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Monday, March 27, 2017

Music

Music
Music hath charms to soothe the savage beast.
Actually, the quote is breast, but that just gets my thirteen-year-old self to giggling.
Does anyone not like music?  It does so much more than soothe a savage breast.  Music can address any attitude.  It can create many moods.
My friend Frog introduced me to Bluegrass.  Frog played a mean banjo until his fingertips had a fight with a table saw and the table saw won.  I remember Frog laying down a lick on “Soldiers Joy” and saying,
“Doesn’t that just make you happy.”
I replied, “Yes, but I can feel my IQ dropping!”
It’s true, Bluegrass makes you happy and stupid, though it is generally a short-term condition.  Which comes first, happy or stupid?  It seems to me that really smart people are never very happy, like they are so smart they are more aware of all the things that can go wrong in life and are miserable for it.
Music has something for that condition also. 
Classical music. 
Classical music lets your mind wander to more pleasant things.  It relaxes and calms.  I have never seen a savage breast when classical music is played.
Frog now plays the bag pipes.  Bag pipes make you want to go to war.  They were invented to scare the crap out of opposing armies.  Three pipers on the other side of the river sounds like a whole shit load of angry soldiers. It would make me retreat.  I tell Frog that he has no insects or rodents in his house because he practices the pipes.
Rock and Roll of many varieties all does the same thing, it incites rebellion or at least releases feelings of rebellion.
My youngest son loves RAP music.  I don’t get most RAP.  There is some that I do enjoy, though if I listen long enough I feel like punching a random stranger in the face.
Remember calypso?  Calypso just makes you happy.  Why Mr. Tallymon tallying me bananas makes you happy I have no idea; that is the magic of music.
Why is it that jazz mellows and does not jazz you up?
Folk music makes me want to protest something…anything…when I hear Joan Baez sing, I want to grab a sign and complain about something and or demand somebody stop doing something.
Does an Irish tenor make you want to call your mom?  Does an Italian crooner make you horny?  Does the sitar make you pull your hair out and contemplate jumping of a cliff?
Emotions are enhanced by music. There is not an emotion that music will not have you experience. Many emotions are best experienced only through music.  
Music is the universal medium that brings people together.  Any random group of people will never all share the same attitude or opinion, but put 1000 people from all over the world in a theater, play a little “Soldiers Joy,” and there will be 1000 feet tapping in unison and for several minutes the room will be filled with happy stupid people.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgdW2t1Z_r0

Regarding today's comments, "OMG people do you not get satire?  I friggin love Bluegrass music...DAMN!! 

24 comments:

  1. “Yes, but I can feel my IQ dropping!” Snob!!! ;-)

    Love me some bluegrass. For 9 years I handled the audio for a local folks festival, banjos aflame!

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  2. As you know, I'm married to a musician. We have different tastes in music. He likes jazz; I'm not super crazy about it. I'm thankful for the most part we listen to Christian radio or music. Enjoyable for us all. Its fun to watch the wee one being by the radio listening to the music and dancing along. He wants everyone to join in (and most times we do).

    betty

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  3. Your 13-year-old self better be careful, it's a SAVAGE breast!

    I like any music except jazz. It's too meandery (I make up words as I go) for me. Lately, I've been enjoying The Pogues as music to scratch lottery tickets by. Not sure what that says about my IQ.

    One of these days, I may try some tunes from this century. Or I may not.

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  4. I tried to listen, but after 35 seconds I'd had more than enough. Not a big fan of Jazz either and I can only listen to a certain amount of classical before I have to turn it off. Rock and Roll makes me happy, unless it's heavy metal.

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  5. I like everything but modern jazz, traditional jazz I can take. No, I tell a lie... I don't like rap either.

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  6. Excellent points you make. I'm one of the few, apparently, who doesn't listen to much music. Actually I do in that I often have a classic Rock station on in the background, but to keep up with modern music...no. It just insults my ears. I do enjoy classic occasionally, and soft jazz, but in small doses. But you are right....music soothes the savage beast.

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  7. Absolutely yes.

    Psych folk from the 60s, prog rock from the 70s, black metal from the 90s, indie pop from the 00s, underground hop hop from the 10s.

    I think that's my list of sounds.

    When I don't listen to music for a couple days (it happens), I know something is wrong.

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  8. I listened, but sorry, this particular type of thing isn't really my thing. I don't see where music preference can mark a person's intelligence or the lack of it.

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  9. I'm just not going to say anything about savage breasts. . . not gonna do it, wouldn't be prudent. . .

    When I hear Joan Baez sing, I just think, what a beautiful voice. . .

    And I dunno about bluegrass and falling IQ. The guy who supervised my master's degree played in a pretty good bluegrass band on the side; all the band members were university professors. . .

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    Replies
    1. THe IQ drop is a temporary thing, at least for me I can't listen to bluegrass and think about anything deep, it just takes you to a happy place.

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  10. I've met a few people over the years who don't like music and it always make me stop and question reality for a moment.

    You are not listening to the right bluegrass, my friend.

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  11. Cartoons in the 30s and 40s were responsible for the confusion about that saying. Cartoon big game hunters were often shown soothing animals with music, prompting people to think the saying was "...savage beast," instead of "savage breast."

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  12. Regarding today's comments, "OMG people do you not get satire? I friggin love Bluegrass music...DAMN!!

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  13. I can't get into rap. I think it's the bad words and the disrespect. Outside of that, most music is very good.

    Anyone for dueling banjos?

    Have a fabulous day, Joe. ☺

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  14. I like most anything but country music.

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  15. There are a couple of genres of music i do not like, but only a couple. If there's no music, i tend to feel lost.

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  16. I like most kinds of music but not rap...I don't know why but I just don't like rap. It makes me feel like my head is going to explode. I really like Zydeco and Reggae....happy sounds.

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  17. I love all music except rap, which I do NOT consider music just weird, rude talking. My late father-in-law was vice president of Local 47, American Federation of Musicians here in Los Angeles. When he was 19 he had his own orchestra!!

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  18. Love music, pop, classical, country & western, mostly everything except rap and modern jazz.

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  19. Think you nailed it on all the genres. Laughed at your reaction to rap. I always wondered why rap made me want to give strangers the stink eye. Mean looks are as violent as I get:)

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  20. My taste in music ranges from "You've got to listen to this!" to "Please don't judge me." I usually don't listen to rap, except at the gym (the coach plays it, not me)...for some reason it seems to go well with lifting weights.

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  21. I enjoy most music - although today's young female and male singers, all sound the same to me. My brother from Alabama plays Tennessee Blue Grass on a banjo. Pretty cool. I am starting to like country music - I must be getting old.

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  22. Today reading this post is the first time I have ever heard the term "bluegrass" -- I like all music except really, really harsh screaming heavy metal. OMG I hate that stuff. I used to make fun of country music, but the older I get the more I like it.

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  23. Bluegrass is not my favorite kind of music, but it's an interesting form. The really good players often fade into grooves that are jazz like.
    The thing about people who play bluegrass is that I've found that many of them are really educated.
    The south is an easy target. Believe me, we have our share of ignorance, but it's a strange and wonderful place when you come here and look around. Unless, of course you come here canoeing and get violated by banjo playing pig ********'s :)

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