POOR BOYS AND PILGRIMS WITH FAMILIES AND WE ARE GOIN TO GRACELAND
someone posted this on wboard about paul simon's graceland. interesting how i never much thought about it, having rown up with the album.
5dollarBud posted this on May 11th, 2006 at 11:25:29 am
ugh that record makes me furious, why it isn't titled GROSS CULTURAL APPROPRIATION IN THE MOST PREDICTABLE 1980S FASHION IMAGINABLE is beyond me. perhaps they thought that title a tad wordy. it's like the failed policies of euro-centric multiculturalism in musical form.
posted by Antlers at 5/11/2006 11:30:00 AM
1 Comments:
yo dude. haven't read your web log in a minute. this one sticks to me.
not sure what i think about 5dollarBud's assessment. since most music (almost all good music anyway) contains material from somewhere outside the one that spawned it (right?), where does the line go? when does it become appropriation? or at what point does the appropriation become despicable? (objectifying .. commodifying even)
so ok. what is infuriating? obviously, some things are clearly cringe-inducing - like when you hear an out-of-context gong to mean "east asia!" or sitar to mean "india!" pretty blatant objectification. but what about graceland? it's not so clear-cut. yes. there are some very loudly "african!" sounds in it. but they're not completely out of context and they are musical (i defy you not to groove to 'i know what i know'). can i put a talking drum on my record without being a gross cultural appropriator? where's that line?
and
what assumptions are being made about the songwriter(s)? do paul simon's intentions matter? i think i'm starting to get dizzy. i'm gonna leave this one for now...
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