Apropos the return of Darren, I would like to second his seconding of Harry's proposal on music: the long-player is forever; the single dies almost as it is born; and the rest is shared to break the silence.
However, I would also challenge the thought the InvereskStreetIngrate quotes in the same post that music can only change your life during a brief window of opportunity. I might not like the cold, but that window is staying resolutely open for as long as my bones will bare. When music stops having the power to move us, we may as well not bother with it anymore.
2 comments:
Lisa,
You're right - or at least I hope you are right.
The idea that there is some sort of guillotine in place for when you stop discovering and falling in love with new music or literature or films is definitely a sad thought. I guess it's just the case with reference to myself that I don't seem to feel that same all encompassing warmth for new music that I have discovered in recent years in contrast to that music I absolutely adore from twenty years ago.
Saying that though, maybe it's not about my musical taste buds suddenly drying up. I think that Simon Reynolds is maybe onto something when he argues in his latest book that, pound for pound, the period '78 to '84 was one of the best times for music bar none.
And I know that I am still discovering novels to love even at this advanced dotage. Via a pal, I was able to discover To Kill A Mockingbird and loved it, and I'm currently getting bowled over by Confederacy of Dunces after it was recommended by Stuart of From Despair To Where blog fame on his book survey meme.
There's life in this old dog yet ;-)
Having read articles galore about Reynold's book I am certainly keen to read it all - and I have some sympathy for that being a special period.
That said, I maybe have a more acutely sensitive and selective approach to culture these days: the passion is there to the same degree but not for so many things. I'm lucky to have good friends and contacts whose opinions I trust to direct me to good stuff, but there doesn't appear to be the same level of public discourse about stuff of quality... or perhaps that's just my perspective...
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