No one recognizes old music anymore

**Yodelgoat** · 01-29-2020

I played an open mic night last night in Downtown Fort Worth. The guy before me was a drummer and just wanted someone to play with, so they asked me. So I went up and asked the young man (25-ish) if he knew any Beatles, he said "no". Any Led Zeppelin? "no" any Jethro tull (just for fun) he had never even heard of "him". I am old. the music I love and have loved for decades is no longer even heard of by these younger people. We wound up playing Hey Jude and the guy just threw down a generic beat, but he had never heard it. Some in the crowd were singing with it. But when I was done, I checked an no one I found knew the song "goin' to California" by Zeppelin. I even asked if they'd heard of Mumford and sons doing that song, and no one I talked to knew anything.

Justin Beiber is now an "oldies" guy.

Anyway, its all going away. It was a fun ride. Its still a fun ride. I refuse to play current popular music, guess I see why I cant get gigs much any more. I finally am trying to play, and I find out the audience - and the music is on life support.

Funny, I did some scat vocalizing in lieu of a guitar solo, and I was asked (by a guy who was somewhat complimentary) "Wait... that's - that's actually a thing?". It was kind of fun realizing that no one knew what that was - or so it seemed. About 40 people in the place... No one knew who Jethro Tull was.

We all (hopefully) grow old, we all die. I think there will not be much of a move to preserve Rock - and especially prog. Sad, but I wont be here to mourn about it.

**rcarlberg** · 01-29-2020

Quit playing memory care homes.

**spellbound** · 01-29-2020

I refuse to play current popular music

Why not? It's easy to play, and no one will notice if that you're just making up the words. No one will even be listening as long as you keep it in 4/4. Most young people won't even know it's music if you aren't dancing.

**rcarlberg** · 01-29-2020

^^Here's a thought. Tell everybody they're all songs you wrote.

**Zeuhlmate** · 01-29-2020

Besides the money thing - Why play if it isn't fun - why play crap ?

**Yodelgoat** · 01-29-2020

Right on... I play because its fun. and..I only play songs that I really like - and that I am capable of playing. I am long past the day when I play what I am forced to in order to make a buck.

I just observed how the music world is changing. It wasnt a "oldies" open mic night. Some of the performers were a little hard to listen to. raw, and not very practiced (not that I am anything like a perfect performer) I am trying to be kind here. I was taken aback that people who were interested enough in music to attempt to learn an instrument, and play for others were so lacking in music history. I dont blame them, I was just really surprised how old I really am, and playing a deep track off of Led Zeppelin 3 is a snoozer for most people. there was no nostalgia.

**rcarlberg** · 01-29-2020

Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

**The Dark Elf** · 01-29-2020

Conversely, I watched a few minutes of the Grammys....and I knew no one.

**Yodelgoat** · 01-29-2020

Oh yeah. That seems to be another thing altogether. I feel so bad for new artists these days. How do you possibly rise above the noise? If you truly are a cut above the rest, that doesnt seem to matter (has it ever?) I have met a couple of incredibly talented young musicians here in Fort worth, and both of them are truly exceptional, and both are struggling with mental illness. How would it be to be really great at something, and then be pushed aside and ignored by people in general? It's like being the worlds greatest typewriter repairman. No one cares about your mad mad skills, wonderful music and vocal talent, and playing in dive bars for tips when nobody can tip more than a buck? Your skills at what you do have to not only be better than anyone else around, but also relevant. Since music is pretty much a zero value commodity these days, (the exception being here and other like places) being great at it happens to be a waste of time. Except for your own enjoyment. I feel very bad for people who are devoting their lives to a craft that will only love them back in their own personal life. I dont know if being a gifted musician contributes to the mental illness, but it certainly seems to be a factor. Being great at something that makes people yawn.... You cant force anyone to be passionate about music. and most people have passion for so many other things today. Entertainment is is unbelievable now compared to even just 20 years ago. Music is moving back in the pack. Tech has definitely won the day.

Grammy's - funny how that word is going back to its original meaning. The lady who loves you unconditionally, and bakes you cookies.

I had my shot, but at least I had a shot. These kids got nothin'

**Top Cat** · 01-30-2020

Although I agree with the state of affairs as far as the generation gap goes, there are still groups and artists doing good music today, and much like our days of the "end of prog" era we lived through, they do have a loyal group of fan base. And as a baby boomer in my early 70's it's tough seeing those things in life like music, movies, etc changing and giving way to what a new generation likes or wants.
I'm quite critical at times and other times I try to remind myself my parents went through the same thing as their Big Band and crooner singer music gave way to that devilish noisy rock n roll.

You had an experience that gave you a wake up call as to where you are in the pecking order these days, welcome to my world. lol It's rough at first, but just go with it, embrace the change and stay true to yourself and what YOU like.
Continue to play live, play what you like, do it well and continue to do it until they start to boo you off the stage every night. Hey, you might even open the ears of a few young uns in the audience who like what you are playing and become curious enough to look into the catalog of the artist you're playing.
I've noticed there is a segment of the new generation(is it Gen X?) who are looking for something different from the bland, recycled overproduced stuff that's passed off as music.

Don't let this one "off" night make you lose your passion or your desire to perform. DO YOUR THING!

**Steve F.** · 01-30-2020

Originally Posted by Yodelgoat

I played an open mic night last night in Downtown Fort Worth. The guy before me was a drummer and just wanted someone to play with, so they asked me. So I went up and asked the young man (25-ish) if he knew any Beatles, he said "no". Any Led Zeppelin? "no" any Jethro tull (just for fun) he had never even heard of "him". I am old. the music I love and have loved for decades is no longer even heard of by these younger people. .

It is 2020.
It is more than 50 years since the Beatles ENDED.

What you are doing is like expecting a young someone in the prime era of The Beatles to know the 'Hit Parade of 1917'

How many of these do you know?

Over There
At the Darktown Strutter's Ball
Poor Butterfly
Missouri Waltz (Hush-a-Bye, Ma Baby)
For Me & My Gal
Till the Clouds Roll By
My Own Iona
Send Me Away with a Smile
Pelo Telefone
I Passed By Your Window
Joan of Arc
Lookout Mountain
Good-Bye Broadway, Hello France
Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh!
Over There
Listen to the Lambs
Il mio Tesoro
Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag

????

**rcarlberg** · 01-30-2020

I know MOST of those! More to the point, The Beebs were the biggest thing on earth for ten years and every band cites them as an influence (not true of Gid Tanner!)

It's 2020. The musical landscape is a wasteland.

**Mister Triscuits** · 01-30-2020

Maybe it's a geographical difference, but here in the Bay Area I can go to open mic nights and jams and see young kids--teens--who are totally into Hendrix, Cream, '70s Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, and of course the Beatles. (Part of it is the universal blues thing--everybody plays "Red House" or "Roadhouse Blues.")

A few years back I was in a crowd watching a Beatles tribute band in the town square, and there was a dad next to me with his four or five year old daughter up on his shoulders--and she was mouthing along with the words to "Yellow Submarine." Naw, it ain't dead.

**adap2it** · 01-30-2020

Originally Posted by Yodelgoat

Right on... I play because its fun. and..I only play songs that I really like - and that I am capable of playing. I am long past the day when I play what I am forced to in order to make a buck.

I just observed how the music world is changing. It wasnt a "oldies" open mic night. Some of the performers were a little hard to listen to. raw, and not very practiced (not that I am anything like a perfect performer) I am trying to be kind here. I was taken aback that people who were interested enough in music to attempt to learn an instrument, and play for others were so lacking in music history. I dont blame them, I was just really surprised how old I really am, and playing a deep track off of Led Zeppelin 3 is a snoozer for most people. there was no nostalgia.

Maybe if you trashed the place you'd get noticed..

**Jerjo** · 01-30-2020

Sounds like you hit a worthless audience and an even worse drummer. Pop music is a giant wasteland of broken dreams, exploitation, and wasted lives. The majority of it is just transitory fluff with five people writing one song. But out on the borders, beyond popularity, real music is still being made and enjoyed.

**Dave (in MA)** · 01-30-2020

Originally Posted by Steve F.

It is 2020.
It is more than 50 years since the Beatles ENDED.

What you are doing is like expecting a young someone in the prime era of The Beatles to know the 'Hit Parade of 1917'

How many of these do you know?

Over There
At the Darktown Strutter's Ball
Poor Butterfly
Missouri Waltz (Hush-a-Bye, Ma Baby)
For Me & My Gal
Till the Clouds Roll By
My Own Iona
Send Me Away with a Smile
Pelo Telefone
I Passed By Your Window
Joan of Arc
Lookout Mountain
Good-Bye Broadway, Hello France
Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh!
Over There
Listen to the Lambs
Il mio Tesoro
Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag

????

I know the first Over There but not the 2nd Over There.

**Steve F.** · 01-30-2020

Originally Posted by Dave (in MA)

I know the first Over There but not the 2nd Over There.

**interbellum** · 01-30-2020

Originally Posted by Yodelgoat

I played an open mic night last night in Downtown Fort Worth. The guy before me was a drummer and just wanted someone to play with, so they asked me. So I went up and asked the young man (25-ish) if he knew any Beatles, he said "no". Any Led Zeppelin? "no" any Jethro tull (just for fun) he had never even heard of "him". I am old. the music I love and have loved for decades is no longer even heard of by these younger people. We wound up playing Hey Jude and the guy just threw down a generic beat, but he had never heard it. Some in the crowd were singing with it. But when I was done, I checked an no one I found knew the song "goin' to California" by Zeppelin. I even asked if they'd heard of Mumford and sons doing that song, and no one I talked to knew anything.

Justin Beiber is now an "oldies" guy.

Anyway, its all going away. It was a fun ride. Its still a fun ride. I refuse to play current popular music, guess I see why I cant get gigs much any more. I finally am trying to play, and I find out the audience - and the music is on life support.

Funny, I did some scat vocalizing in lieu of a guitar solo, and I was asked (by a guy who was somewhat complimentary) "Wait... that's - that's actually a thing?". It was kind of fun realizing that no one knew what that was - or so it seemed. About 40 people in the place... No one knew who Jethro Tull was.

We all (hopefully) grow old, we all die. I think there will not be much of a move to preserve Rock - and especially prog. Sad, but I wont be here to mourn about it.

Sounds as if you had to play in the movie Yesterday.

**Gruno** · 01-30-2020

For years I had been saying that many future musicians may not care who The Beatles were or what they produced. It's already been happening, thankfully. The music industry has been rapidly fluid since MP3's came into the picture. The industry has changed in all aspects, including the songwriting process for making music. It is now called "production." Sure, the musicians who frequent this message board will continue to make music the old-fashioned way. However, you're a dying breed.

I am sure some of you caught this piece on Sunday:

This isn't the future: this is now.

**Jerjo** · 01-30-2020

Well, that's just dance pop and pop country that's all about multiple songwriters and "production". The kind of music Valerie Simpson is talking about at the end of that video isn't what's on the charts or popular at the Grammy awards. It's out there, on the edges, not getting airplay (except for public radio stations and internet radio programs) but it's still alive and finding listeners. Sometimes I'm in the car while World Cafe is on my NPR station and the amount of actual bands and solo acts making music (and that's not pop) is staggering. You won't hear it in the lowest common denominator programming but it is out there. I don't think the breed is dying, just not as visible and certainly not on what constitutes top 40 radio these days.

The model has changed so much since the era favored by most of us on PE. Only a handful of artists can sell a million albums now whereas the amount of platinum albums in a year in the 70s was staggering. The money is either in YouTube views and in touring.

**hFx** · 01-30-2020

"Then a crowd a young boys they're a foolin' around in the corner
Drunk and dressed in their best brown baggies and their platform soles
They don't give a damn about any trumpet playin' band
It ain't what they call Rock and Roll
And the Sultans
Yeah, the Sultans, they play Creole
Creole

And then the man he steps right up to the microphone
And says at last just as the time bell rings
"Goodnight, now it's time to go home"
Then he makes it fast with one more thing

"We are the Sultans
We are the Sultans of Swing""

**Progbear** · 01-30-2020

Originally Posted by rcarlberg

It's 2020. The musical landscape is a wasteland.

That’s because music isn’t important in kids’ lives today. They don’t want to be rock stars anymore, they want to be game programmers or comic book artists. “Music” has been relegated to a functional background thing; for example, for study, kids listen to something called “low-fi beats.” It doesn’t matter who the artist is, it’s just something to have on in the background while you’re studying.