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Teen Power: Past and Future by Bob Lefsetz The Beatles were a phenomenon. They eviscerated what came before and set the stage for what was to follow. What came before? In 1963 Lesley Gore had a No. 1 record. Paul & Paula, Ruby & the Romantics, the Chiffons, the Tymes, and the Angels, too. But after the Beatles' arrival, these acts were history. Done. Overnight. They seemed quaint. Passe. Anything but modern. The Beatles ushered in the British Invasion. Some of those acts were very big, but other than the Rolling Stones, none of them approached the level of phenomenon. Herman's Hermits had hits. The Animals, Kinks, and Gerry & the Pacemakers, too. But none of them were ubiquitous, causing girls to faint upon sight. History is repeating itself now. Phil Spector was a god. The Brill Building, too. They were cornerstones of the business. Not only were they successful, they were considered GOOD! But after being exposed to the Beatles, the public rejected them. Did they stop making records? No. They just weren't successful. R.E.M. were gods in the early '90s. They made quality records that sold in the millions. But now they can't get arrested. You might say this is a result of changes in the band, the music that was ultimately released. In reality, it almost doesn't matter WHAT music they released, a new audience was in control. Which rejected them in PRINCIPLE! The Beatles got a whole new generation interested in popular music. Turned on by the Beatles' sound, they wanted more. But they didn't want what had come before, in the early '60s; no, they wanted something that grew OUT of this new sound. First we had the British Invasion. Then the English bluesmasters like Cream. And the San Francisco sound. NONE of these acts were as big as the Beatles. But many were very successful. There was such a large audience, such a demand, that there was room for everybody. And unlike in the early '60s, it wasn't about ditties, rather it was about exploration and refinement. Acts experimented with the song form, the recording studio became an instrument, virtuoso players tested limits. Popular music was an inviting cauldron that might have appeared threatening to parents, but boomers dove in. They didn't want to be left out. Because of the explosion in media exposure, because of an even larger audience, the late '90s saw THREE phenomena. The Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and 'N Sync. They are the new generation's Beatles. They sounded like nothing that preceded them on the airwaves. Parents hated them. They were totally their own! But everybody in the music business says, we've got this investment in all these quality acts, that write their own material, that have been gods for YEARS! Too bad. The children of the baby boomers are just like their parents. They RULE! What came before, it's IRRELEVANT! Still, the businesspeople. They say it's just a fad. The kids will get over this. And then they'll buy what we want them to, the old acts, the old sound, the usual suspects. WRONG! The Beatles made it important that you write your own material. And sing well. All the acts that followed them were based on these premises. The same thing is going to happen now. The teen dreams, the Backstreet/Britneys. They're all attractive, with good voices, singing melodic material. Oh, but you point to the resurgence of rock! I say, there's always room for heavy metal. That's about alienation. Although it's interesting that the most successful acts are very young. Like Sum 41 and Alien Ant Farm. Still, if you're using this as a stepping-off point to the future, you're in serious trouble. Do you honestly think prepubescent fans of Britney Spears are going to graduate to Alien Ant Farm? Never mind System of a Down? No, that's too far a leap. They want something that builds on what they know and like. That's just a little more advanced. A bit more three-dimensional. |
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