08-09-2016, 01:03 AM
(This post was last modified: 08-09-2016, 01:15 AM by Eric the Green.)
Early 1964-late 1963 is the Summer Solstice of the saeculum. It was also the biggest explosion ever of great pop music to come on the scene all at once; I would contend (especially in the USA). So, it will take a little while to get through all of my "best songs ever" picks from these 2 or 3 months. They aren't in the top parts of my list; it's just that there are so many in so little time. The national Top 40 hit parade was very, very crowded.
First of all, with this song released in Feb 1964, the Rolling Stones invaded the USA after hitting big in the UK, on the heels of The Beatles-- with this Buddy Holly song, Not Fade Away. And the music of this era will not fade away.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_Fade_Away_(song)
The outstanding thing about this saeculum's Summer Solstice, which came right after JFK's assassination, is a level of consensus and agreement that would never exist again, both in politics (after his victory LBJ called it a uniquely-positive time), and in music. Notice how many of the songs posted in the 1964-65 period on this thread, by both me and by others, are both big hits (often #1) and favorites of mine and others. There was frequent agreement about which songs were the best, and many of the songs of these years remain standards forever. And almost everyone listened to the same music.
In 1966-67, music became a Rock Revolution, and reached its greatest heights of inspiration, but that meant getting ahead of some of the people. Later, as Top 40 radio declined, culture had been fragmented into special interests as never before by the time the 3T began. There were huge hits in the 70s and into the 80s, both singles and albums, but few that I would choose as best ever, and it's not likely you'd get as much agreement on those hits all across the culture and the population, and places where everyone listened to the same songs at once (or watched the same TV shows) were disappearing. The best music was found on the fringes where few people heard it. Nowadays, few would suggest that the songs that make it to the top of the charts are necessarily the best-- or any better than those which don't. Certainly, if a good proportion of those are rap, then we're not even talking music, but angry slam poetry with a beat, which many of us would not even consider listening to for more than a few seconds.
So, the Summer Solstice was a unique moment. Perhaps other moments, like the "era of good feelings," or the 1880s awakening ("la belle epoche"), had a similar feeling; I don't know. It would be great if we could just stay there. The Sun is shining bright, everything's all right, and people feel free and alive at a Summer Solstice. It's a time of awakening, and also of lingering stability and consensus. But, the cycle moves on, and we are always in the eternal moment. Each time seems to have its meaning and purpose, for every thing there is a season. We sing in the sunshine for one year, then we go away, and it's soon out of sight.
And after this explosion, we sink further back, (in my review; (I am posting in very close backwards chronological order) into the First Turning, when the streets were too dead for dreaming.
And jazz and musicals/movies must be considered the further we go back, along with pop, in eras which I have less knowledge about. I hope a few people can help fill us in, but I do have some clues. Before this millennial saeculum began, classical music was increasingly a part of the mix.
First of all, with this song released in Feb 1964, the Rolling Stones invaded the USA after hitting big in the UK, on the heels of The Beatles-- with this Buddy Holly song, Not Fade Away. And the music of this era will not fade away.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_Fade_Away_(song)
The outstanding thing about this saeculum's Summer Solstice, which came right after JFK's assassination, is a level of consensus and agreement that would never exist again, both in politics (after his victory LBJ called it a uniquely-positive time), and in music. Notice how many of the songs posted in the 1964-65 period on this thread, by both me and by others, are both big hits (often #1) and favorites of mine and others. There was frequent agreement about which songs were the best, and many of the songs of these years remain standards forever. And almost everyone listened to the same music.
In 1966-67, music became a Rock Revolution, and reached its greatest heights of inspiration, but that meant getting ahead of some of the people. Later, as Top 40 radio declined, culture had been fragmented into special interests as never before by the time the 3T began. There were huge hits in the 70s and into the 80s, both singles and albums, but few that I would choose as best ever, and it's not likely you'd get as much agreement on those hits all across the culture and the population, and places where everyone listened to the same songs at once (or watched the same TV shows) were disappearing. The best music was found on the fringes where few people heard it. Nowadays, few would suggest that the songs that make it to the top of the charts are necessarily the best-- or any better than those which don't. Certainly, if a good proportion of those are rap, then we're not even talking music, but angry slam poetry with a beat, which many of us would not even consider listening to for more than a few seconds.
So, the Summer Solstice was a unique moment. Perhaps other moments, like the "era of good feelings," or the 1880s awakening ("la belle epoche"), had a similar feeling; I don't know. It would be great if we could just stay there. The Sun is shining bright, everything's all right, and people feel free and alive at a Summer Solstice. It's a time of awakening, and also of lingering stability and consensus. But, the cycle moves on, and we are always in the eternal moment. Each time seems to have its meaning and purpose, for every thing there is a season. We sing in the sunshine for one year, then we go away, and it's soon out of sight.
And after this explosion, we sink further back, (in my review; (I am posting in very close backwards chronological order) into the First Turning, when the streets were too dead for dreaming.
And jazz and musicals/movies must be considered the further we go back, along with pop, in eras which I have less knowledge about. I hope a few people can help fill us in, but I do have some clues. Before this millennial saeculum began, classical music was increasingly a part of the mix.