What do the following musicians have in common?
Paul McCartney
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards
U2
Bruce Springsteen
Babyface
Madonna
Neil Young
They haven't written many good songs this decade, some haven't written a deecent song this century.
And they all kick it live on stage.
The truth of the matter is that, despite the institutionalized lying of aging music writers, some of rock and rolls greatest songwriters can't write songs any more. The new Bruce hasn't survived the test of a month, let alone time, Babyface hasn't written anything in years, Madonna bellyflopped even as she sold out Yankee Stadium, McCartney's songs on his new album are terrible, the Stones A Bigger Bang was atrocious.
This is new ground for rock and roll. Old songwriting rockers in their sixties and indeed, fifties, i think U2 prove that). Honestly, the only exception I can thing of is Bob Dylan. Who, despite the disappointing (and anyway, listening to it now, it wasn't that disappointing), has had a terrific 21st Century, everybody has been terrible. Roger Waters? Dave Gilmore? Steve Tyler? Bon Jovi (OK, they always sucked but now they suck worse)… the list of major rockers who can't write songs any more is relentless.
As for Young, he wrote a political album so bad he changed kind hearted Liberals into Newt Gingrich fans with a single listen: it was musical Kryptonite.
Bowie did the right thing. he retired. I don't want bruce to retire, I want him to fess up.
Another exception: Lindsay Buckingham BUT THEN ADD
Jackson Browne
James Taylor
Carole King
Paul Smon
yeah, Paul Simon… are you kidding me? What a piece of junk So Beautiful Or So What -with the exception of TWO SONGS, it sucked and all the wishing in the world won't change that.
Billy Joel had the right idea, he stopped writing. he had nothing left so he stopped. Why won't Elton John. Terrible album after unlistenable crappy, self-important boring album. What's wrong with him?
Reading the smug, self-satisfied, stupified Springsteen-Stewart interview a coupla months ago, I wanted to grab Bruce by his collar and shake him hard. Is he deaf? His album IS TERRIBLE AND NOBODY IS BUYING IT. What does he have to congratulate himself about? Why is Bono and Bruce, Paul and Madonna so fucking peased with themselves.
Perhaps I could stomach these terrible, terrible, ridiculously over-rated albums, if these pinnacles of pop perfection weren't so chuffed. What the hell are they chuffed about? Are they deaf? Can't they read the sales figures.
Baby Boomers are gagging for something to get excited about, a riot of their own, but they aren't getting it and the media are liars who tell lies about music and thereby lose the trust of their audience.
baseball players call in a career in their early 40s. Not the worst idea in the world.
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