Death, music and fairweather fans.

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So John Entwhistle is dead, all of a sudden everyone becomes a Who fan. 'I loved him so much, I'll miss him dearly. Blah blah boo-hoo.' No you won't, a week from now after you get tired of Tommy again you won't think about it until the anniversery of it next year. The same thing happens with any famous musical death, George Harrison, Joey Ramone, Kurt Cobain, Hendrix, on and on. The media tends to equate death with greatness, I really don't think many people would remember Janis Joblin if she hadn't died in the middle of her career. The media blows into a spectacle.

I mean honestly, who actually gave 2 shits about Joey Ramone before he died? Was he some great poet? Amazingly talented musician or personality? No, just 'that other punk guy, not Johhny Rotten.' I'm not say to any actual longtime Ramone fans that he wasn't cool, but it just seems to me that people jump on the bandwagon of whatever musician just died and stake their claim of fan-dom in the wake of it all because it's convienient. Seems like a farce to me, but I might be wrong.
 
Perhaps that does happen. Although, why it does is beyond me. I didn't even know who he was until he died. The Who are a band I had heard of, knew one or 2 songs, but really knew zero about. Still, I guess when someone like John Entwhistle dies, its then that you realise how many fans there really were. Perhaps like I said, some jump on the bandwagon, but surely not all. I never thought they or even he, had so many fans.

You learn something every day though. For instance, tonight I learned Brian Eno's full name is Brian Peter George St. John Le Baptiste De La Salle Eno.
 
Thats sad about what happen to John. I didnt know that much of their music but my father like them.


And Brian has a long name. I thought Bono's oldest son had a long name, I was wrong.
 
Buck Futter said:
So John Entwhistle is dead, all of a sudden everyone becomes a Who fan. 'I loved him so much, I'll miss him dearly. Blah blah boo-hoo.' No you won't, a week from now after you get tired of Tommy again you won't think about it until the anniversery of it next year. The same thing happens with any famous musical death, George Harrison, Joey Ramone, Kurt Cobain, Hendrix, on and on. The media tends to equate death with greatness, I really don't think many people would remember Janis Joblin if she hadn't died in the middle of her career. The media blows into a spectacle.

You make a good point here. We are a bandwagon society, at least in America. People do jump on the bandwagon. I had to laugh when Beatles 1 came out and everyone was talking about how even now they were so huge. How many of the kids who bought the album actually still listen to it? Probably not that many. How many went out and bought all the Beatles albums because of it? Very very few. The fact is, this generation (for the most part) doesn't appreciate the past the way older music fans do. Popular music forgets to pay homage to the people to blazed the path for it to succeed. That being said....

I mean honestly, who actually gave 2 shits about Joey Ramone before he died? Was he some great poet? Amazingly talented musician or personality? No, just 'that other punk guy, not Johhny Rotten.' I'm not say to any actual longtime Ramone fans that he wasn't cool, but it just seems to me that people jump on the bandwagon of whatever musician just died and stake their claim of fan-dom in the wake of it all because it's convienient. Seems like a farce to me, but I might be wrong.

I have a little bone to pick with this comment. Who gave a shit about Joey Ramone? I think a lot of music fans did, at least those who paid attention to music and where it came from. I'm not a Ramones fan, I don't own any of their cd's, but I know, and knew before he died, who the Ramones were, I had heard some of their songs, and I recognized what they brought to the music scene. What is a farce is how the Ramones were elected into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, an organization that wouldn't know real music if it slapped them on the face. They jumped on the bandwagon big time. It was really pathetic actually.

Where are the real fans of music nowadays? Most kids couldn't tell you who Muddy Waters or Marvin Gaye is. They wouldn't know Blues from Soul from Rock from Trance. All they know is Pop, and crappy pop at that. I was watching MTV the other day and was amazed at the new trend that is hitting the music scene. Pop bands are losing luster, so now there are these Teeny Bopper girls singing pop songs that are lame attempts to sound like rock. It's so sickening and fake it pisses me off to no end. I want one real band, one band without image or bravado that just gets up and plays beautiful music without a care in the world. Please. Just one will do.
 
Re: Re: Death, music and fairweather fans.

popkidu2 said:
I want one real band, one band without image or bravado that just gets up and plays beautiful music without a care in the world. Please. Just one will do.

Check out doves.

Oh and nice to see you posting! Long time no see!
 
I don't know how much bandwagon jumping is going on
I do know that personally I won't be posting in any threads about the death of John Entwhistle, George Harrison, Joey Ramone, etc since (except for feeling sorry for their loved ones) it doesn't effect me at all
 
As a teenager in the late 70's/early 80's, I was a pretty avid Who fan because of my parents...my Mom took me to see Tommy when I was around 10 I think. I have continued to like their music but other than posting a news report about his death and my little rant at J. Swallow, I haven't contributed to the "in memory of" threads. Its not because I didn't feel he was a great musician or anything like that but I didn't know him or his family and can't honestly express my condolences. Yes, its sad when anyone dies but I don't like to make a big show of it.

I will not go so far as to criticize someone for expressing sadness and shock though...everyone is entitled to their feelings and if they want to talk about his death and how they feel about it, I see nothing wrong with that.
 
I've seen it happen...and I hate it.

I remember when Joey Ramone died. I mentioned it to a friend, and he asked, "Who???" When I explained to him, he just said, "Oh." I went to his house a day later, and he was listening to messages on his machine. One of them was a girl telling him that she hoped he was feeling better and was starting to come to terms with Joey Ramone's death. I thought, oh please...you didn't even know who he was. He was just milkin' it for sympathy and attention.
 
I'm not sticking up for anyone or putting anyone down, but why CAN'T someone show sympathy or care when somebody dies, whether they knew them well or not??? I only WISH I could be more like that. And what about the old saying that goes "You never really realize what something means to you till its gone....." ???
Not something I'd personally get too upset about.
 
Ali Rose said:
I'm not sticking up for anyone or putting anyone down, but why CAN'T someone show sympathy or care when somebody dies, whether they knew them well or not??? I only WISH I could be more like that. And what about the old saying that goes "You never really realize what something means to you till its gone....." ???
Not something I'd personally get too upset about.

I get mad at the people who don't really care about the person that died but just act like they do so that they can get sympathy. That is totally lame.
 
i've never cared for the who, and i thought tommy was a weird-ass musical/movie.


now that john has died.... my opinions of the who haven't changed.
 
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