From Aces to Angels

Outro

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  I don't know what to make of the music of today. On the one hand I don't want to sound like an old fogey by being too critical, but then on the other, I can't imagine that thirty years hence, the young people of today will look back with nostalgia listening to some unintelligible rapper. I could be wrong of course, stranger things have happened, and if that's what young folks choose to listen to, who am I to disagree.
  In fairness though, there is still some good pop music being written now, but due to vested interests and the naked exploitation of the young, it seems to be lost in the monotonous thump thump of insipid dance music. Having said that, there are still very few pop songs of the calibre of 'Whiter Shade of Pale' or 'You've Lost that Lovin' Feelin' being written these days. To be fair, the young record buying public have always been exploited but not to the extent that they are these days.
  One thing I do notice though is that the sixties seems to be an endless source of material for bands of today looking for good songs to cover. Just before you pounce on me, I accept that the sixties, like the decades that preceded and followed them, produced some good songs and some crappy songs yet still they were considered innovative. Even young bands like Boyzone, and that young American band, Hanson, to name only a couple, have covered a few sixties numbers.
  In a strange way it gives me a bit of a buzz when I hear Rachael (an incurable Hanson and Backstreet Boys fan) singing songs like the old Spencer Davis hit, 'Gimme Some Lovin,' and 'Money' (both covered by Hanson). Ah well they say what goes round comes round, and I suppose music's no exception.
  I've noticed that the sixties disease has even percolated down to a few radio D.J.s, especially ones of my own generation. Some of them will play nothing but sixties music while others flatly refuse to play any at all. I find both positions untenable and a bit silly and immature.
  In this highly technological, computerized age, I find it hard to guage the way that music is developing. With the advent of full orchestral accompaniment on sophisticated keyboards, sequencers, samplers, mini discs and midi files (backing tapes are now old hat), live music appears to be on the wane. Even most of the top boy bands and girl bands prefer to mime on stage. This in my opinion amounts to cheating their fans. 
  The new technology certainly is a boon to some lead singers who just want to get up on the stage and sing, reap the benefits, but not do any of the donkey work.
  By no means am I opposed to technological advances but I think technology should complement musicians rather than replace them which seems to be the case today. I have used this technology myself in song contests and such and while it certainly is convienient and can cut out a lot of the hassle, it still can't compete with the human touch of live musicians. Not only that. If your little machine breaks down on stage, then unless you can do a one man a cappella act, you're up the creek without a paddle.
  One of the worst to suffer seems to be the poor drummer because machines can now accurately produce most drum sounds and rhythms. The same applies to keyboards when it comes to a whole range of sounds including strings and brass. But I must say that lucky for me and other guitarists, I have yet to come across a keyboard that can faithfully reproduce a good electric guitar sound.
  There are two types of contempory music that I find hard to take. The first is the 'punk' of the seventies with it's supposed political message and complete absence of any meaningful lyrics or music (thankfully it was short lived and hopefully has gone forever). The second is modern country with its corny contrived lyrics (e.g. 'Friends in Low Places') and its hotch potch of watery pop/rock music. As in the pop field, do they not write songs with the haunting strains of 'Riders in the Sky' (not the horrible disco instrumental version inflicted upon us by The Shadows in 1980) or 'Gunsmoke Trail' anymore? Call me an ole timer if you wish but I definitely prefer the country tunes of yesterday. 
  As far as the former is concerned, with literally the exception of one or two bands, it has nothing to recommend it, whereas to the latter, I refer to the music itself and not the artists as there are some good modern country bands and singers around. I have to say that there are other types of music I'm not too fond of, but these two top the list.
  On reflection I thought perhaps that I was being a little hard on punk. Then I heard 'Top of the Pops 2' one night where the sex pistols were 'singing' 'Pretty Vacant' and I suddenly realised that it was pretty awful and even worse than I remembered. In my mind, the spittin' pogo boys were definitely a blight on the musical landscape. I'll concede that occasionally in both categories, the odd good song comes along but they're few and far between. 
  I could prattle on at length about this, but the less said the better. Again this is just a personal opinion and people are entitled to listen to whatever they want.
  To end this chapter on a sweeter note, after using a Gibson L6S for a while, I finally got my 'Les Paul,' a lovely black instrument, in 1977. I still have it and it's now my most prized possession.
  I have now reached the stage in my life where I've decided that travelling in bands is a young man's game.  Even though the mode of transport and the roads network are vastly superior to what we were used to, I personally don't relish the idea of traipsing around the country four or five nights a week. A little residency in a nice comfy hotel perhaps? Of course if you're in the big league, staying in the best hotels and being ferried to the gigs in a stretch Limo, well that's a different matter. 
  Finally, I've been lucky enough to have had a couple of little books published locally. If you're reading this, then this is another one. But when all is said and done, music still is, and probably always will be (outside my family of course), my first love.
  Although it was quite difficult at times, I really enjoyed researching and writing this book, for in a sense doing so made me feel like I was reliving those days. Now that I'm about to close the final chapter, I feel strangely empty as if I've come to the end of another fond era. From the outset I promised myself that when I reached this stage I wouldn't go to pieces, but if you look carefully at this page you just might see a few faint tear stains. 
  But leaving silliness aside for a moment, I hope you've enjoyed what I've written and it had the same effect on you (if you're old enough to have lived through the sixties that is). Even if you aren't, perhaps it has given you younger readers an insight into what the music scene in Derry was like during that crazy period of twentieth century history. Personally, while I struggle
to come to terms with the uncertainties of the third millennium, I think I will always be haunted by the lingering pathos of the nineteen sixties.

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