So yesterday I scored tickets to see The Rolling Stones at the American Airlines Center in Dallas on November 29.
I like Classic Rock in general and the Rolling Stones are obviously leaders in that genre. You have to respect guys in their 60s who still sell out arenas. They’re legends and there is no other band like them. They were born to do this, I guess; Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have known each other since they were 4.
For me they represent what is good about music. Is everything they do great? Hardly. Have they made a lot of great music? Yes. Are they gimmicky? I don’t know, maybe once upon a time. They attracted a lot of attention in the early days by being bad boys. Maybe they were just being themselves. But not many have the longevity or have been as prolific as these guys. Only a few names come to mind, and I love them all: Eric Clapton, Elton John, Phil Collins. There are a lot of Classic Rock bands that are still around and still tour. But they’re playing Six Flags and Frisco Freedom Fest and state fairs. That’s not to poke fun, of course, because I like the music of a lot of those bands – I think it’s pretty awesome that KC & The Sunshine Band played in Frisco last year, and this year we’ll get to see America, and if these guys could sell out stadums, they would do so. They’ve made some good music, they just haven’t cranked out nearly as much greatness.
And I guess that leads me to my query about what is wrong with music these days? Is it too splintered and fragmented? Maybe, and perhaps that is a good thing. I like all kinds of music, Classic Rock is just one genre. I just like good music, and there is a lot of it. But how many bands can sell out a stadium any more? I saw U2 at the Cotton Bowl about ten years ago, that was pretty great. Saw Pink Floyd at Texas Stadium also about ten years ago. Amazing show, but the Floyd haven’t been nearly as prolific as some of their contemporaries, nor do they tour very often. Mick and The Boys have toured over 30 times.
These days, there are only a handful of acts that can sell out stadiums, like Backstreet Boys or N’Sync or something like that – I’m going to venture to guess that they will never have the longevity of the others mentioned here. Who will be the next artist that can create somewhat consistently good music and sell out stadium tours for twenty or thirty years? I don’t think that will happen again. But if there’s any current young artist who has the potential…
Current mood: Contemplative
Current music: Your Body is a Wonderland, John Mayer