This is an old topic that dates back to our Yahoo Groups beginnings and was revived during the opening weeks of the blog version of Rock Town Hall that you’re reading now. One of the reasons I like this topic is Townsman Geo‘s response, which you’ll find in the Comments for this post. Over the years, Geo’s been the one person who has gotten what I’m looking for and shared an answer. I’m still hopeful that other Townspeople will get it and have the confidence to share their experience in crossing the line. Won’t you repay my faith?
This post initially appeared 1/24/07.
Are you fearless in your quest to know all there is to know about Rock ‘n Roll, or do you have boundaries? Do you fear being faced with something a well-rounded rock nerd should know but find yourself paralyzed in fear of crossing the line? More than a line, in some cases, more like a 6-lane highway.
For example, the thought of renting The Mayor of Sunset Strip, about LA DJ Rodney Bigenheimer, gives me pause. I’ve read about this legendary character for years, and I’ve been told that the movie is loaded with Rodney’s fascinating interactions with big-name rock legends. As much as I know I should rent this DVD, I fear that watching the movie would cut too close to the bone regarding some dear friends. There are people I like seeing, people I like being able to look in the eye, and I fear that seeing this movie would prohibit me from doing so for some time.
Another line that gives me pause is that Paul Green School of Rock. On 99 levels, this has always struck me as a fantastic idea; however, on 1 mere level, the thought of seeing a grown man teach children how to play Frank Zappa songs makes me think of what’s been going on in the dark recesses of the Catholic Church. Let the kids gravitate toward the famed Zappa Krappa poster at their own pace.
Once, at a flea market, I sold John Cale’s turgid Slow Dazzle album to a 12-year-old in a baseball cap. Afterward, I realized that I’d dragged a young man across the line. It’s a good thing I wasn’t within a 5-mile radius of a school.
How about you? Have you crossed the line? Do you worry about crossing the line?
I should have drawn a line at seeing Psychic TV. They played in front of a movie screen and projected ‘home videos’ of things like genital piercings. Between the sound + vision I almost passed out.
I take it was have a fiercely adventurous readership today! Have you people no lines?
Some time around late middle age, I found myself crossing the line. I heard an NPR Report on Exile in Guyville that had some clips that sounded interesting, this Liz Phair person talking about how she liked fuzzy sounds over a recording of “Stratford on Guy” with that cool phased drum sound. So despite my suspicion of the incessant buzz, I picked it up cheap on a used shop jaunt with a fellow Townsman in Lower Manhattan, dug how it sounded and, even more so, loved its high-definition portrait of a snotty, self absorbed rich girl who I could only tolerate because the songs made me see the world through her eyes.
Around the same time, I had picked up the first album by PJ Harvey, which I warmed up to considerably when I saw her cranking out those unusual rhythm riffs standing stock still with her hair in a bun so tight it must’ve been yanking back her eyebrows.
Anyway, a while later I read about this new sensation, appearing at Dobb’s, a little Liz, a little PJ. So I go to see this act and there are, oh, ten or eleven people in the audience. The budding 19-year-old star with a major label contract walks around and hands out CD singles from her upcoming album, signed in magic marker with a little message that says “Hello Stranger”. Such fuckin’ brass. Anyway, she and her trio play a really swell set, similarly sassy but right. I pick the album up a couple of weeks later and it’s really good. Produced by David Lowery and Jon Brion, it’s got good tunes, good production, nice playing. Naturally she goes nowhere and is quickly dropped by Virgin and disappears. And then I crossed the line. One day, probably four years later, I’m looking at the Pitch a Tent web site and I see a link to a Web site for her. I find out that she has an independent release. I buy it. It’s also pretty good. I follow her career through the web site. She does things like quit music to go back to school. Gets some piercings. Quits school to go back to music. Quits Virginia to go to France. Back to Virginia. Up to New York. More piercings. Poetic journal entries about the music business and her love life and creativity, for God’s sakes! And I follow this shit along with the occasional foray into recordings which I think are pretty good. I think.
And then Mr. Moderator, you ask if I have ever crossed the line. I’ve crossed the line, yes. Sadly, pathetically I’ve crossed the line.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE6KrQKTTXI
Homes,
I’ve known you a little while and you are so right in not seeing “Mayor”. I saw it a couple of times (once on a plane) and once I saw it, I never looked at certain friends in the Philly scene the same way again.
Keep this off your netflix list!
Thanks for keeping it real, A-Dogg.
I was in a rancid mood a few years back, and i ditched work to see a movie called Happiness by the guy who made Welcome to the Dollhouse. Turns out the movie is about a suburban dad who fucks little boys. This movie is so deplorable that it shocked me into a better mood.
When I stepped into the bright sunlight, from the darkness of the movie house, a schoolbus was parked near the theater. A 15 year old kid ran up to me as I was lighting up and said “hey mister, can I have a ciggarette?” Suddenly all the kids surrounded me like some 3rd world pickpocket posse as I bestowed Camel Lights upon them all, just like Monsignor did in days of old.
Attaboy, Kilroy! Let’s get these instances out in the open and off our souls.
I crossed a line when I read the Mod’s thoughts, and the resulting comments, on Nick Lowe’s Cowboy Outfit phase.
I love the guy when he’s on, but “half a boy and half a man” told me all I needed to know about the low points. sheesh.
it was more than i ever wanted to know…but now i want to know more!!!
A decade ago friends with kids would often tell me they stopped listening to any new music but they were into some kid’s music their young’uns’ were into.
They’d be all glassy-eyed enthusiastic about “Banana Phone” or Trout Fishing in America and I’d smile and think, “What freaks! Enjoy the Banana Splits kids!”.
But watching my three year old bust out into a frug over this stuff started to crack me up after a while. Then, the songs, the songs! I couldn’t get them out of my head. After a month, I knew fifteen or twenty of their songs, and I started having favorites.
I’m still holding onto my opinion on those old friends, Raffi does really suck but these guys, do sorta rock, don’t they….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIm9k1mAAXw
dbus, “say hello big red car” is strong evidence for buddy holly’s enduring legacy.
db, it’s the farfisa organ. That could be what’s sucking you in.
What are your thought on Yo Gabba? If you haven’t seen it, they always have a segment with some trip-hop sounding stuff and then a live band segment with bands like Of Montreal, the Ting Tings, the Shins, etc. Plus Biz Markie phones in the beat of the day and the guy from Devo draws pictures. All in all, a long way from Barney…
I crossed the line when I bought a copy of Joanna Newsome’s The Milk-Eyed Mender solely based on a rather fetching picture of her that appeared in Mojo. Her voice was somewhat less fetching.
I bought an America album for two bucks because I had to hear “Ventura Highway.”
Diskojoe and Dr. John, THANK YOU FOR SHARING. I’m sure I’m not the only one who empathizes.