Nile Rodgers' top lesson : Don't be a music snob

[casapete]

Interesting piece from yesterday's i paper.

 

Musician Nile Rodgers has said the most valuable lesson he has learnt in his career has

been "not to be a music snob". The Chic co-founder, 69, said " Any song in the top 40 is

a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers. As an artist,

that was the greatest lesson I ever got"

 

I'm basically in agreement , just wondered what other BC folk make of this?

[Nail Soup]

So what he's saying is that once a song is liked by one million people then the rest of humanity has to either a) like it too or b) be a snob?

 

Or did I misunderstand the logic?

[Woodinblack]

I don't think he means you have to like it, I think he means that there is something about the composition of that song that appeals to a lot of people, which means there is something about it that is probably worth listening to / working out.

 

[chris_b]

This has been my view from the start.

 

If you can write a song and sell a million copies, then it's a good song. Too may people confuse this with personal preferences.

[Chezz55]

10 minutes ago, chris_b said:

This has been my view from the start.

 

If you can write a song and sell a million copies, then it's a good song. Too may people confuse this with personal preferences.

 

I agree.

[Dad3353]

There are a certain numbers of 'hit' songs that bear very little deeper examination, as they are exactly the same 'formula' as the preceding batch. 'Popular', '1 Million' are not criteria in any form of 'worthwhileness'. Not to say that every popular song is shïte, of course, but to say that all merit the notion of 'great' is daft, in my view. 

[BigRedX]

No. Music like all art is entirely subjective. 
 

what makes a song “good”? A clever musical construction or simply the fact that lots of people like it? These two attributes are not necessarily equal.

 

I’ll listen to anything once and then make up my own mind whether I like it or not, and therefore for repeated listens I’ll go with what I like, and not what someone else tells me is “good”.

[BassTractor]

Certainly a sympathetic view, with some merit, but if he could just switch "song" and "composition", it would sound more realistic to me, also avoiding a bandwagon fallacy:
 

Any composition in the top 40 is a great song because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers.

That I can begrudgingly*) agree with. Any such song deserves respect for speaking to souls.



*) thanks to @Franticsmurf for the perfect word

Edited August 6, 2022 by BassTractor

[TimR]

A million? Is that still, was it ever, true? 

 

Only a handful of UK singles has sold over 2million copies and I suspect less than 100 sold 1m or more. 

 

I suppose only a percentage of people who like a song go and buy it, but think success of a song can be measured by a much smaller audience. 

Edited August 5, 2022 by TimR

[MacDaddy]

2 hours ago, BassTractor said:

***. Any such song deserves respect for speaking to souls.

 

I will never have any respect for the Crazy Frog song!

[BassTractor]

Just now, MacDaddy said:

 

I will never have any respect for the Crazy Frog song!

Good point, well made.

It ain't easy indeed, but in this case the film tune IMO is nice and the novelty aspect of the song moved enough people('s money to other pockets) that at least the product deserves some respect if not the great composition inside the product.

[shoulderpet]

10 hours ago, casapete said:

not to be a music snob".

This I can agree with

 

 

The Chic co-founder, 69, said " Any song in the top 40 is

a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million sstrangers

This is bo!!oc!s

 

Edited August 5, 2022 by shoulderpet

[Velarian]

I’m pretty sure Midge Ure didn’t feel like that when Shaddap You Face stopped Vienna from getting to number 1 in 1980.

[Woodinblack]

17 minutes ago, Velarian said:

I’m pretty sure Midge Ure didn’t feel like that when Shaddap You Face stopped Vienna from getting to number 1 in 1980.

 

I doubt it, I don't think it meant anything to him

[Lord Sausage]

Maybe you don't have to get into this subjective, what I like, sales figures, my dad's bigger than your dad stuff. 

 

I think he's just saying if you actually listen to things with an open mind you can pick things up that may help you, teach you, improve you or spark ideas. You don't have to like the stuff. I don't think he's saying you have to like everything.

[MacDaddy]

21 minutes ago, Lord Sausage said:

Maybe you don't have to get into this subjective, what I like, sales figures, my dad's bigger than your dad stuff. 

 

I think he's just saying if you actually listen to things with an open mind you can pick things up that may help you, teach you, improve you or spark ideas. You don't have to like the stuff. I don't think he's saying you have to like everything.

 

What will I learn from an endless parade of Pop Factors each recording Unchained Melody?

[jazzyvee]

The advice I got from Nathan East some years back when I met him back stage after one of his gigs was. Paraphrased 

"Take every gig you get offered even if it's music you are not familiar with. You will learn something about either the music, yourself as a musician or both."

I've tried to do that as much as I can.

[Lord Sausage]

3 minutes ago, MacDaddy said:

 

What will I learn from an endless parade of Pop Factors each recording Unchained Melody?

Current Production techniques, what not to do, what things are popular by examining things common to each record. Performance notes

[OliverBlackman]

23 hours ago, casapete said:

Interesting piece from yesterday's i paper.

 

Musician Nile Rodgers has said the most valuable lesson he has learnt in his career has

been "not to be a music snob". The Chic co-founder, 69, said " Any song in the top 40 is

a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers. As an artist,

that was the greatest lesson I ever got"

 

I'm basically in agreement , just wondered what other BC folk make of this?

Or is it because that music has a bigger marketing budget and increased exposure? There are plenty of great songs in the charts but also lots that is only there because of who the artist is. 

[Dad3353]

Any song in the top 40 is a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers, to be instantly replaced by next week's 'hit' and washed away on the turning tide of these same million strangers' fickle souls. Smoke and mirrors, for the most part; cold commercial interests manipulating these precious 'souls' to further their profit margins.
Disclaimer : I'm not a fan of Chic in any of the forms I've heard so far; my vision may be coloured in this light. 

[meterman]

10 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

Any song in the top 40 is a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers, to be instantly replaced by next week's 'hit' and washed away on the turning tide of these same million strangers' fickle souls. Smoke and mirrors, for the most part; cold commercial interests manipulating these precious 'souls' to further their profit margins.
Disclaimer : I'm not a fan of Chic in any of the forms I've heard so far; my vision may be coloured in this light. 

I love Chic, and disco in general, but I think Nile Rodgers is off the mark a bit here. Yes, don’t be snobby about music (including inverted musical snobbery) but don’t kid yourself that the top 40 is the be all and end all of you need to aim for.

 

Brushy One String and his lo-fi beat-up guitar playing hits me a damn sight harder than any of the autotuned filler that clogs up the charts at the moment. Well, in France anyway. Your country may vary, etc...

[Mykesbass]

37 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

Any song in the top 40 is a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers, to be instantly replaced by next week's 'hit' and washed away on the turning tide of these same million strangers' fickle souls. Smoke and mirrors, for the most part; cold commercial interests manipulating these precious 'souls' to further their profit margins.
Disclaimer : I'm not a fan of Chic in any of the forms I've heard so far; my vision may be coloured in this light. 

Mods, quick, it looks like Inti has hacked his way back into the site via @Dad3353's account 🤨

Edited August 6, 2022 by Mykesbass
Auto-correct

[zero9]

Some will buy stuff, because it's a particular 'brand'. The latter is not synonymous with quality.

 

The same goes for music.

[bubinga5]

On 05/08/2022 at 11:36, casapete said:

Interesting piece from yesterday's i paper.

 

Musician Nile Rodgers has said the most valuable lesson he has learnt in his career has

been "not to be a music snob". The Chic co-founder, 69, said " Any song in the top 40 is

a great composition because it speaks to the souls of a million strangers. As an artist,

that was the greatest lesson I ever got"

 

I'm basically in agreement , just wondered what other BC folk make of this?

Well with that logic every song ever written is great.  But I think a good point is, good music is in the eye of the beholder. Just like beauty or comedy.. So with that logic every song ever written is great.. That works for me.. 

[Franticsmurf]

In the past there was an effort involved in obtaining a piece of music you liked. You heard it on the radio, then had to save up to buy the single, which involved a physical trip to the record shop where they might not actually have it. Certainly for me, I had to really like something to spend my pocket money on the bus fare into town and a single. Now you hear it and can download it almost instantly for a price that, relatively speaking, is much cheaper. As I see it, that instant cheap access devalues the music. I guess the equivalent in my day was taping songs off the radio - I'd record far more than I would buy, some on a whim, some because I liked them at the time. But with a few exceptions, those tapes were usually re-used and the songs erased because I'd lost interest in them. So I'm not sure Nile's comment about 'speaking to the soul' is quite right. It may have a quick chat with the soul for a few moments after initially hearing the track, but it would be the equivalent of a passing comment on the weather (here in the UK, anyway). 

 

I guess we have to take into account that a lot of modern pop is designed for the very purpose of short term attraction and triggering a download and in that respect, it works. While I wouldn't use the phrase 'great composition' I begrudgingly have to admit that there is some skill involved. 

Edited August 6, 2022 by Franticsmurf