Did It Again

Shine on You Crazy Diamond on ukulele

They Harder They Come on fiddle

Wailing Souls – Whiter Shade of Pale

Peter Tosh Johnny Be Good

*Okay disclaimer time. My niece did a lip sync video to Jessie J’s song Price Tag, which I then learned on uke to try playing it with her... and I actually kinda sorta liked the song.