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It's too late to listen to it for the first time in 2021. You had to listen to it in 1963, or with that frame of mind, because before then there was nothing els
by Lendal 5y ago
It's too late to listen to it for the first time in 2021. You had to listen to it in 1963, or with that frame of mind, because before then there was nothing else like it. Everything after was influenced by it. And now it's normal. Just like Dylan, or the Beatles or any great influencer. They don't sound that great today. If you weren't alive before them, it seems normal and pedestrian, like a standard that was always there. Only it wasn't. At some point someone had to invent that great leap forward, then everyone after copies it, and so today it is taken for granted as the standard baseline from which you build your thing onto.
- codemonkey-zeta 5y agoThis is exactly how I felt watching "Citizen Kane". It just felt like an ordinary movie? Still, a good movie, but what was all the hype about? Turns out the gravity of that movie was all about the influence it had on all future generations of film.
- routerl 5y agoSee also Descartes' Meditations on First Philosophy "Why is this guy saying all these obvious things as if they were important?" Because he was literally the first one.
- jl6 5y agoI’m aware of the Seinfeld effect and I concede that is probably part of it, but I also think your other examples - Dylan and The Beatles - are great, and have stood the test of time far better than The Ronettes.
- mgkimsal 5y agoDylan, Stones, Beatles and other evolved over time. Ronettes were primarily one-hit-wonder territory. I know they had multiple 'hits', but they were largely manufactured by Spector. The other examples were self-directed, self-contained and were able to evolve and improve themselves over time. Had the Beatles never done anything after their first album, it would still be 'good' for its time, but it was their ability to improve each record that gave them such an edge over everyone else.
- xattt 5y agoIs there a contemporary equivalent to that song? Is democratization of production and commoditization of delivery stifling “breakthroughs” in music? My thesis is that when every piece of music has a clever gimmick, nothing sounds unique.