Is Sandi Thom making noises anywhere else yet? I must admit I kinda like this folksie, almost acappela ditty
-------------------- On my old guitar sell tickets, so someone can finally pick it. Posts: 799 | From: Dublin, Ireland | Registered: Mar 2006
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Richard W
Ding Dong! Merrily on High Definition TV
posted
A friend of mine has the album and says she's one of four people in the songwriter credits for each track. This might be misleading since she's going for the singer / songwriter angle; it depends who the other three people are, their relative contributions and their relation to the record company and PR people, I suppose...
I don't see how it's a swindle, though, unless you're the type of person who buys something purely for the image rather than because you like the music - does it matter if a PR company helped set up her website or she didn't write the songs on her own?
(edit) We did question this part when we first read the article though (was talking about it in the pub with friends when it was in the paper):
quote:"We had every major record company in this piss-stained basement in Tooting. ..." said Mr Brown, rejecting the claims.
"Piss-stained"? So what's she been doing in her basement then? Sounds as though she needs to get the plumbing fixed at least...
Posts: 8725 | From: Ipswich - the UK's 9th Best Place to Sleep! | Registered: Feb 2000
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posted
A lot of similar arguments were made about Sheryl Crow's first album, as well. Many "music purists" (or whatever they would be...haters) felt that she was a manufactured pop star because she had a polished image and all the songs were written by a group of five or six writers and producers.
I, personally, like the Sandi Thom song (and the one other that I've heard but can't recall right now). She isn't on the US radar anywhere right now. In fact, the US iTunes store doesn't even offer the album or single (you have to switch over to the UK store). It's extremely funny to read through some of the user comments on the song's page, though. The prevailing comment seems to be something to the effect of "OMG!!1! What a fraud!!! Punk rockers never wore flowers in their hair!!!11!! They weren't even around in 69!! They were around in the 90s!!11! OMG!111!!!"
Ah, the unending humor of those who just don't get it.
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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posted
The single was originally released last year and charted in the UK at #55. I found this interview in October last, which mentions nothing about major record deals or internet promotion.
Personally, I do think it was a bit of a swindle, as it looks like Quite Great, her publicity company since last June, stage-managed the myspace gigs with e-mail promotion, hype and newspaper/TV exposure before the re-release of the single by Sony. Not that it matters much to me whether or not I would buy the single, but I'm sure the target market was influenced.
I notice the album "Smile"(changed from Rockabyeberry) is being heavily advertised on TV at the moment. Again, if it was really that good, it would sell through the normal channels of MTV/radio play/peer recommendation/ music mag reviews, etc. I get the same feeling whenever I see a new release movie been advertised on TV (it usually means its a dud)
-------------------- On my old guitar sell tickets, so someone can finally pick it. Posts: 799 | From: Dublin, Ireland | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
Heh. When I first read your original post, jw, I thought you were referring to Thom herself as a "dubious baggage" Sounds like a good 18th century insult!
The Sandi Thom "phenomenon" has apparently made people question whether the Arctic Monkeys are a salt of the earth, hard-gigging, word-of-mouth success either (apparently a lot of their early fanbase was built up over myspace).
Touting an artist as a "word-of-mouth" success is simply a PR ploy like any other. In the end I think the music will stand or fall on its own merits. I haven't heard Sandi Thom, but the Monkeys' "I Bet That You Look Good.." rivals "Teenage Kicks" and I think that justifies their existence all on its own
Sorry, forgot to add, OMG!!!111!!! (What are those 1s for? Am I insulting someone in binary?)
-------------------- I want you to lay down your life, Perkins. We need a futile gesture at this stage. It will raise the whole tone of the war. Posts: 4495 | From: Surrey, UK | Registered: Jun 2000
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quote:Originally posted by jw: The single was originally released last year and charted in the UK at #55. I found this interview in October last, which mentions nothing about major record deals or internet promotion.
Personally, I do think it was a bit of a swindle, as it looks like Quite Great, her publicity company since last June, stage-managed the myspace gigs with e-mail promotion, hype and newspaper/TV exposure before the re-release of the single by Sony. Not that it matters much to me whether or not I would buy the single, but I'm sure the target market was influenced.
I notice the album "Smile"(changed from Rockabyeberry) is being heavily advertised on TV at the moment. Again, if it was really that good, it would sell through the normal channels of MTV/radio play/peer recommendation/ music mag reviews, etc. I get the same feeling whenever I see a new release movie been advertised on TV (it usually means its a dud)
Don't pretty much all movies get advertised on TV when they come out?
Posts: 19 | From: Illinois | Registered: Sep 2005
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quote:Don't pretty much all movies get advertised on TV when they come out?
Perhaps you've misunderstood my post, or maybe it's different over here. Most films get analysed by TV/Newspaper/Mag critics. But the ones that get specific TV advertising are usually the ones that need it to get bums on seats at theatres.
-------------------- On my old guitar sell tickets, so someone can finally pick it. Posts: 799 | From: Dublin, Ireland | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
it must be different. over here pretty much every movie that comes out has TV commercials (often quoting favorable reviews from critics, if there are any)
Posts: 19 | From: Illinois | Registered: Sep 2005
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posted
The story of Sandi Thom is a classic urban legend as crafted by music industry pros.
A struggling, skint, artist has an Eureka moment - turns to webcasting and her dreams come true overnight. She's an "internet sensation". Inspiring for DIY types everywhere.
As we all know, that's not what happened. The webcasts didn't draw any significant online interest. The skint artist has been backed by a multimillionaire for years, has been signed to a big publishing company for the past year, while being groomed - working with pop hitmakers such as John McLaughlin (writer of tunes for boy bands such as Westlife, Blue and Busted - anyone care to offer the American equivalents? 98 Degrees, O-Town, N-Sync?).
etc. etc.
Standard industry practice.
In ways, the effect in terms of credit is, intentionally, the opposite to what happened with Sheryl Crow and what was actually SC's second album, Tuesday Night Music Club. In that case, which was more of a personal battle, and not the label's game, SC was being given too little credit by mostly male partners who wanted their contributions to be at the fore. (And, it was further complicated by the tragic death of SC's boyfriend, musician/songwriter Kevin Gilbert - and that's an whole other story...) SC's actual first, eponymous, album, produced by Hugh Padgham WAS a typical industry creation, but, SC, A&M and those involved had the good sense to bury that disc. There's, naturally, so much more to the SC story, but, in the context of discussing ST's tale, this may suffice - as this is a forum for urban legends not just entertainment industry analyses.
In the case of Thom, her skilful manager and handlers have been careful to keep their prominent roles out of the limelight - so as to shine credit on their act.
Richard W raises a key issue - that of the identity of ST's co-writers. They are the pro songsmiths who make the hits for Westlife, Busted, The Noise Next Door ("Lock Up Your Daughters", anyone) et al.
John McLaughlin, Simon Perry, even Thom's manager, Ian Brown, using the name "Tom Gilbert", are among the team responsible for this oeuvre. The EMI Music Publishing database links the lads easily.
So, when people blame/credit ST for the lyrics to "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker", they're missing the fuller picture. And the reason why some folks find the lyrical pastiche a muddle is simple - it's not the product of a single creator. It's middle-aged men expressing themselves through the voice of a young woman.
Joni Mitchell, who, (metaphorically, of course), may be likened to a punk rocker with flowers in her hair, says of today's record industry players: "They're not looking for talent. They're looking for a look and a willingness to cooperate. And a woman my age, no matter how well preserved, no longer has the look. And I've never had a willingness to cooperate."
Of today's acts she says: "As long as they look good, they can pitch-correct them now - they can interior-decorate their music. The artists don't have to play anything, - they can cheat, buy songs and put their name on them, so they can build the illusions that the are creative. And because [the record companies] made you, they can kiss you off."
And of the resulting product, Joni says: "Now, this is all calculated music. It's calculated for sales, it's sonically calculated, it's rudely calculated."
Unfortunately, the industry-manufactured myth of Sandi Thom does nothing to dispell such a view.
Posts: 5 | From: Salt Spring Island, B.C., Canada | Registered: Jul 2006
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quote:Originally posted by Methuselah: A lot of similar arguments were made about Sheryl Crow's first album, as well. Many "music purists" (or whatever they would be...haters) felt that she was a manufactured pop star because she had a polished image and all the songs were written by a group of five or six writers and producers.
IIRC, the reason why there were so many writers on those songs was that she and her friends had put them together from scratch during a series of jams that started out just for fun. (Hence the album's title, Tuesday Night Music Club.) Could the same be true of Sandi Thom?
I'm not sure I even see what the issue is - that she or her publicists might have lied about her past? That has a pretty long and storied history in the music business. Bob Dylan's first couple of albums contain a number of whoppers about his childhood in the liner notes, for the most obvious example.
-------------------- Another lifetime I'd have fallen in love with you Swept away by my feelings, ashamed and confused But just now it's enough to be walking with you Let the mystery play as it will! -Lui Collins Posts: 2669 | From: Jouy en Josas, France | Registered: May 2005
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posted
In short, no, the same is not true of the Sandi Thom scenario. If the Beatles are the same as Westlife, Avril Lavigne no different to Joni Mitchell, and so on... then, perhaps it is similar.
Further, most of this saga relates to lies told about the present.
The reason why the Sandi Thom saga merits mention here on Snopes is due to the fabrication of the urban legend of a penniless singer in their basement becoming an internet sensation through MySpace etc. - a real online revolutionary. Mainstream journalists around the globe heralded this as the dawning of a new era for DIY artists.
It's a good story. Just not true.
(And, as an adjunct - as evidence of the power of a good urban myth, the same song without the urban legend attached only reaches #55 on the UK charts; with the urban legend, it reaches #1.)
Posts: 5 | From: Salt Spring Island, B.C., Canada | Registered: Jul 2006
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quote:Originally posted by Adrian22: The reason why the Sandi Thom saga merits mention here on Snopes is due to the fabrication of the urban legend of a penniless singer in their basement becoming an internet sensation through MySpace etc. - a real online revolutionary. Mainstream journalists around the globe heralded this as the dawning of a new era for DIY artists.
It's a good story. Just not true.
Which, of course, changes the rythym of the song completely...rendering it totally unlistenable. It had been a decent song when the world believed a particular story about her, but now that the story has changed, the notes of the song have magically changed, as well.
(By the by...I had never heard a thing about the singer, nor the songwriters prior to this thread. I had never known of any backstory, nor webcasts, nor producers. I had heard the song and enjoyed it. Whether she was raised on a pig farm, or was hand selected by Svengali himself really didn't matter as the song played.)
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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posted
By the description of this forum, it's "for the posting and discussion of urban legend material relating to various forms of entertainment". That's an ideal fit for this story. I suppose if ignorance is bliss, then, the "Entertainment chat" forum in SLC Central offers less risk of disillusionment. Still no one should be too shocked. It seems more sad than anything.
Posts: 5 | From: Salt Spring Island, B.C., Canada | Registered: Jul 2006
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chili_kitten
I'll Be Home for After Christmas Sales
posted
I don't like the song, i think it's pretentious. Even the album name is trying to be cleverly ironic.
'I was born to lead in a world that doesn't care'....What is this meant to mean?
She needs to stop trying to be Christina Aguileria with that voice too.....if there's something else i can't stand it's a singer who milks every last note.
-------------------- Doughnuts are my favourite dairy product Posts: 185 | From: UK | Registered: Jul 2003
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Richard W
Ding Dong! Merrily on High Definition TV
posted
quote:Originally posted by Methuselah: Which, of course, changes the rythym of the song completely...rendering it totally unlistenable. It had been a decent song when the world believed a particular story about her, but now that the story has changed, the notes of the song have magically changed, as well.
I said it wasn't a "swindle", and I agree that it doesn't change the song, but I do think it matters.
For a start, it actually has completely the opposite effect on individual creativity, and the chances for success of a real struggling but talented singer-songwriter sitting in their basement, than the effect claimed.
Posts: 8725 | From: Ipswich - the UK's 9th Best Place to Sleep! | Registered: Feb 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Adrian22: By the description of this forum, it's "for the posting and discussion of urban legend material relating to various forms of entertainment". That's an ideal fit for this story. I suppose if ignorance is bliss, then, the "Entertainment chat" forum in SLC Central offers less risk of disillusionment. Still no one should be too shocked. It seems more sad than anything.
I don't understand your point. Of what exactly am I ignorant? In what way am I being disillusioned?
I'm not sure exactly what the "urban legend" is here? Does Sandi Thom not actually sing and play guitar? Is this another case of Milli Vanilli?
The whole "controversy" sounds like a headline in "The Onion" to me: "Record Company Promotes Artist In Order To Maximize Sales". Oooooh, how scandalous.
The whole "urban legend" boils down to this: did people have an interest in the music prior to the instigation of a concerted marketing effort? My view is, who cares? It takes marketing to get people to know that a product or service exists. A publishing company that has a financial interest in the musician launched a public relations campaign to increase awareness of the artist. What's the swindle?
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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Richard W
Ding Dong! Merrily on High Definition TV
posted
quote:Methuselah says: My view is, who cares?
People with unsigned bands who may now devote time to setting up webcasts and similar elaborate web promotion, rather than more traditional approaches such as gigging and sending out demos, because they have the impression that this is a more reliable way to be noticed?
People who are writing their own material, who are unaware that the promoters don't care about songwriting ability and would rather you simply looked right, because they have people who'll write the songs for you?
It doesn't matter to the people who buy the music, sure. But I notice that a lot of people who say "who cares?" about things like the homogenization of music, chain restaurants and so on seem to be assuming that they're necessarily in the passive consumer role...
Posts: 8725 | From: Ipswich - the UK's 9th Best Place to Sleep! | Registered: Feb 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Adrian22: In ways, the effect in terms of credit is, intentionally, the opposite to what happened with Sheryl Crow and what was actually SC's second album, Tuesday Night Music Club. In that case, which was more of a personal battle, and not the label's game, SC was being given too little credit by mostly male partners who wanted their contributions to be at the fore. (And, it was further complicated by the tragic death of SC's boyfriend, musician/songwriter Kevin Gilbert - and that's an whole other story...) SC's actual first, eponymous, album, produced by Hugh Padgham WAS a typical industry creation, but, SC, A&M and those involved had the good sense to bury that disc. There's, naturally, so much more to the SC story, but, in the context of discussing ST's tale, this may suffice - as this is a forum for urban legends not just entertainment industry analyses.
You know, this story would actually merit greater discussion as urban legend than the Snadi Thom story.
Sheryl Crow was heralded as a brilliant singer/songwriter...but her debut release (which is Tuesday Night Music Club as the earlier album was never released) was primarily written by others. The writing consortium had been in effect long before Sheryl Crow arrived. A well-known producer at A&M, who had plans for a big-selling album for Crow, brought her to the club with the intention of having the club write songs for her album.
By the way, Kevin Gilbert (who didn't die until three years after TNMC was released) despised Sheryl Crow, and wrote and recorded several vicious songs as an attack on her. He had been disgusted at the way she took primary credit for Tuesday Night Music Club
Her first single from the record "Leaving Las Vegas" never cracked the top 50 in the States...and then A&M put a big marketing effort behind the album and next single. Suddenly, "All I Wanna Do" rocketed up the charts into the top ten.
She had been positioned as "the new face of Rock" in such publications as "Rolling Stone"...but, yet, they didn't mention that she was well-connected within the music industry, and had, early on, earned tens of thousands of dollars singing commercial jingles for McDonalds, Toyota, and others.
How is this Rock n' Roll Swindle different from Sandi Thom?
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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People with unsigned bands who may now devote time to setting up webcasts and similar elaborate web promotion, rather than more traditional approaches such as gigging and sending out demos, because they have the impression that this is a more reliable way to be noticed?
But this isn't really any different than, say, artists that followed Elvis Presley. Those artists may have decided that it's more reliable to simply show up at a record company and record a demo than to play gigs and develop a stage presence. Or people with unsigned bands who show up to audition for American Idol...or try out for "Rock Star: SuperNova" instead of playing an unpaid gig at Shank Hall.
I guess I just don't see a controversy here. Sandi Thom was indeed performing prior to the basement Web casts. She indeed sings and plays guitar. I don't know her level of involvement with the actual songwriting, but hundreds of well-respected artists do not write the majority of their material. Her path to a large audience was through a controlled "word-of-mouth" PR campaign. Not everyone achieves their success through the same means, nor are PR campaigns new to the music industry.
Now, I do understand other artists feeling resentful about a performer who gets their "shot" early on in their career, or who finds record label attention before some other band who may be as, or more, talented. But how does this equal controversy or urban legend?
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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posted
There is none so blind as he who will not see. If you choose to see things the way you describe, Methuselah, you've made it clear there's nothing that anyone on this thread, or at The Guardian, Coolfer or anywhere else, can do to explain the urban legend to your satisfaction.
Whatever makes you happy, it can't be that bad (:
Posts: 5 | From: Salt Spring Island, B.C., Canada | Registered: Jul 2006
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quote:Originally posted by Adrian22: There is none so blind as he who will not see. If you choose to see things the way you describe, Methuselah, you've made it clear there's nothing that anyone on this thread, or at The Guardian, Coolfer or anywhere else, can do to explain the urban legend to your satisfaction.
Whatever makes you happy, it can't that bad (:
Then, I guess, all I can say is: Likewise.
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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posted
My beef with this song, isn't the music itself (the tune is kinda catchy) or the supposed swindle around Ms. Thom herself, but rather the lyrics. What crap! She pines for a "simpler" time that never existed. She sings as if everything was somehow better during the 1970s, while people in the 1970s were pining for the simpler times of the 1950s as evidenced by movies like Grease.
There never was, and never will be a simpler time. In ten years I wouldn't be surprised if they were pining for the music of the 90s. And ten years after that, pining for the music of today.
-------------------- In politics, absurdity is not a handicap - Napoleon Bonaparte Posts: 1801 | From: The Forest City, Ontario | Registered: Dec 2005
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quote:Originally posted by TwoGuyswithaHat: My beef with this song, isn't the music itself (the tune is kinda catchy) or the supposed swindle around Ms. Thom herself, but rather the lyrics. What crap! She pines for a "simpler" time that never existed. She sings as if everything was somehow better during the 1970s, while people in the 1970s were pining for the simpler times of the 1950s as evidenced by movies like Grease.
There never was, and never will be a simpler time. In ten years I wouldn't be surprised if they were pining for the music of the 90s. And ten years after that, pining for the music of today.
But the same could be said of a bevy of songs: "Glory Days" by Bruce Springsteen, "December 1963 (Oh,What a Night)" by Frankie Valli, "Those Were the Days" by Mary Hopkins, "Back in the Day" by Blues Traveler, and the list could continue for a couple of pages...
"Kodachrome" by Paul Simon actually points out the fallacy of the past simpler times and makes the point that one's memories of the past are usually better than the reality: "If you took all the girls I knew when I was single, and got them all together for one night, it could never match my sweet imagination. And everything looks worse in black & white"
But, I didn't see the "Punk Rocker" song lyrics as yearning for "simpler times". I took the song to be more of a declaration of feeling disconnected with one's own particular place in history. The voice of the song feels nothing in common with their peer group, and can relate more easily to the social movements of the past. It's a pretty common feeling among young adults, which is why I think the song has caught on with people.
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Methuselah: But the same could be said of a bevy of songs: "Glory Days" by Bruce Springsteen, "December 1963 (Oh,What a Night)" by Frankie Valli, "Those Were the Days" by Mary Hopkins, "Back in the Day" by Blues Traveler, and the list could continue for a couple of pages...
I think the difference between songs like Glory Days and December 1963 versus I Wish... is that the previous songs are singing about their youth. The song by Ms. Thom sings about how she sees her parents youth, and how it is somehow mystically better than it is now. Somehow music was more "pure" than it is now. This song shows a complete, and utter ignorance of history.
The punk rock kids of the 70s were shunned upon, and they would never wear flowers in their hair. I don't know what that is about, other than making a good rhyme. Then there is the lyric that "When pop stars still remained a myth," which utterly baffles me.
Since the rise of the teenage culture, there have been pop stars. There have even been manufactured pop stars (i.e. The Monkees). My problem with this song, is if she is in fact singing about a historical disconnect, it's because she knows squat about history.
-------------------- In politics, absurdity is not a handicap - Napoleon Bonaparte Posts: 1801 | From: The Forest City, Ontario | Registered: Dec 2005
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quote:Originally posted by TwoGuyswithaHat: The punk rock kids of the 70s were shunned upon, and they would never wear flowers in their hair. I don't know what that is about, other than making a good rhyme. Then there is the lyric that "When pop stars still remained a myth," which utterly baffles me.
(sigh...)
Okay, this is a message to all the good folks out there: The song DOES NOT make the claim the punk rockers wore flowers in their hair!
I don't actually care about this song that much, but it's really starting to hang my munchkin to hear people put the song down because of that stupid, stupid assumption.
The song is about longing to be a part of a passionate sub-culture. The singer is stating that she does not feel connected to current times, as no one seems to really care about anything. She longs to be a part of a scene, such as the punk rock scene of the mid to late seventies OR the flower-power scene of the late sixties. Hence the lyric "77 and 69 when revolution was in the air". Get it? She is viewing these two historical movements as something she can more easily relate to than the current popular culture movements. The song is essentially saying, "I wish I was part of one of THOSE kind of movements" and joins the two iconic images by stating "I wish I was a punk rocker (around in 1977) with flowers in my hair (around in 1969)".
I seriously didn't think the lyrics were that complicated, as it made sense to me the instant I heard the chorus for the first time.
As it stands, all this over-analyzing of Sandi Thom has done more to turn me off of her music than anything else. Oh well...
-------------------- "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." - G.K. Chesterton Posts: 1514 | From: Wisconsin | Registered: May 2005
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posted
I have not heard her song but I looked up the lyrics. Turns out I basically wrote that same song back in high school:
quote:Utitled Poem, Freshman Year, circa 1994:
I wish it was the summer of '65 When Hendrix and Janis were still alive When Paul was young and cute and where People were just starting to grow out their hair
Music was good and teenagers thought Wars were stupid; they shouldn't be fought When Dylan sang like a Rolling Stone These kids bought guitars and later left home
Headed for San Francisco With flowers in their hair The culture bloomed in Frisco There was pot smoke everywhere
Human Be-Ins and get alongs Music fests and protest songs Although some hippies are still around The true end of the era has yet to be found
Yes, it's quite horrible...and yes I have a dozen variations on this theme (romanticizing the previous generation's music and culture, and getting some of it wrong), if she's looking for "new" material.
I also couldn't help but notice that her album is titled "Smile...It Confuses People". This is scrawled inside the same high school notebook in which I found this poem. If she weren't based in the UK, I'd wonder if someone stole a peek through my notebooks.
-------------------- "There is no constitutional right to sleep with endangered reptiles." -- Carl Hiaasen Won't somebody please think of the adults! Posts: 8254 | From: Florida | Registered: Oct 2002
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quote:Originally posted by Methuselah: Okay, this is a message to all the good folks out there: The song DOES NOT make the claim the punk rockers wore flowers in their hair!
Okay, I goofed on that bit. Your explanation later on clears that bit up for me, thanks.
quote:The song is about longing to be a part of a passionate sub-culture. The singer is stating that she does not feel connected to current times, as no one seems to really care about anything. She longs to be a part of a scene, such as the punk rock scene of the mid to late seventies OR the flower-power scene of the late sixties.
There are lots of sub-cultures that exist today that are just as passionate and/or just as politically active as those Ms. Thom mentions. The only difference? They don't yet have the mythology surrounding them that those of past generations do. That is what bugs me about not only this song, but those who express sentiments that the past is somehow so much better, because all the crap from previous generations gets filtered out and we are only left with the good bits to look back on.
Looking at the world from today, we have to put up with the crap as well as the good, and the good never seems as good as good past, because we don't have the past crap to compare the past good to.
I dislike this song because it embodies a pet peeve of mine, namely of the mythologized past.
-------------------- In politics, absurdity is not a handicap - Napoleon Bonaparte Posts: 1801 | From: The Forest City, Ontario | Registered: Dec 2005
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posted
I was away for a while so apologies for my delay in response...
originally posted by adrian22
quote:The story of Sandi Thom is a classic urban legend as crafted by music industry pros.
I agree completely...but I was originally suckered
little red cervette amazing similarity to your lyric!
twoguyswithahat glad to see you eventually worked out the flowers in the hair /punk rock analogy
Methuselah I doff my cap
I'm sure this ditty will make its way stateside some time soon as the record moguls will find another angle to sell it to a newer guillable public.
-------------------- On my old guitar sell tickets, so someone can finally pick it. Posts: 799 | From: Dublin, Ireland | Registered: Mar 2006
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there's a lot invested in the original "story", and you can count on Columbia Records repeating the same Sandi Thom mythology - unless an American reporter gets wise in a big way
Posts: 5 | From: Salt Spring Island, B.C., Canada | Registered: Jul 2006
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quote:Originally posted by TwoGuyswithaHat: I dislike this song because it embodies a pet peeve of mine, namely of the mythologized past. [/QB]
This is the same reason I dislike the song.
I also dislike the line 'I was born too late to a world that doesn't care'. Unless that's a metaphor for something else, it sounds hopelessly whingey to me. Why do people have to be part of a certain image to prove that they care about anything? Can't people be passionate as themselves, rather than passionate as punks or passionate as hippies? I also suspect that part of the reason that we don't have peace or anarchy today is because those things were just what people cried to look cool. I'd rather listen to people who really want peace than people who really want flowers in their hair.
Actually, the real reason I dislike the song is because the tune gets right up my nose, so I want to justify my opinion by attacking the lyrics.
Posts: 40 | From: Manchester, UK | Registered: Feb 2006
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posted
In contrast to everyone else, it seems, I hate the song because its tune is awful.
Posts: 124 | From: London, England | Registered: May 2006
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posted
I've nothing against the tune at all. Its a well crafted song with an acceptable sing-a-long melody. If you don't like it, that's down to your own personal taste. We all differ widely in our appreciation of artists, even down to artists own material which we may like some but not all. However, Ms Thom's management deliberately misled the public with the manner in which they promoted her, and this is my gripe. As I've said before, they will do it again stateside too, if they are let.
-------------------- On my old guitar sell tickets, so someone can finally pick it. Posts: 799 | From: Dublin, Ireland | Registered: Mar 2006
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