Does "Popular Music" have to be popular to be good?

[indra]

I always laugh a bit when I search Amazon and like sites for music, because the basic categories they have for music are classical and popular. But a lot of what I like isn't terribly commercially successful, so does it really fit the definition of popular?

1 : of or relating to the general public
2 : suitable to the majority: as a : adapted to or indicative of the understanding and taste of the majority <a popular history of the war> b : suited to the means of the majority

So my question is -- by definition does popular music have to be popular (ie., commercially successful) to be good?

 

[typhoon]

No way is this, this, or this "suitable to the majority," unless the majority of people are murderers and rapists who should be punished in the worst way possible.

 

[Saracene]

I guess Amazon defines Popular music as "everything that's not Classical".

I'd like to see more categories there, like "Kinda Commercial", "Kinda Indie", "Used to be Indie", "Used to be Popular", "Popular in US only", "Hyped by NME magazine", "One-Hit Wonders", etc.,

 

[indra]

I guess Amazon defines Popular music as "everything that's not Classical".

I'd like to see more categories there, like "Kinda Commercial", "Kinda Indie", "Used to be Indie", "Used to be Popular", "Popular in US only", "Hyped by NME magazine", "One-Hit Wonders", etc.,

Those are pretty much the categories I use! (except for "Kinda Indie" -- you're either on an independent label with independent distribution or you're not )

 

[financeguy]

I guess Amazon defines Popular music as "everything that's not Classical".

I'd like to see more categories there, like "Kinda Commercial", "Kinda Indie", "Used to be Indie", "Used to be Popular", "Popular in US only", "Hyped by NME magazine", "One-Hit Wonders", etc.,

'Hyped by NME Magazine' = 'sounds vaguely arty but no real substance to it', in my experience

 

[deep]

popular and good

are not related to each other

it is a very rare occasion when the bump into each other

 

[alia612]

So my question is: Is popular music the same as pop music? I'd define, say, Big Star as pop music, simply because the music isn't too complex and they have, uh, pleasing melodies. But they never made it onto the Top 40. Are they still pop? Or are you required to put a prefix -- "Indie Pop" or "Chamber Pop" or what?

 

[deep]

in a different lifetime

i worked in a record* store

we had to have catorgories to put the merchandise in the bins

all artists do not fit so neatly

 

[IWasBored]

pop music is supposed to be short for popular music, at least that was my understanding.

"indie popular music"?

i get the impression that over time it just evolved into meaning anything with a slightly less rocking (although still capable of rocking) conventional band - guitar, vocals, bass, drums, maybe keyboards.

or maybe i'm talking out my ass. i have enough trouble discerning lines between what is oi!, street punk, and gutter/crust punk half the time.

 

[IWasBored]

all artists do not fit so neatly

this was the radio station's music director's excuse when i asked him why in god's name did he combine the "rock" and "punk/metal/hardcore" stacks, as it's now impossible to find anything when it's all thrown together. he wanted to cut down on confusion of where to put bands like the clash, for example. we had the clash in the regular rock stacks, because you could argue that they were far more than a punk band.

 

[deep]

when I worked in a record store in the 70s

the clash
elvis costello
the cars
devo
blondie

were all considered punk

 

[Saracene]

Those are pretty much the categories I use! (except for "Kinda Indie" -- you're either on an independent label with independent distribution or you're not )

With "Kinda Indie", I was thinking about (admittedly rare) artists who managed to sell millions while being on an independent label.

 

[Angela Harlem]

independant labels aside, there are people who view indie as anything (almost) which is not commercial. many bands liked/talked often about in here would be considered indie by your average naive person on the street, and while they may not see the light of day in a commercial sense, they're very much the indie version of pop. indie once used to be this dark and mysterious scene where only the elitistist of the elite and the true connoisseurs of music ventured - not widely known about music or bands, artists who weren't known to joe average on the street. it seemed even the very term indie, while it sprang from a factual description of the label, actually referred more to the scene whom would be into it. but now it seems indie has changed yet again, and gone is it's mystery and certain lack of accessability. so either that style has moved out to encompass a wider audience or the audience who have sought it has grown to include almost anyone and everyone. hence blurring the definition of the term.

 

[yertle-the-turtle]

my definition of pop follows alia's big star example.

 

[Popmartijn]

Those are pretty much the categories I use! (except for "Kinda Indie" -- you're either on an independent label with independent distribution or you're not )

And what would you do if that label was bought by a major or would be distributed by a major? And where?
Until 1987 or so, Island Records was an independent label, so could U2 be considered indie? But in the USA Island's records were distributed by Warner, which is a major. So U2 were indie everywhere except the USA?


*has a few categories in his CD collection: U2 and related, Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen, Urban Dance Squad and related, Dutch music, Rest. That should be sufficient *